Q & A - Terence Conran

Sir Terence Conran celebrates his seventieth birthday in October 2001, an event destined to be noted widely - there are few people within the British retail, design or restaurant scene who have not benefited from his creative influence.

Conran's life has been extraordinarily full and varied, with several consistent interwoven strands established when he was a very young man. After studying at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, he helped design several projects for the 1951 Festival of Britain; he worked as a plongeur in a Paris restaurant during his first trip to France in 1953, soon afterwards opening his first restaurant, the Soup Kitchen, in London; and he opened his first shop, Habitat, on Kings Road in 1964.

There are now Conran Shops in Britain, France, Germany, Japan and the USA. Conran restaurants, which in London include Bibendum, Bluebird, Quaglino's and Le Pont de la Tour, are also to be found in far-flung places. Conran still designs many of the items produced by the furniture design and manufacture company Benchmark; while Conran & Partners, his architecture and design practice, has an international reputation.

But Terence Conran's passions are by no means limited to his business interests. He is a passionate Londoner, with the developments of the Michelin Building and Butlers Wharf to his credit, as well as the foundation of the Design Museum. Ever since his first trip to France he has been a lifelong Francophile, owning a house in Provence to which he regularly escapes. Gardening is another passion, and his two gardens designed for Chelsea Flower Show have been highly praised. He is a famous connoisseur of cigars.

As you might expect, this will be an autobiography with a difference. For a start, it will be highly illustrated, as befits someone whose work has had such an impact on our surroundings. More unusually, the text will be structured as a series of questions and answers, with Conran candidly responding to questions contributed by friends, family and peers, covering all areas of his life, from childhood to the present day.