Sacha Skarbek, 41, is a Grammy-nominated songwriter and two-time Ivor Novello award winner who most recently co-wrote Miley Cyrus’s worldwide hit song Wrecking Ball. The father-of-two lives in Dartmouth Park Hill, Dartmouth Park, and is the son of Highgate writer and founder of charity SANE, Marjorie Wallace.

What brought you to Dartmouth Park?

I was brought up in Highgate and have always loved the area. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else in London.

You have a day off to spend as you wish in the area, what would you get up to?

I’d go for a long run on the Heath, followed by breakfast at Kalendar in Swain’s Lane. Walk through the woods to Hampstead for lunch with the kids and then maybe a “quick” drink at one of the fantastic pubs in the area.

Is there anything about Dartmouth Park which you would like to see changed or improved?

Dog poo. It plagues the streets. Other than that, there are some derelict and wasted spots, which I would love to see developed.

As guest editor of the Ham&High for a day, what one local issue would you most like to see reported?

On a selfish note, I would like to buy an electric high-performance car, but there are no charging points near me. I would therefore like to see that issue reported on and hopefully bring about a few charging stations, preferably on my street, or even outside my house.

If you had to choose one song from another songwriter that you wish you had written, what would it be and why?

Live and Let Die because I’ve always wanted to be James Bond and whenever Paul McCartney plays it there always seems to be a big firework display and I love a good firework.

Who is the most inspiring person you have ever met?

Cat Stevens aka Yusuf Islam. He’s been there, done it and changed the T-shirt.

If you had to write your own epitaph, what would it say?

Not sure it would be correct, but I’d like it to say “lived with ambition, honesty, and integrity”. But it will probably say “partly responsible for writing some of the world’s most annoying pop songs”.

Sacha Skarbek was in converstaion with Tim Lamden