Hexham was packed with early morning commuters walking to work. It was particularly difficult to get through the narrow gap next to the abbey with so many people fighting to reach their offices on time for a 09:00am start.

Once through the rush hour, however, TPR and I enjoyed the walk across the open fields that ran down to the river. I spotted a small wooden house built into a bank that even TPR might be tempted to buy. Further into our walk we came across a performing pony and its owner, then a series of colourful lorries. The circus was in town!

Soon the performers were setting up for their shows. Amongst them were a rock group, the members of which were all made up in styles similar to Heath Ledger when he played the Joker. There was also a mime artist dressed up as a pale blue shop dummy. Indeed his act was so convincing that members of the public believed that he was actually an automaton rather than a real person encased in plastic.

I chose to spend some time alone watching the performers. I carried my iPhone with me so that I could take some photographs. However, I was too shy to approach anyone for a picture.

I was away from TPR for such a long time that I needed to use the iPhone turbo function to speed my return to him by train. This made a huge difference to the time it took to travel to the station at Bill, just outside Chester, where TPR had (by now) booked into a hotel.

When I reached him TPR was sitting down for breakfast, shoeless and in shorts. He was actually quite surprised to see me – as was I, given that his new companion, and replacement for me, was a slippery black and tan ferret keen to slip its lead.