Comment: Why I can still be bribed with food at almost 30-years-old

As a child, I was regularly bribed, coaxed and awarded with food.

The stand-offs which took place between my mother and I were not dissimilar to that of a hostage negotiator and a kidnapper.

With her sanity hanging in the balance, she would tentatively approach (sometimes holding my miniature megaphone for effect, sometimes not) and begin listing the various treats I would be provided with if I agreed to start playing by the rules.

And while I'd like to say that this period in my life ended with the development of a conscience, that would be a lie.

With my 30th birthday fast approaching, I am still the type of person who will decide whether an event is worth attending based on the potential food and snack situation.

Just shy of my third decade, I can be practically tranquilised with treats, mollified with the mention of a meal out, and placated with the possibility of a takeaway.

And it doesn't stop there.

I have, on more than one occasion, manufactured a boxset binge session purely to indulge my sweet tooth.

While the television drones on in the background, I can be found appraising my selection of goodies much like a monarch surveying its subjects.

I will sit through any show you care to switch on as long as I have sufficient snacks to keep me going.

Indeed, I have been bribed to sit through series of no interest to me by friends and family who are safe in the knowledge that the advice my mother has imparted will stand them in good stead.

For now, anyway.