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So, August came round - and I had to be back in the UK...
Quickly, back home to see my old mum...... then
there was some to'ing and fro'ing because Paul Basson was to marry Anne Fitton -
I was to be best man - and we all had to work/celebrate in London - then get up
to Scarborough for the wedding and more celebrations.
This (I believe) is a few days before - Paul and Anne coming round to my mum's
place.... for some reason or other....cannot remember....
John Polatch, in hospital (I think straightening his nose??) - Marion and I just
had to visit him - to have a good laugh!! There are many "Polatch" stories that
could be told here - but I'll save those for a better time/place...... Have
emailed him a couple of times at ICL - no reply - posey-git.
Beauty and the beast?? No, no - just how they were taken on the roll.... I was
experimenting taking pictures of magazine pictures...
And
again..... So both of these, will have been taken by the original photographers,
put into magazines, photographed onto slides - by me, then photographed into
digital piccies - by me - where do we go from here - ideally to full-holographics.....
but not with the monkey!!
As best-man I had certain responsibilities - and failed!! One was to ensure the groom's good health - so on his Stag-Night we went first to Paradiso et Inferno on the Strand where - amazingly - he fell asleep. We finished our meal and paid the bill and were leaving, pulling Paul to his feet and making a hasty exit - only to find it was chucking it down with rain. Never mind - here are a couple of taxis and in we pile - Bassy by this time complaining that his feet are wet - and when we investigate - we find he's lost one shoe. Evidently he took it off when he went to sleep in the restaurant, and didn't manage to get it back on - when we were scurrying out. Never mind!! It's only a shoe!
On to Raymond's Revue bar in Soho (which now I think about it - was appropriate since Bassy's middle name is Raymonde - where there was much drinking and joshing and good times....... I think the Statutory Limit must have expired by now - so I can tell of our little ruse...... Drinks were provided by the bottle - so we ordered Gin, Vodka, Whisky etc.. with mixers. When it came time to pay, the staff looked at each bottle - and there was a "measures" sticker going the full length of each bottle - so they could tell that we'd had 10 Vodka, 12 Gin and 13 Gin shots..... but we.... being very clever people.... had tipped Tonic Water back into the Gin and Vodka bottles and Ginger Ale into the Whisky, covering up the fact that we'd actually drunk many more than we were going to pay for. We thought we were SOOOooooooo clever.... but only with the light of day did we realise.... that if we could think of this..... so could others.... and we had probably drunk neat Tonic Water mixed with Tonic Water - all night - and paid through the nose for it!!
Next we went back to the office in Euston - to organise our homeward trips - by which time Bassy had woken up!! He was racing around shouting "I'm getting married", "I'm getting married" - happy as Larry - until he slipped (wet sock didn't help) on the floor and crashed his big toe into the wall - hurt a bit - but adrenalin was racing and we though not much about it. I stayed at his Mum and dad's house that night and around "early morning" I was awoken by these moans and groans - which I initially interpreted as a hang-over - but which turned out to be a painful, throbbing Toe!!
Off to the local hospital - where it was determined he'd fractured a bone in his toe. When we told the doc that he's getting married in the morning - and has a new pair of shoes to get into - what did he suggest - all he said was.... "try to get the shoe on... if it hurts.... have a stiff drink.... and try again"!! Ha-ha..... good old NHS!!
Bassy and I set off up to Scarborough - en-route buying a pair of Tuf Shoes - (Tuf boots were worn in those days on construction sites - and they made an equally tough shoe, with more refined appearance) - one problem was - he has big feet anyway - and we wanted something like a size 13 to allow the throbbing mass to enter without too much pain.
August 22, 1970 - Scarborough.....
Is
that Ron at far left?? and Anne's brother just a bit to the right??
Off
to the Reception... and then we got hold of "the getaway car"...
And I think there were fish/kippers stuck
on the exhaust manifold - excellent!!
And then it was all over and (many thanks) Andy Roland and Jenny came round to get me off to Heathrow and back to SA!!
