2157This is Martin Schoales, who heard my chat on World Radio Switzerland about the SOTM World Tour and came down to share his story. He used to be deputy general manager when the station was called World Radio Geneva.

Of his SOTM, he said in his audio clip that he was told it “in 1963, when I was a 13-year-old schoolboy” back in Leeds in the UK. “The English class was starting for the new term. Our teacher was handing out the book which was going to be our term book to read and discuss. The title was Shane.

”I said to him ‘Oh no, not a cowboys and Indians western’. And he came towards me with the book, and quite incorrectly by today’s standards he hit me over the head with it, and said this to me. I read the book and it turned out to be something completely different to that which I’d anticipated based on what I’d heard about it from other people.

For 50 years I’ve used this idiom that he gave me in my life and I’ve made it a rule never to open my mouth until I have established everything about the subject under discussion.” Taken in Geneva, Switzerland on the SOTM World Tour with the help of Eurail.com.