Rogues Gallery: Matt Cheetham

For this, the third in my series of features on the people in my life, I have chosen to turn the spotlight on my friend Matt who I know from work and from D&D.

I first came to know of Matt however, through my brother and sisters social circle, or rather them referring to a character known as Moomin who they hung out with (more often than not at Henry's Bar). This often baffled me, as the Moomins were characters from a truly bizarre (and often downright freaky) childrens show from Finland that was shown on the BBC many years ago. Quite why Matt is known as Moomin has been explained to me on a few occassions, and everytime I forget it again.

I'd probably met him before, but finally got to know him when he joined the Bakery dept in the store where I work, which I also worked on at the time. To be blunt, Matt is a fairly intimidating person, he's a really nice bloke, great friend, fond of a laugh and doesn't take himself too seriously. He is also about 6'5", dresses mostly in black, has long hair, a deep voice and has the general look that if he wanted to do you some damage, the chances are good that you'd end up damaged!

He joined my D&D group a couple weeks into the start of the campaign I am running, and has been a regular member of the group ever since, lasting over a year now. My friend Dan brought him along, as a newbie player, as Matt's only other encounter with the game had gone bad when the person running the game (I'm looking at you Gareth), killed him in the first session!

He is by far my youngest friend, as he only recently turned 18. He recently left college and is currently taking a year out to do other things, before presumably heading off to University to do more learning. After learning the hard way, I know better than to take Matt on in a philosophical debate, as he has studied philosophy and can run rings around me on that topic!

He also seems to know everyone, or everyone knows him. On the walk back home through the town centre each friday night coming back from the Games Club, more often than not I walk and talk with him for most of the way. and also more often than not, we run into a group of people who know him and want to chat. I swear these are always different people, they always look different anyway.