It is something very satisfying to whip up your own lather before shaving… to see a tiny bit of shaving cream and a few drops of water turn into a nice, thick, rich and nice smelling lather. The slightly cool feel as the eucalyptus and menthol lather first touches, and then covers, most of the face – and then taking it off with long, controlled strokes with my old fashioned safety razor. A quick splash of water, and then the sting of the alum as it finds the small nicks and scratches that I couldn’t see in the mirror.

It don’t matter if the lather cup I use is a bright pink snack bow from Ikea. It don’t matter if my brush is a reasonably cheap one from Body Shop. It don’t even matter that my bathroom is a ‘three toilets, three showers’ shared ablution container that – frankly – is a bit run down. What matters is that it’s five minutes of ManTime, and a link to my more or less daily routine at home. Try that with a spray can full of foam and plastic razors with five blades…