I’m due to film a piece for the BBC1 One Show on Friday on the Credit Card Shuffle. The idea of these films is generally to have some fun as well as get the serious point across. So while discussing a ‘theme’ with the producers, as it’s the ‘Shuffle’ dancing was obvious. Keen blog readers may’ve spotted...

Sadly this evening my father was taken into hospital with a kidney problem. Thankfully it doesn’t seem to be too serious. As he’s in Manchester and I’m in London a visit isn’t possible, but of course I wanted to speak to him and check he’s ok. So I find myself having to use Patient Line. For those...

I’m an athletics fan, so walking into The One Show green room to see Colin Jackson today was great – I felt like quoting back some of his best times to him, but decided that probably wasn’t such a cool thing to do! Still, we were having a good laugh about cheap calls, living in Cardiff and...

Finally after years of doing my job, less and less BBC/ITV drivers arrive looking disappointed and saying “I thought it’d be the Martin (meaning Martyn) Lewis from the telly”. Now it’s coming from elsewhere… the US-based humorist Martin Lewis. I’ve known about him for a while as he owns www.martinlewis.com, which on its front page says in...

Today was a wonderful contrast to Monday (see the Sometimes I Hate My Job blog). I’ve been in Otley, Yorkshire to revisit the family I did a Christmas Debt Makeover on for Tonight with Trevor Mac nearly two years ago. Some of you may remember Kirstie and Paul, who were in terrible debt. The key moment was...

Got up at 6am. Travelled four hours to a small town near Burnley. Met a family for a Tonight with Trevor programme on debt – meant to be there to do a makeover. Lovely couple, three wonderful little children. Went through their finances. Realised there was not much I could do – they already had a Debt...

Now my language isn’t bad, like most I use the odd profanity when something happens, but nothing too awful. One thing I never do though is swear AT people. I think it’s horrible and nasty. Yet this morning that’s exactly what I did. I’m signed up to the Telephone Preference Service so I don’t get any junk...

The day in a nutshell: Train to Leicester – film an emotional day about debt for ITV, get motorcycle’d to Birmingham for The One Show, change shirt and go on air! I feel like a proper TV person doing this… strange! I’m once again on the train back from BBC1’s The One Show. During the day I...

I’m on the train returning from my first appearance on The One Show, the new 7pm BBC1 programme running for five weeks (actually it’s a pilot, and if it’s popular it’ll be commissioned to run all year). It was my mobile phone recycling film that I made in Cardiff today (read my blog on it). Tonight was...

Sadly my weekly column on the back page of Saturday Guardian’s Money section comes to an end this week. The section is having its page number reduced, which means there’s no longer any space for me. It’s a shame as the Saturday Guardian Money is one of my favourites amongst the personal finance press. I’m in two...