[Redway]

Example of lovely, appropriate, well-intentioned asking: ‘you’ve got such beautiful, chocolate-y/olive skin and Chioma/Obinna/Moyinoluwa/Oritsetosan | Manpreet/Fahd | Klestore | Ageous sounds like such a lovely name. Is that representative or Nigerian | Pakistani | Albanian | Greek heritage?’

Anyone reasonable would be proud to answer. It shows an open interest and might-well be the starter of a fascinating conversation.

Example of what isn’t okay: someone under the guise of ‘I’m old so you can’t take offence to what I say without being ageist, but I can be (not even very subtly) racist projecting a 7-minute interrogative monologue until a lady clearly uncomfortable confirms that she has non-British heritage.

There’s a world of difference between the two.