The driving intellectual curiosity that was to distinguish Paul Wild was evident from an early age. He said, "mother showed great appreciation if ever I was successful in anything but she didn't push me." He was interested in building things with model house kits, Meccano and cardboard; an early gift of a Hornby train from his mother started him on his lifelong love of trains. Then he "read about the great man Isambard Kingdom Brunel and all his works, which were not only railways but the extraordinary ships that he built at the time. Well, I suppose he was the first source of inspiration to me."