WHEN I was at secondary school art classes were an excuse to mess around.

The teachers weren’t particularly good at maintaining order and the most any of us ever did was daub a few splashes of paint on paper while sniggering with our mates. To any onlooker, the unruly scene wouldn’t have been far removed from a pre-school class.

I hazily remember doing a spot of screen printing and tie dyeing, but other than that, it was, to be honest, a waste of time. Most of us viewed art as a sort of free period, where we could do as we liked, as we did in general studies and religious education.

I don’t remember bringing home any artwork, unlike my daughters, whose primary and secondary school creations still take up far too much space in my cupboards at home.

The only art class from which I derived any pleasure, and actually wanted to learn, was pottery. Unlike in the other classes, our teacher - the appropriately named Mr Potter - managed to keep the more disruptive elements in the class under control, allowing those who were genuinely interested to have a go.

Unusually, I was among the latter. I really enjoyed sitting at the potter’s wheel, moulding the shape of the pot with my clay-covered hands.

It was hugely challenging and great fun. I can still remember sitting on the stool in that room, made warm from the kiln, on cold winter days, and wishing the lesson would never end. For an hour and ten minutes I was in a world of my own.

It comes as no surprise to me that pottery classes are booming. They are undergoing a resurgence, with more and more people signing up. This has been especially so since lockdown, which has seen people gravitate towards more creative, non-digital pastimes.

From what I remember, albeit more than four decades ago, making pots is about as relaxing a pastime as you can get. Working with your hands, on wet or damp clay, harks back centuries. The messiness of it, the skill, and the various components - glazing, firing, wondering how it will look when it’s finished - it’s a wonderful way to spend a few hours.

Celebrities including Brad Pitt, Jonny Vegas and Seth Rogen are among those who love pottery, and whose ceramics have inspired others to sign up for classes.

Johnny Vegas, who studied pottery at university, said of the pastime: “I like to pot. For somebody that was struggling at school it literally saved me. It gave me a real belief in my ideas.’

And, of course there’s Grayson Perry, whose pots are just mind-blowingly amazing and whose passion for it is infectious.

Shows like The BBC’s Great Pottery Throwdown, which I look forward to every week, have also contributed to the surge in interest. Judge Kate Malone described pottery as ‘almost as good as sex’. That’s not true: from what I can remember of both, pottery is way better.

Like me, many people will only ever have experienced pottery at school. This is a great shame as the art form has so much to give. Those among us who feel stressed or anxious, could benefit enormously from a few sessions at the wheel. Pottery classes should be prescribed on the national health.

It’s absorbing, tactile nature, completely dissociated from any type of technology - you can’t check your phone every few seconds with moist, clay-covered hands, let alone post pictures on Instagram - sets it apart. Pottery would go a long way in helping with people’s mental health.

When you’re making pots, you think of nothing else, it’s like an enema for the brain.

I’d love to have another go at pottery and know for certain that at some point in my life, most probably in retirement, I will sign up for a night class.

We kids didn’t appreciate the free lessons in art and craft we got at school.

I’d quite like to give painting another go too, and take it seriously this time. I am pretty sure I would enjoy that too.