'Arriving Where I Started', a memoir of my first three decades, ended a little cryptically with 'We were embarking on an awfully big adventure.' And so it proved. Sadly, my marriage did not survive, but that is as much my children's story as mine and our versions may differ. I have no interest in sharing the details. I was, however, faced with the need to build some kind of career while doing the best I could for three children nearing adolescence. I've reflected here on the opportunities and difficulties I, and many other women, faced in the 1970s and have explored the definition of 'work'. As a freelance, I worked in what in some ways resembled the current gig economy, though rather better paid. I've selected the more interesting and often amusing events, framed by major social developments, especially the growth of feminism.

I have been lucky in needing fewer than the fingers of one hand to mark the times I've not looked forward to a working day. However, for many, equality and a fulfilled life are still a distant dream.