Trying to climb the ladder in the big city (thankfully not in the banking sector!), and hopefully making a few friends along the way.

I'm pretty open minded when it comes to entertainment; equally happy at a club or rock concert, going on camping weekend with mates, setting the world to rights with friends over a few beers, or chilling with a DVD and a bottle of vin rouge (or glass of single malt if the mood takes me).

I have come to the conclusion that certain things in life are best experienced with a member of the opposite sex by my side, and even better if it happens to be the same person on a regular basis. Take your mind out of the gutter if this heart-felt sentiment has you in fits of laughter right now ... ;-)

I'm trained as a scientist, but after four years studying Chemisty generated little in the way of original thought, I decided to apply my numeracy skills to the world of finance. Fortunately I'm client-facing, so get to move around a bit and it's more problem solving and project management than number crunching these days.

I've been in London for seven years now and still keep noticing new things about it. I prefer to think of this as part of London's charm rather than a slur against my powers of observation.

Fixing things - the fence, the car, blown hifi speakers - I'll generally have a go before resorting to professional help. I was gutted when I was unable to fix the washing machine last time it broke, but felt vindicated when the repairman had to resort to brute force after over an hour.

That I look a heck of a lot like my father did at my age? Not sure what complete strangers notice - what was the first thing you noticed?

In no particular order:

Books: Just finished 'The Black Swan', which I really enjoyed and will probably read again soon to make sure I heed its warnings in future. Again on the non-fiction point I quite enjoyed reading a bit of Richard Dawkins.

On the fiction-side books I have enjoyed include: The curious incident of the dog in the nighttime, Vernon God Little, The Time Traveller's Wife (is it me or does everyone put this one down?!), Long Way Down, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, 2001, Animal's People.

Films: The Prestige, Gattaca, Full Metal Jacket, Blade Runer, Forrest Gump, Anchorman, Dodgeball, American Pie, Road Trip, Vertigo, Top Gun, V for Vendetta.

Music: Favourite band ever - The Rolling Stones. As for what else you'll find me listening to, my tastes are pretty eclectic. At the moment it'll most likely be: The Who, Kasabian, Mumford & Sons, Muse, Kings of Leon, Razorlight, Blur, Ray Lamontagne, Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Nirvana (especially Unplugged), Bob Dylan, The Beatles, U2, The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, Led Zeppelin or Pearl Jam. Current (not so) guilty pleasure is the new Paolo Nutini album.

Food: European food mostly - Italian's my favourite, alongside traditional English, and French restaurants are generally awesome too. Still appreciate a good curry though and to be honest there's not much that I won't eat.

Family, Friends, Music, Good Food, Good Beer/Wine, My Car (or Oyster card for Zones 1&2)

At the moment it's whether I should attempt to buy a flat in London on top of the usual 'background noise' of food, girls, cars, gadgets and childish procrastination (seven years in London and still haven't seen a baby pigeon!)

What's a 'typical Friday'? I might be watching a DVD at home, enjoying some time to myself after a long week at work OR in the pub with friends celebrating an easy/tough week at work OR driving off somewhere for a long weekend. It varies.

Have recently discovered that the late night 'for grown-ups' evenings at the Science Museum are a great laugh.

I'm happiest at a gig, or something like the XFM "Big Night Out" with a few bands and some Indie DJs. The world needs more events like that. Fancy dress parties also rock, as evidenced by my profile photos. Some of my friends think I enjoy dressing up a bit too much, but I assure you it's just for parties.

I'm a little old fashioned. Each to their own, but I don't really do the whole 'no strings' thing. From experience it's a short-term ego boost, but ultimately self defeating. That's not to say I approach every date hoping she's 'the one' (the fun is in finding that out or not), but if you're only after a casual fling then probably best you move along to the next profile ...

You think you might have a similar outlook on life (although how you'd work that out from this profile is anyone's guess!), don't take yourself too seriously, and your idea of a good weekend doesn't involve banned substances! Wouldn't say I have a 'type', I like to judge people on their merits.

You should also be interested in meeting for real. It's near-impossible to decide if someone's right or wrong for you based on a short profile and a few emails on this site, when half an hour over a coffee will tell you so much more.