The summer holidays are here, and it’s time to lather up.

​I’m talking sun cream, of course, but considering the cascade of heatwaves we’ve already had this year, the time to start protecting our skin has long since passed.

Now though, as many of us get set to jet set on that well-earned family break abroad, it’s time to stock up on lotions and potions in earnest, and save our epidermis from a good ol’ grillin’.

I try to take the sun seriously these days, having heard far too many terribly tragic stories about the effects of UV rays over the last few years.

When I was a younger chap though, I couldn’t have cared less, and, in fact, ritualistically sought out to give my body the best barbecuing I could.

In this I was inspired by my mother – a lady who considered factor 2 sun lotion and a glass of summer fruits Oasis and vodka as the twin pillars of a perfect holiday.

Thanks to her father’s mainland European heritage, my mum was blessed with skin that never burned and tanned obnoxiously beautifully within hours.

As such, she was never one........

© Shropshire Star