It seems that many of us like, or even crave, attention. Why else would we see grown people on TV offering themselves for mass scrutiny through the eating of assorted insects, or people working their socks off to receive publicly bestowed awards? This is to say nothing of little children who dance and run and play instruments, with the incentive of gaining praise and honour, and sometimes even a certificate or medal or tube of Smarties.

Anastasia (not her real name) was not immune from this human trait but, like other shy and shrinking violets, she needed to think carefully about how to achieve both fame and anonymity. It was an interesting problem.