Now portraits are tricky. Some of the best known portraits in the world are taken by photographers of celebrities. And because the subject in the photo is a celebrity, quite a lot of the time, that’s all there is in the frame. White background, beautifully lit, with a great personality in front of the camera in black and white… winner winner, chicken dinner. But if I were to put myself, Joe Nobody, against a white background, well lit, black and white conversion… Meh! So what?

When I was born, “The Wall” was already 10 years old. As I sat drinking coffee in a Berlin cafe, it was almost surreal to imagine that during my lifetime The Berlin Wall had existed, been lethally enforced and had tumbled, reuniting two halves of one of the most interesting, vibrant and progressive cities in Europe.