Richard Fidler

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Not something you could have predicted yourself doing in a million years?

Simon Blue Robinson certainly has.

Blue spent a year as personal assistant and private secretary to the legendary ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev.

Before that, Blue had played rugby, surfed a lot and sailed yachts in the Caribbean.

By his own account, he knew absolutely nothing about dance.

And then he found himself working for Nureyev, celebrated as the greatest male ballet dancer of the 20th century.

Nureyev had defected from the USSR in 1961, slipping away from his KGB minders in Paris during the height of the Cold War.

The drama of his personal story, along with his phenomenal talent, made Rudolf Nureyev an international sensation.

His career included dancing with the Royal Ballet in London and directing the Paris Opera Ballet.

But by the time Blue met him, Nureyev was carrying a secret, was one that would ultimately claim his life.

Hi, Blue.

Let's begin very far from the glamorous world of international dance, the Isle of Jersey, where you grew up.

What sort of place was it when you were a kid?

How did you spend your time as a boy?

And what was the usual career trajectory for boys like you on Jersey?