Maths is still a haunting experience

'I dreamt that I had to do A-level pure mathematics from scratch!' my best friend Heidi wrote in an e-mail. I could almost see her shrieking with fright.

Heidi was doing her second degree at a London institution where I did mine.

Our London experiences were very different.

She loved the library, preferred exams to essays, and hated the freezing winter. I was the exact opposite.

But the pure maths dream strikes a common chord.

When I was about to sit my final exams, I constantly dreamt of having to do another A-level pure maths exam.

To be honest, I never passed any school tests on the subject. It was a miracle that I managed the A-level at all.