Interview - Craig Gannon

Name:	Craig Gannon
Age:	38
Job:	IT Consultant
Date of interview:	17th July 2002

Do you live in Skipton?
Yes – I have lived here for 5 years, but know the town well after having gone to school here.

Do you have family here?
No, no family in Skipton itself, but both my parents and my wife’s parents live over the border in Barnoldswick. It’s nice to go over to the homeland (Red Rose country) regularly.

	I’ve seen a lot of changes since I went to school here, a lot of them for the worse. I could go on a rant about this...

What school did you go to?
I went to infants and primary school in Barlick, but managed to get to Ermysted’s from then on. One of the privaledged few I suppose, but things were a lot different then and (I believe) the schools were a lot better. It’s only now when I have my own kids going to school in Skipton do I realise what a chasm there is between Skipton schools and those outside the town. (It appears that those in Skipton don’t really try to get their kids in to the Grammar schools, whereas those outside of the town do).

Do you have a favourite pub in Skipton?
Rather than have some preferred pubs I have some preffered beer, that being the brew of the Tetley kind. – The usual haunts are the Railway with occasional jaunts to the Commercial and the Albion. I have been known to go in Y-Bar a few times, mostly to see my old school mate Don Rodgers.

What changes have you seen in the town over the years?
I’ve seen a lot since I went to school here, a lot of them for the worst. I could go on a rant about this but I shall try to keep it brief:

Family businesses – What’s happened to them? There now seem to be too many chains in the town and not enough traditional market town shops. I remember the times when you had to dodge the pheasants hanging down from the butchers shops as you walked along the high street. Instead of that you now have the shouting meat van and millions of charity and phone shops. I long for the days when we had Freddie Truman’s Sports shop and Fred Manby’s hardware.

Tourists – We need them for the money, but the tourists spend in Next and Thorntons and not the local businesses. We do some great days (medieval market, sheep day, etc) but don’t seem to be able to maximise the cash spends.

For the Better – We have more facilities than we used to do, and I would dearly love to see the local council’s game plan for the next ten years. – Streets seem to be cleaner, the train service is better (believe it or not). The new pool should be great (but please do the park as well).

What would you like to see better?
Get the parking sorted out and pedestrianise the High Street.

Describe your job in 5 words
Varied, Interesting, Indoors, Frustrating, Relaxed.

Do you love your job?
I use the word love for family. I enjoy it and it is certainly better than others, but a job is a job and a means to an end. If that end is before 65 then all the better.

How long have you been doing it?
I’ve been doing this now for 18 years. That may seem a lifetime, but the thing about IT is that it is constantly shifting. It seems more like 8 years sometimes.

How did you get into it in the first place?
Strangely enough it was a subject that did not interest me at all. It all started when I was living in Glasgow, was between jobs and applied for a post at the new Ministry of Defence building that was being built. The Civil Service being what it is I was actually offered a job at the Home Office IT Department that was (in those days) based near Liverpool. And that (as they say) is history.

What's your typical working day like?
Get up at 6 am, shower, drive 55 miles to work (half asleep), have a coffee, wade through email, sort out the day’s calendar, do the business to the best of my ability, drive 55 miles home, get home at 6 pm, switch off work mode and try to relax.

What's the best thing about your job?
It’s varied and interesting. No 2 days are like each other. I have the opportunity to meet and work with some great people, and have a laugh at some of the geeks. Seriously I would have ideally wanted to have been a Water Baliff, but this is a good second choice.

What's the worst thing about your job?
Frustration with people and politics, travelling and not getting out into the fresh air. – Other than that, very little is bad about it.

What's the strangest thing that's happened to you in this job?
Probably resigning from Microsoft. They were shocked – ‘Nobody resigns from Microsoft!!’

What do you see coming in the future?
Immediately a good holiday, medium term a new car, long term God Knows! In the IT world, I see a blend of Internet and the household, new PC architectures and the introduction of Smart Cards for every UK citizen.

What effect does the internet have on you at the moment?
Massive. Most of my research is done over the internet. Where possible I shop over the internet and communicate over the internet (sad really).

How do you see this changing in the future?
People’s attitude towards information, copyright and freedom of liberty. The whole medium of IT for the public is changing so quickly that it will soon be common to be able to get what you want at the click of a mouse. Unfortunately the UK is behind other countries with this. I see BT being broken up as a monopoly and Broadband being in every new house being built, and in most homes in 10 years. I see the mobile phone industry realising that internet on a phone is a waste of space. I also see some wholesale international clampdown on porn and porn sites on the internet, mail spamming being punishable by death and a fundamental back to basics look at what the internet is good at and good for.

Do you have a favourite website?
Yes, my own: www.crabacle.co.uk Other than that www.bbc.co.uk

What are your hobbies? How do you relax?
I used to go fishing and play a bit of golf before the kids came along. I now spend the summer Saturday's playing cricket for Skipton CI Cricket Club. As to the rest of the time, relaxation is few and far between.

What issue(s) is(are) close to your heart?
At the moment, schools and the health service.

If we gave you £5million right now what would you do with it?
Run for the hills and then have a good think.

Do you have anything you want to plug / publicise?
My web site: www.crabacle.co.uk

What other questions would you have liked us to ask you?
What really pisses you off? And; What really turns you on?

What Really Pisses You Off?
Drugs, irresponsible dog owners, people who don’t say please or thankyou, people who treat kids like 3rd class citizens.

What Really Turns You On?
Sunshine, friendly people, live and let live, a good beer at the test match, good service.