This is parked next to the truck of his friend Liz who, for the rest of the year, "lives in a lay-by in Totnes, not by dint of circumstance, but just because she wants to".Don't you feel at odds here, though, Jonathan. What with your big Winnebago and being so rich and everything? "But that's why I come I come because it doesn't matter These people are hardcore alternative types. They don't care about money."Into his American motor-home thingie, which is full of kids Girls, boys Big ones, little ones But all happily dirty-faced and happily uncombed. I'm not sure, frankly, which are his and which are children from the camp, if it matters. Still, he has five children of his own from a set-up that's quite complicated Where to start? OK.

When he married Mel, she had a daughter (Jessica) from a previous relationship, as did he (Minnie). Together, they had three more, Jemima and twins Sofi and Izzak. But then, nine years ago, when the twins were seven months old, Mel was killed in a car crash. She went to pick up something from the village, careered off the road, and that was that, leaving Jonathan to bring up all five Tragic? Of course. But life goes on and kids do survive these things."When it first happened, my mum whisked the kids away for 48 hours and I went to Jessica's teacher to ask: what do I say? It was a Steiner school so I got the Steiner line, which is: tell them that mummy has gone to be with the angels in the stars.

So I said to Jessica: 'Mummy has gone to be with the angels in the stars.' " Was Jessica happy with that? "Oh, yes. She went round telling everybody: 'Mummy has gone to be with the angels in the stars and she's not coming back!' "I assume he's still on his own until I ask him if there's anything he's not been able to do for his children, that a mother would, and he says: "Oh, but they're not without a mother. They do have a mother.""Oh?""She's called Sue and has been with us since two weeks after Mel died.""The nanny?""Yes, it's been an on-off thing over the years, but we've just had a baby together. She was born on St Valentine's day and is called Tia.""Are the other kids happy about it?""They're very, very pleased.""Did you try to date other women?""Oh yes Definitely And how. In the first 24 hours, even before Sue turned up on the scene, I remember saying dear God, don't let me fall in love with the nanny because it's such an obvious clich?I spent years trying to chase elsewhere. I systematically pursued women I couldn't possibly form a long-term relationship with, like Liz I fell in love with her one summer. She's a wonderful person, really wise, but lifestyle-wise, how were we going to accommodate everyone?""In a lay-by in Totnes, you mean?""Yes."Sue, he says, is a Cancerian, "and a fairly predictable one, too.