Oh, to be 19 again...

In the wake of all this fuss and bother over the first teenage magistrate in Britain - picked at the tender age of 19 - I've been trying to recall just what I was like all those years ago, and whether I would have been a worthwhile choice for a seat on the bench.

It didn't take long to conclude that I would have fitted in better on a bench in the local park, where I could have blended in quite nicely, sipping a bottle of strong cider with a bunch of mates, and having a rant about the state of the world.

No, I don't think I was mentally ready at that age, to take on such a responsibility. Nor do I think anyone else is.

I'm as broad-minded as the next person - unless I happen to be sitting beside Hugh Hefner, and then I'm a bit out of my depth.

But I don't think that someone who has spent less than two decades on this planet is capable of the depth of reasoning and understanding necessary to decide someone else's future in a court of law.

I think I'm of average intelligence - although I do sometimes get the £100 question wrong on 'Millionaire' - and have a reasonable helping of common sense. Both these qualities I had aged 19, but my outlook on the world was very different.

Like most people, particularly those aged over 30, I have learned from life experience, and nothing taught in a classroom compares with that. I may still have a teenage sense of humour, but I don't have that rose-coloured outlook typical of young people who haven't 'been there, done that, suffered the consequences'. At 45, I look back and cringe at how nave I was in the ways of the world (which I thought I owned) aged 19.

I have listed just a few of the things I know now that I certainly didn't know - at least not for sure - as an emotionally immature 19-year-old: l Fame and fortune doesn't just 'happen'.

l Your first love does not last forever and ever.

l Dreams involving marriage to rock or movie stars will never come true.

l No amount of make-up will transform you into a supermodel.

l A watched telephone never rings.

l The world doesn't owe you a living.

l It is possible to go on holiday, or for a day out, with your parents without feeling embarrassed.

l Night clubs in provincial towns, called things like Alley Catz, are not the height of sophistication.

Few teenagers have done enough to acquaint themselves with the ways of the world. I don't imagine many 19-year-olds, other than those who have them, know what ASBO stands for. And they probably think electronic tagging is something you do in a computer game.

At 19, you may legally be able to get married, watch x-rated films and go to nightclubs, but on the other hand you are still fretting about spots and pimples. You are still buying teen magazines, shopping in Top Shop and using words like 'wicked' and 'minging'.

But it might be good news for those who find themselves in the dock in front of a teenage magistrate. Instead of jail or community service they'd probably recommend a stint on their favourite TV show - Brat Camp.