more than that Peter, other than thanks for 'For Your Pleasure' and 'Low', two of my favourite albums ever!

but I expect I would have bottled it; so well done you.

I was miffed that I could only get tickets last summer for the 2nd performance of 'Apollo' at the Science Museum - the one at which Brian was not giving the introductory 'talk' - for I had secretly resolved to rush up and give him a big hug at the end.

Pah. It's just another day on earth, innit.

you didnt have your pack of "Oblique Strategy" cards with you then..they would have told you what you might have said!

at my mate's book reading, I just blurted out something along the lines of "Excuse me Mr Eno, I just wanted to say that Here Come the Warm Jets is the most amazing thing I've ever heard." (I was much, much younger then: I hadn't actually heard the rest of his solo output. I quickly rectified that.)

The book reading was a memorable event in other ways, as the author decided to interrupt his reading by inhaling from two large helium cannisters and singing Mr Mister's American drivetime classic "Broken Wings". Eno had brought the helium bottles along himself.

However, what really fascinated me is that throughout my gush he was looking benignly into my eyes - but in my periphery vision I'd noticed his right hand had artfully or absent mindedly snaked out to repeatedly and tenderly caress my (then) girlfriend's arm.

Stroke... stroke... stroke. "Thanks, that's kind of you to say" stroke... stroke... stroke... "Oh really? Yes, well thank you" stroke... stroke... stroke...

Afterwards, she couldn't make up her mind whether to be utterly delighted or totally bemused. I was over the moon, personally.

I'm new to the Massive, by the way. You seem like friendly types. Hello!

glad to have you on board

"Thanks for all that ambient music..it's rilly great"

I'd refer to his excellent book A Year With Swollen Appendices Look like it's out of print now. Well worth a read if you can find it.

... I'd fetched out something arcane from his backstory and get his attention with that - Mr Eno, I really appreciate the work you're doing with the Long Now Foundation, or something of that ilk.

But I'd really want to say 'The guitar sound on Heroes is stunning - what did you and Fripp do to get it, and how did you and Visconti work together on that album? And tell me about making Fear of Music. And I forgive you for working with U2 and Coldplay. And I'm in a band - do you want to hear us? And produce us - for nothing! And do you know I got married at the same place as you. Oh, Brian, Brian, be my friend.'

But what I'd really say is 'bluh bluh flustered giggle bluh bluh panic bluh bluh lame wisecrack bluh bluh hasty embarrassed retreat' in a trembly, pathetic voice, the same one that came out when I met Geoff Boycott.

you should look him up! He's prepared to go from the Andies to the Indies in just his undies. Sing Aurora Borealis, uber alles, on toast!"

...way before she was my wife, about 10 years ago. In fact, we'd known each other only months. She was working on a photo shoot at a house in Northumberland and called me at my desk: "Have you heard of a bloke called Brian Eno?"

"Have I?! You know all those thousands of CDs and records I have at home? Well one of them, called My Life in the Bush of Ghosts is my favourite and was made by him. Why do you ask?"

"Well, he's here at the house," she replied. "I had breakfast with him and we spent the morning playing Connect 4. He's with his two daughters and we're off for a picnic shortly. He's really nice.'

Turns out the house in Northumberland is Eglingham Hall. If you check the credits on MLitBoG, it says "Rooks on Help Me Somebody recorded at Eglingham Hall. Thanks to April Potts."

I went a bit mental on the phone. My wife went back to the kitchen and said to Brian, "Are you the Brian Eno who made, erm, My Bush of Ghosts or something...?"

"Ye-es..."

'Oh, I've just been on the phone to my boyfriend and he's a really big fan.'

Eno let out a weary sigh. "Why is it always the boyfriend?"

My wife returned from that trip full of stories about the few days she spent with Eno, and with a page torn from his diary enscribed "To Chris: among the rooks again, ENO."

I've since got to know April and her husband Pete and stayed at Eglingham Hall many times. April was tickled pink when I got her to sign my vinyl of MLitBoG (original, including Qu'ran, of course!) I got to meet Eno there in January 09, unfortunately at Pete's funeral, so hardly the place to ask him how he got that synth squelch noise on Regiment.

Here's Eglingham Hall, taken by me on 21 December 2001:

Once on a beach on Northumberland watching some Bulgarian women sing to the sea, he was sat just up from me drinking from a can of lager - i was surprised by that, I expected him to be drinking ocelots tears or some such, and the next time at the baltic in Gateshead at his exhibition. I stood next to him for ages, not daring to speak, I really wish I had. I heart eno.

We moved to his hometown about 10 years or so ago and he still kept a house there that was about 150 yards from the one we bought. I didn’t know this until 3 or 4 years later when a local said ‘I see Brian Eno has sold his house down the road from yours’. I’m guessing he didn’t use it much, although his mother still lives in the town apparently and his brother lives around here somewhere. I’m not sure what I would have said as much as I love the first 2 Roxy records I’ve never bought any of his solo stuff. I did enjoy his installation thingy in Selfridges though.

Fascinating eh?

Accompanied only by ambient background noise (e.g cars, birds twittering, leaves rustling). Either that or I'd have asked him why he had a gold tooth fitted.

It would be the boyfriend, wouldn't it - how many girls do you know that have MLItBoG as their favourite album?

Me, I think it's a fantastic record, but then, I'm a bloke.

Pytches Road? Sadly not. I'd heard he sold the one in Pytches Road and bought a much smaller house in Castle St, while keeping hold of some land between the two. Although given the inaccuracy of the rest of the info - I wouldn't class Bungay as around here - that probably wasn't true either. It would certainly explain why I never saw him.

You're right,it is nice and we were fortunate to get a house toward the 'top' end, near the school, before prices went too stupid. It is a lovely place to live and everything is in walking distance as well. I work in Ipswich these days so I have the additional pleasure of the train journey.

Enjoy your visit home and thanks for the info.