Festival fire still burns bright in born competitor Nicholls

In Rodgers and Hammerstein's first musical, Oklahoma!, there is a song with the line "I'm just a girl who can't say no" sung by a young woman who, when faced with the choice between the vertical and horizontal, was not naturally inclined to head skywards.

First performed in 1943, the show has all the political correctness of that era – none at all. But some of the lyrics are funny even if you cannot laugh at them these days because your children will tell you it is bad taste – when they can tear themselves away from Tinder, which is fine apparently.

Talking to Paul Nicholls this week and listening to his packed schedule of festival previews, fundraisers and commitments between now and Cheltenham, it struck me that he's just a boy who can't say no.