They say that events always happen when you least expect them and I have now experienced this first hand!

I had gone to Geneva to see a lawyer about a fantastic lakeside villa and was overlooking Lake Geneva when I received a message from London that my wife had gone into labour (completely unexpectedly)  whilst I sat some 600 miles away.

The meeting went well and I navigated Geneva’s notorious rush hour traffic to catch my flight back to London that afternoon, an agreement reached and a child safely on the way!

Hopefully the excitement will have died down at home before my next trip out to the Alps in a couple of weeks’ time to see some excellent new chalets in Courchevel before the season really kicks off in December.

I might just have to pop into one of the ski schools to see at what age they start taking clients - hopefully Hodder-Williams jnr will inherit his father's love of the piste!