The secret to a happy marriage?

3rd May: I think I’ve stumbled upon the secret to a happy marriage.

It’s not about love, commitment and honesty. It’s not even about tidiness, consideration or sharing everything you own.

Nope. It’s far simpler than that. It’s all about the Man Zone.

My husband has an area in our house that he refers to as his “Man Zone”. It’s a little cubbyhole at the bottom of the stairs, where he has his desk, computer and guitar. He also has a set of three drawers in his Man Zone, which – as far as I can make out – are just stuffed full of old cables, dead batteries and blank CDs.

The rules of my husband’s Man Zone are simple: it’s his - and his alone. No one else is allowed near. I once sat in the chair in his Man Zone for about two minutes, to tie up my laces, and he got all twitchy, asking when I would be getting up. Pathetic really.

The thing is, I don’t begrudge him his own area of the house. If it means I can put my shabby chic noticeboards all over the wall and scatter cushions all over the bedroom without him complaining, then it’s worth it. It’s all about a bit of give and take isn’t it?

The idea of a Man Zone – or indeed any “one person only zone” is a foreign one to Jez. He moans that he can’t even go to the toilet in peace, let alone have a corner of the house that is all his own.

If he’s honest, I think he’s a little bit jealous actually.

And to make the jealousy even worse, Del totally rubbed salt in the wound. Del has the Man Zone to end all Man Zones…

Del provides Jez with the ultimate man-cave suggestion

It turns out it’s not JUST about the Man Zones though. Lots of people have totally no-go areas in their houses, either for them or their family members. Whether it’s your favourite seat on the sofa or a side of the bed that you love, loads of people are territorial about a certain spot in the house.

So what’s your “zone”? What one area does everyone know is yours and yours alone?