Childhood for William Fiennes was magical, growing up in a medieval castle surrounded by a moat and fields. Life was interrupted each week by open days when the public traipsed through the castle with young William and his brother acting as guides. At other times film and television companies would descend on the castle to make period pieces such as Shakespeare in Love and the castle halls would ring with the sounds of clashing swords and the rigging of lights.

But for William’s family there was another element to contend with: Richard, his older brother, was epileptic. An attack scarred Richard’s brain, causing permanent damage and dramatic behavioural changes. His moods seemed to revolve around the fate of his football team, with a win resulting in exuberance and charming goodwill; a loss would induce fits of rage and frightening aggression towards his family. Fiennes’s account is a warm, positive and engrossing account of living with someone suffering from neurological illness. While Richard and his illness is always a presence; so, too are the castle and the family that gets on with its life. Fiennes beautifully evokes the conflicting images and experiences of his childhood and youth, producing a work of rare beauty.