Work Life Quiz: Andrew Brecher, Brecher

What was your first-ever job?

Working as an (unqualified) golf coach in Switzerland while I was a student.

What was your worst ­experience as a trainee?

Being picked up by my ­collar and thrown out of another solicitor’s office into the snow outside ­during an attended ­completion, only to later find that my supervising partner had put the ­vendor’s solicitor up to it.

Where’s the best place to go if you want to find out what’s really going on in the office?

The kitchen.

What time do you usually leave the office?

Between 7pm and 8pm.

What do you do at weekends?

Relax with my family, play golf and try not to go ­shopping with my ­daughter.

What’s your favourite ­restaurant?

Le Caprice.

If you weren’t a lawyer what would you have been?

A sports journalist.

What’s your favourite film?

Rocky.

What was the first record you ever bought?

Breakfast In America by Supertramp.

Who’s your hero and why?

Winston Churchill. ­Without his courage, self belief and vision I wouldn’t be here now.

What’s the best thing about your job?

I enjoy the opportunity to not only operate at the intellectual sharp end of large property transactions but also the wheeling and dealing and networking required to put them together in the first place.

What’s the toughest thing about your job?

Dealing with the ever-growing tide of ­regulations.

What’s your biggest work/career mistake and what did you learn from it?

I’ve made some ­management decisions that were emotionally ­driven rather than logical (which I felt would have been hard hearted) and then ­regretted it when ­people I had supported later let me down.

What car do you drive?

A Mercedes E Class ­Convertible.

What book are you reading?

Abba Eban: An ­Autobiography.

What’s your favourite ­children’s book?

Any of the Jennings books by Anthony Buckeridge.

What’s the most exciting deal/case you’ve worked on?

The purchase of the Burlington Arcade in ­Mayfair last year. The ­commercial negotiations were very delicate and the stakes very high, and a lot hinged on my being able to win over the vendor on my client’s behalf.

I had to coordinate an ­international team of seven law and ­accountancy firms in ­different time zones. My team and I hardly slept for three months but it was worth it.

If you were stranded on a desert island what two luxury items would you take?

My golf clubs and a fully fuelled helicopter, in case I couldn’t build a golf course.

What’s the worst partner ­conference location you’ve attended and why?

Anywhere with nice weather and a good golf course, as the last place on earth I would want to be is in the conference.

What’s the longest you’ve worked without sleep?

Forty-eight hours on an “attended exchange” back in 2001.

If a movie was being made about your life, which actor would play you and why?

Paul Newman because he was good looking, charming, intelligent and witty. The only downside is that he looks nothing like me.

Who would you least like to be stuck in a lift with and why?

My worst nightmare would be to be stuck in a lift with a 20-stone body-building anti-semite with bad body odour and anger ­management issues.

Tell us two truths and one lie about yourself (in any order)

I’ve changed my car four times in the last year; I’ve never lost my temper with a client; I never go out for lunch.