WANTING IT ALL

Cherie Booth has it all, doesn't she? - the fascinating and well-paid job, the successful partner, the four kids, the wardrobe ... You don't even need to meet her; you simply know she'll be incredibly impressive in person. She's not just one half of a power couple; she's got the whole power family.

Looking back, that was who I wanted to be, although it was never an explicit goal. Not the PM's wife, of course, but a professional woman at the top of my field with an equally successful partner and a family.

Perhaps I'm kidding myself, but at the age of 33 and as MD of a business and with a high-flying lawyer for a husband, it all seemed there for the taking. We were the next generation, waiting in the wings; it could have been us next! A wolf pair, with a few cubs thrown in for good measure.