Neil Murphy

Group managing director, Bytes Technology Group

What was your dream career as a child?

Chief question maker upperer for CRN.

What has been your personal highlight of 2019?

The one just to the left of my centre parting.

Which famous person deserves a (gentle) slap?

Probably Mike Tyson - it would be dangerous to slap him any harder…

What two things (apart from family) would you grab if your house was on fire?

Some kebab skewers and the marshmallows.

Which of your 2019 predictions have come to pass?

I predicted that alien life would be identified on earth and that has been proved correct as one of them has taken over the White House.

What TV show have you binge watched this year?

The news - it's a fascinating but frightening dystopian daily fictional program that could never be played out in real life.

How has 2019 been from a business perspective?

I didn't realise 2019 was a business.

What annoys you most about your commute?

All the other commuters, how come they don't get to work a bit earlier?

If you could witness one past event, what would it be?

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand by Gavrillo Princip - I would try and make it look like it was some sort of accident or a suicide instead of the tinder that caused the First World War.

How do you explain the channel to people?

It's a narrow channel of sea that divides the European continent from the British Isles.

What have been your favourite and least favourite partner conference destinations?

My favourite has to be London as I can get the train home from Waterloo and the worst has got to be Las Vegas because it takes ages to get home by train from there.

What is the biggest challenge facing the channel in 2020?

Stopping people from trying to swim across one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. They are a real hazard.