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Sir Paul Smith has no idea why he gets sent so much 鈥渟tuff鈥� but his office is more like an overstocked thrift store. I鈥檓 interviewing the legendary designer for 主播大秀 Radio 6 Music鈥檚 Sound of Style Season at his Covent Garden HQ.

The reception area is small and informal, decorated with framed art work and four floors below the 69 year old鈥檚 office, come conference room, come treasure trove. The immaculately turned out company PR delivered me to the great man and no sooner had she dutifully introduced us than she disappeared, leaving Sir Paul and I to bond and later, sit down for a half hour recorded conversation. It鈥檚 worth noting that often in this situation, a PR will hover over their client ensuring the interviewer sticks to agreed subject matter or even butt-in with an 'on message' response rather than honest but 鈥榦ff message' response.

The welcome to the world of Sir Paul is warm, charming and funny. Less Ugly Betty, more Betty Turpin as he guides me around his high ceilinged office which is piled high with books, records and rabbits. He inexplicably gets sent half a dozen porcelain rabbits EVERY WEEK. And he doesn鈥檛 know why. Fans sent him gifts, other fans followed suit and now the designer鈥檚 day starts at 6am hand writing letters of thanks for the daily deliveries.

Reception called one morning to say 鈥渢here鈥檚 a lady with a bike outside for you鈥�. She was bowled over that she got to meet her hero and personally hand over a bicycle that was made in the year he was born. He thanked her for this wonderful birthday present and asked how she would be spending the rest of her day. She said she had arrived from Russia that morning and would be flying back later. She hand delivered her present without even knowing if her hero would be there to receive it, such is the enigma of a Nottingham born boy whose dream was to be a professional cyclist. A nasty accident on his bike robbed him of that dream but a chance meeting with art students at a pub in Nottingham鈥檚 Old Market Square gave him the fashion bug that began with a shop in his home town and turned into a famed world wide brand.

As a student in Nottingham in the mid 90s I aspired to Paul Smith gear and whilst working for 主播大秀 Radio Nottingham was privileged to interview Paul Smith senior at the unveiling of his son鈥檚 blue plaque. His late father beamed with pride and enjoyed telling tales of his son鈥檚 endeavours and determination to make a name for himself.

Sir Paul happily tells me about the early years of his company and his burgeoning friendships with the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Malcolm McLaren, Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart and David Bowie. However, he is clearly uncomfortable when name dropping. Our interview is very much more a conversation but when I ask him about his celebrity clients and friends we lose eye contact. This is clearly not through concerns about confidentiality, more because he is such a modest guy. He points out that many fashion houses fly in glittering stars to be photographed on the front row of their cat walk shows. This is not the Paul Smith way. His designs speak for themselves and it comes as no surprise that many of his staff have been with him for twenty or thirty years.

His stories about bedroom listening to Bob Dylan against the wishes of his mother who hated Dylan鈥檚 drawl and his life of bohemia in the 60s are told fondly. He laughs out loud as he recalls measuring up Jimmy Page for a 鈥渂onkers鈥� coloured suit and reveals a case containing an electric train set which he unpacks when meetings get boring. He has been at the top of his game for 40 years and his signature is world famous.

While part of the reason some people send Sir Paul Smith 鈥榮tuff鈥� is because they know they will receive a signed note in return, part of the reason they know it will be personal is because he does not have a computer. He only recently acquired a mobile phone and his greatest revelation to me? He cannot draw. One of the planet鈥檚 most famous fashion designers cannot draw. Rather, his work comes to life through words on a page and for this child of the fifties those words keep on coming and the brand continues to expand.

I spent an hour in the company of a man who showed me his train set, a bag signed 'from PS to PS' (from life-long friend Patti Smith) and delights in dressing new sensation Jake Bugg, a fellow Nottingham lad. We chat about the inextricable links between music and fashion and as I thank him for his time I request an autograph. It perfectly matches the print on the shirt I bought with fifty quids worth of my student loan in 1995. I鈥檝e got the t-shirts, now I鈥檝e been there and got to meet this true English gentleman.

Chris Hawkins presents 6 Music's Early Breakfast Show

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• in conversation with Chris on his 主播大秀 Radio 6 Music Early Breakfast Show (5-7am) every day this week, part of the on 主播大秀 Four and 6 Music. 听
• Listen to the interview in full via 主播大秀 iPlayer Radio and find a gallery of pictures on the . 听
• Gemma Cairn's post about meeting iconic shoe designer听Terry de Havilland, in 6 Music's 'Never Mind The Cobblers'.听
• Read more of Chris' posts for About the 主播大秀 Blog, including his from May 2014.听
• 6Music on Twitter.听