“David is anything but a complicated guy. In his spirit, he is very British, very cool. That sort of mentality is very rare in cycling. In fact, he’s a very emotional boy, very angry (bileux), who gives himself a lot of worries for no reason. David always needs someone to reassure him. You always have to be behind him to comfort him.”

Alain Deloeuil, Millar's directeur sportif at Cofidis in 2001

Sitting in a jail cell in Biarritz, France, Scottish cyclist David Millar realised he’d lost everything: the six-figure contract with his professional team, the new home he was building, the reputation as one of the world’s top riders, respect from his friends and family and above all his lifelong love of cycling. He’d been caught using the performance- enhancing drug EPO, but he didn't care. By that point, he wanted to be caught. It would give him a chance to come clean and start over.

“Life moves so fast, memories seem to blur, there’s no rest in all my past.”

David, 34, is a fascinating character. He’s charming and articulate, Calvinistic and boy-like, uncannily bright and - at times – a little troubled. And he’s talking animatedly about his love of art, literature, and of course cycling.