In 2001 I bought a flat in the ex-council block where I'd been living since leaving university. A kind friend with an empty boot offered me a lift to B&Q to get some flooring. We didn't get further than the end of the street because a group of local kids decided to sit on the bonnet and stare at us until ? well, my guess is, until they got bored, we ran them over, or we were rescued by a police helicopter.

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