Fifty one years ago I was stranded in Barcelona with no money, a few friends and a lot of time on my hands. I was on my year abroad, the universities were shut because someone had thrown eggs at the rector of Valladolid University the previous October, and I had decided to travel rather than find a job! But my allowance hadn’t come through and I was pesetaless.

A friend let me share her bed clandestinely. She would leave me there in the morning – she went out everyday for her harp lessons – where are you now, Eirlys Jones? and make me promise to stay under the covers with only my hair showing when her landlady came to clean the room. Then I would emerge to go and have a bath at the public baths, and then sightsee. Or whatever. But I was very lonely.

Then by chance I met an old friend from London. Tony Kingsley. He had a gig at the British Council and I had gone along to see the show. We had only really met once or twice before I left for Sheffield University, but luckily he remembered and invited me the next day back to his flat for dinner.

When I got there his flat mate and colleague was also there, John Hall, who turned out to be a fascinating person. Very charming and very creative. I seem to recall spending quite a bit of time in their flat in the ensuing weeks, (they fed me well) and at some point John made me the ring in the photos out of pipe cleaners.

I have kept it ever since. It seems to have faded a bit, more’s the pity, but I have treasured it – handmade specially for me. It was very vibrant. Lovely blues and greens, sadly faded now.

I left Barcelona soon after and never saw either of them again. But this little ring brought back some very pleasant memories.