Crowds: questions and Band 8 answers

Not if I can help it, really. I tend to avoid the city centre during peak hours because it gets completely packed. That said, I commute on the underground train every morning, so I don't always have much of a choice, especially around eight o'clock.

To be honest, I find it quite overwhelming after a while. If I'm stuck in a massive group of people, like at a music festival, I start to feel a bit claustrophobic and just want to find a quiet spot to catch my breath.

Mainly things like street markets and railway stations. I actually quite enjoy the lively atmosphere of an open-air food market on a Saturday morning, even though you have to elbow your way through the stalls to buy fresh bread or fruit.

I think I was far more tolerant of them back then. When I was a teenager, my friends and I would happily queue for hours outside the cinema or hang out in packed shopping centres, whereas nowadays that sort of chaos just tires me out.

I don't think so, no. While I love visiting bustling capitals for a weekend break, living somewhere with constant crowds and heavy foot traffic would definitely wear me down. I'd much rather settle in a calmer town where there's plenty of breathing space.