More than 20 years ago now, my brother (who was maybe 9) had his friend over for lunch and the night before my brother had spent the night at his house.

So my mother asks what they got up to, and the friend says they were playing water pistol fights with his sister’s boyfriend, “Wa-kin”, who was visiting.

We then ask what the boyfriend does, and he responds that he’s an actor. (Just be aware now that we live in Johannesburg, South Africa.)

So we say, cool, has he acted in anything we might know?

And friend says something like “Oh, lots of movies, Gladiator, Signs, others…”.

At which point I remember thinking, “no way!” and “so that’s how Joaquin is pronounced” (as I’d only ever seen it written).

Turns out the friend’s sister was a model living in New York which explained the situation I would never have guessed.