My Secret Life: Paolo Nutini, singer-songwriter, 22

(Kevin Westenberg)

The home I grew up in ... I remember when we made the step from flat to house and I got my own room. It was a nice big house across the road from a lake and up the street from a country park

When I was a child I wanted to be ... Zorro

My greatest inspiration was ... my grandfather, who instilled a love of music in me. In the morning he'd listen to Scottish folk and in the afternoon it'd be opera. When someone senior from the local church came around, he'd play 'Boogie Woogie Piano Man'

The moment that changed me for ever ... happens all the time. I'm affected by the little things people say. Someone will say something and I'll think, 'Geez, that's right!' and then someone says something else a minute later and it changes my mind

I ride ... an amazing Puma bike which folds up. It glows in the dark

If I could change one thing about myself ... I'd like to be taller. I'm 5ft 10ins but I'd like to be 6ft 6ins. I'd like people to look at me and say: 'Fuck he's tall!' And I'd reply: 'Yes I am!'

At night I dream of ... I dreamt I was a kid again and went to the park with some friends, where we met a cartoon character called Christopher the Bear. He warned me that a great war had been coming between all my favourite comic characters and suddenly, all around us, an epic battle broke out

What I see when I look in the mirror ... somebody who could be doing more good

My style icon ... Neil Young

A book that changed me ... I read 'Lord of the Flies' and found parallels with me and my class mates. There are always those who are: every man for themselves. That book got me reading a lot more

The last album I bought ... was 'Blue Lines' by Massive Attack. I found a copy for £4

The person who really makes me laugh ... is the comedian Bill Bailey

It's not fashionable but I like ... brogues. They may be fashionable in east London, but they are not where I'm from

My favourite work of art ... I like looking at Salvador Dali pieces and uncovering hidden layers of composition

My favourite item of clothing ... is my Men at Work tour T-shirt, which is dynamite. It has shrunk a bit now and has become a belly top

You wouldn't know it but I'm very good at ... fencing

You may not know it but I'm no good at ... talking about myself

All my money goes on ... good question: where the hell does it all go?

If I have time to myself ... I'll have a read or play Football Manager on the computer

My house ... was built in the 1900s, with high ceilings and open fireplaces. It's near where I grew up in Paisley, and although it's a house to me, I do have someone above me, and another below, so really it's a spacious flat

My most valuable possession is ... a photograph in my house of my grandfather and my father at my first holy communion

My favourite building ... is Fallingwater, the house built by the architect Frank Lloyd Wright over a waterfall in Pennsylvania

Movie heaven ... would be one that comes at you from all angles, one minute it would have you frightened, then sweating and laughing

The best invention ever ... is the tea bag

In 10 years' time, I hope to be ... on a vineyard in Tuscany, tending my vines, drinking wine. Maybe at some point laying naked in a bath of wine?

My greatest regret ... is not paying more attention in school. I wanted to be the naughty one more than I ever was and really looked up to the class clown for a while

My life in six words ... fast, slow, in equal measures. Funky

A life in brief

Paolo Nutini was born in Paisley, Scotland, on 9 January 1987. His hits include 'Jenny Don't Be Hasty' and 'New Shoes', and his second album Sunny Side Up recently reached Number 1. Nutini continues to live in the Paisley area and his latest single, 'Coming Up Easy', is released by Atlantic on 10 August