I am a 17-year-old A-level student who has wanted to go to the Bar since she can remember. But life at the Bar has always been tough and is reputed to be getting harder as some of its traditional sources of income dry up.

I have been advised to not even bother trying for the Bar if I had the slightest doubt that this was not what I really wanted. Bearing this in mind, I spent two weeks interviewing 20 barristers and QCs from a range of practices, to get the inside story of life at the Bar. This is my impression — warts and all.