As the World’s Most Tense Scotsman™ Jon spends most of his days devising fiendish ways to increase his tension. He manages this with consummate ease.
As an accomplished gamer, he can often be found with a gamepad in his hand. Until recently – although enamoured by the technology and gadgets in general – his position was that the current generation of consoles had done little for gaming. This despite owning all of the three major systems.
That viewpoint changed when Red Dead Redemption was released, was utterly demolished once he’d spent an hour playing Skyrim and has never gone back to normal after an hour or two with Breath of the Wild.
Prior to this his favourite games had been Resident Evil 4, Ico, Shadow Of The Colossus and Gradius V all of which still hold a special place in his affections but none of which he thought would ever be bested by a title on the current generation.
Despite his recent revelations he can still be heard to mutter that graphics are not everything. Usually at the same time as he’s praising Breath of the Wild’s beautiful and immersive game world.
He’s a contrarian, that much is true.
Retro gaming is also a hobby – Commodore 64 games being his biggest turn on – in particular their music. Music which regularly features on his iPhone’s play list. Ah, the iPhone. Another example of his contrary nature.
For years Jon had nurtured a deep-seated hatred of all things Apple, until the day he accidentally purchased an iPod. He claims it was a gift for someone else, despite it never reaching its intended recipient, and from that day on it was a gradual creep towards an entirely Apple life.
Seven years later, Jon is the proud owner of an iMac, MacBook Air, iPad, iPhone and several iPods. His breakneck U-turn on the subject stands as a lesson to keeping your mouth shut.
Of course he has since gone back to using Windows and Android. Did we mention he’s a contrarian.
In contrast to his love of technology and video games he has a deep hatred of sport. With the notable and odd exceptions of snooker and badminton. The latter of which he plays – on occasion – the other he merely spectates, talking no interest in its players or competitions rather the skill with which it’s played.
His desire to avoid football at all costs leads him to not mix well with real men. He loathes football and has often stated he would rather pull out his own finger nails than watch the match with the boys.
Other interesting facts about Jon are that he has vowed never to watch Top Gun. Ever. And that recently he was fortunate enough to have a theme tune written for him – well, his alter ego – by Matthew Gehrett.
The Top Gun vow is bold but one he feels he will be more than capable of keeping and the theme tune is rather splendid; take a listen.
When not at work, Jon can be found in Stafford with his wife Lindsey, darling daughter Verona and special little son Grayson, where he is very happy.