John Nichol is a former Royal Air Force navigator who, with pilot John Peters, was shot down in a Tornado jet fighter during the first Gulf War in 1991.

They were paraded on television by their Iraqi captors before being held as prisoners of war for seven weeks. 

Since leaving the RAF, 60-year-old Nichol has written best-sellers about the Spitfire, Lancaster bomber and Tornado aircraft, among other subjects, and has sold two million books. 

He lives in Hertfordshire with his businesswoman wife Suzannah, their daughter Sophie, 19, and golden retriever, Ralph.

What did your parents teach you about money?

I was one of four and grew up in a three-bedroom council house on Tyneside. My late mum Cath and dad John, who was a clerk at an engineering works, were part of the wartime generation that grew up when everything was in short supply. 

As a consequence, they were very frugal people. And that frugality has rubbed off on me. So despite being quite well-off now, I still watch the pennies.

I was livid when a London restaurant recently charged a friend and I £16 for two small bottles of lager – talk about daylight robbery!

Have you ever struggled to make ends meet?

When I first joined the RAF as an electronics technician after my O-levels, I was on about £15-20 a week. I was living in a barrack room at an RAF base, but had to pay towards my accommodation. 

After buying the odd beer and playing the fruit machine, I'd often run out of money after a few weeks. I was commissioned as an officer after five years so was paid more. 

However, the worst time of my life was undoubtedly being held hostage by the Iraqis – I was half-starved and lost nearly three stone over seven weeks in captivity. That said, if I hadn't been a prisoner of war and paraded on TV, I wouldn't have the career I have today.

Have you ever been paid silly money?

Speaking engagements, in particular corporate speaking events, can pay very well (around £5,000) and I've done quite a few over the years. I'm not sure I'd describe it as 'silly money' but it's certainly a lot more than my dad ever got paid. 

But Covid knocked all that on the head, and things have never quite gone back to how they were beforehand.

What was the best year of your financial life?

Being self-employed, my yearly earnings can vary hugely, for instance depending on how my latest book is selling. 

But the early Noughties – 2002-2004 – were probably my best years financially because I was in demand on TV as a military commentator, made some TV documentaries with WWII veterans and also did lots of speaking engagements.

What's the most expensive thing you bought for fun?

A £5,000 Rolex watch I got myself in the 1990s. I thought it was the ultimate watch – until I hosted the British Watch Awards one year and found myself sitting next to a chap with one on each wrist. 

Their combined worth? Half a million pounds! 

Nowadays I wear a bespoke Bremont MB1 watch – it can only be worn by men and women who have used a Martin-Baker ejection seat in an emergency. I also splash out on holidays, and will book my family into a nice villa or five-star hotel.

What is your biggest money mistake?

It was buying a used Honda Accord for £1,500 in 1983. The car looked nice enough but after a few weeks I noticed the sills had been filled in with newspaper and sprayed with paint to hide the rust. 

In short, I'd bought a rustbucket. 

After a year or so, the suspension collapsed while I was driving on the M4 and I had to be towed home by the AA. I had to scrap the car.

Best money decision you have made?

Although leaving the RAF and starting a new career in my 30s was a bit scary, I knew that it was time to move on. Making that leap opened up a world of opportunities and enabled me to become a best-selling author. 

Yes, being a writer has its ups and downs, but it has paid better than being in the RAF. When I left the forces in the mid-1990s, I was earning about £35,000. Incidentally, one of the jobs I was offered after leaving the RAF was as a combine harvester salesman – I was briefly tempted.

Do you have a pension?

I get a military pension which I've just started drawing down. While it's not a huge amount, it pays the weekly Tesco shop. I also pay into a private pension, though I've no plans to retire in the foreseeable future because I enjoy what I do too much.

Do you own any property?

Yes, a six-bedroom 1970s house in a quiet Hertfordshire village, next to a church, which my wife and I bought for £300,000 back in the late-1990s. I don't know exactly what it's worth today but I imagine we could never afford to buy it now.

If you were Chancellor, what would you do?

Reform the way the social care system works. I understand the concept that if you have more, you should pay more, but it seems wrong that those who've saved for retirement should have to sell everything to fund their care in old age, whereas those with nothing have their old-age care paid for by the Government.

What is your number one financial priority?

To have enough money to see me through comfortably to my final days.

• John Nichol's latest book, The Unknown Warrior, is published by Simon & Schuster this month. His theatre tour, telling the story behind the Unknown Warrior's tomb at Westminster Abbey in London, runs from October 4 to November 7. For further information visit: johnnichollive.com