Could it get much worse? LC had accidentally timetabled me to teach on Mondays (traditionally my research day); nine other people had moved into my (now filthy) office; and I had a class in 10 minutes for which nothing was prepared.

My personal life was also a complete mess too. Now that I no longer had TPR, I was facing the prospect of spending Christmas as a single middle-aged daughter at my parents’ house. It was now urgent that I replace him. (The irony was that I had not yet signed up for Internet dating even though I enthused about it to others.)

The only good news was that AL, who was a first year HND student when I started teaching in 1989, had finally graduated with an honours degree.