I really like Star Wars.

In fact, it’s a surprise I haven’t mentioned it before now.

It’s probably not healthy.

I regularly quote it in everyday life. I am a firm believer that there is no situation in which a Star Wars reference is inappropriate. When I walk up to automatic doors I pretend to open them using the force and I have a formidable track record on Star Wars trivial pursuit.

On top of the standard collection of action figures and toy sets, I also own a purple Mace Windu lightsaber and an interactive Yoda toy. I once asked it a question for some R.E homework. If I remember correctly, his views on euthanasia were mixed.

I know which actor played Boba Fett in The Empire Strikes Back.* There was even a brief period when I watched Holby City because Wedge Antilles and Captain Panaka joined the cast. One of the best moments of my life was the time that I completed Jedi Power Battles. As I write this, I am currently wearing a Lego Star Wars t-shirt.

When God speaks to me, he uses the voice of Alec Guinness.

And I make no apologies. Sure, this veritable Space Station of a soliloquy (it’s no moon) has probably alienated vast swathes of my more balanced friends and cemented my place in various friend zones. But my passion remains fervent.

Why is this? I know for certain that I am not the only one. What is it about Star Wars that provokes such commitment from its fans?

Perhaps it is because it speaks to our deepest human desires. Ultimately, the entire series is about redemption and reconciliation, the triumph of good over evil, coming of age and the power of comradeship. It is about belief in a higher power of good, belief that things can change – that scoundrels can become heroes; smugglers can become generals; farm boys and slaves can be Jedi knights and the villain can choose to save the day.

Or perhaps it’s the lightsabers, blasters, Harrison Ford, spaceships, battles, metal bikinis, hyperspace, Liam Neeson, enigmatic bounty hunters and the ability to shoot lightning from one’s fingers.

Could be that too.

* It was Jeremy Bulloch. He also had an even briefer cameo as the Imperial officer that drags Leia away while she is trying to warn Luke that it’s a trap, long before Admiral Ackbar got the chance.