Séamas O’Reilly: Compared to dungeon life, I’ll take the freckles and sweat in my stride’

On his ever-evolving, particularly idiosyncratic relationship with the sun

‘The sun’s specific physical effects for me, as someone with very-nearly-transparent skin, are numerous’

A strange feeling has come over me this year, as the sun peeks through clouds and begins warming my skin. I like it. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that I want more.

This has not always been the case. I’ve spent most of my adult life as pretty much the opposite of a sun-worshipper, a solar Richard Dawkins who is not just uninterested in sunbathing and beachside lounging, but actively opposed ...