Born in Salisbury in 1940, son of a jockey, we then moved to London for Dad’s “reserved “occupation” during the war. I still recall bombings, doodlebugs and the obliteration of an adjacent street. The gut wrenching sound of air raid warning sirens has never left me. We would make a panicky rush downstairs to the shelters, or the cellar – if time was short! My severe asthma resulted in us leaving the smog of London in 1947 for Newmarket’s clean air and father’s return to horse racing. The siren calling firemen out in Newmarket, was identical to those war time air raid warnings! Briefly at St Mary’s, my sister Jean and I then moved to All Saints Primary school, alongside good friends and Old Foleyans, Peter Arnold, Margaret Talbot, Bev Hill and Pam Kesteven.
Winning an 11+ scholarship to Newmarket Grammar School lifted many of us from poor and limited horse racing backgrounds, to lives of opportunity and reward. Discipline was strict and a mode of behaviour expected and instilled into us as a “way of life”. Many of us will still recall “Snowy’s” contemptuous use of the phrase “Gutter Snipes” when finding a toffee paper on the playground. The staff imparted education, self-discipline and reasoning plus a work ethic motivating me for the rest of my life. I enjoyed my years at NGS much more than I realised at the time and wished I had worked harder. Invariably I was in trouble for talking too much in class, a fault I later turned to financial advantage as a motivational speaker. English and English Literature, Art and History, (Politics wasn’t available) were my favourite lessons. Miss Wahlstrand, a wonderful teacher, painted historical facts in “word pictures” almost as if we were actually there. In doing so she awakened in me a lasting love of History.
My most treasured trophy is still the solid silver medal I won for Athletics in 1954 as “Junior Boy Champion”. My best result in the House Run was 5th, when “my cunning plan” of leading from the start came undone, as John Theobald and 3 others flew past me 400 metres from the finish. I represented the school in a number of cross county races. The school football team included Bev Hill and I (wingers), Mick Wright, John Bailey, the late Tom Kemp, John Sheldrick, Ivor Mallory and others. I played cricket for the school by default. Against “Friends School” Saffron Walden, Bill Stuart told me to “play a straight bat for a draw” – then saw me clean bowled and broke his pipe against his shoe in exasperation! One summer, “Herc.” took us for swimming lessons, and although having little success in teaching me French, he did teach me to swim – I feared him more than the water!
Miss Emery, diligently organised various Arts, earning “House” points. Despite my protestations, she entered me in the boy’s soprano to sing “Hark, Hark the Lark at Heaven’s Gate Sings” for School House. When called for the first practice in front of the school most of us had never heard the damned tune. I was first and with no idea what it sounded like, it was a fiasco from the first note! David Penistone “saved” us by singing it beautifully. The rest of us were consigned to weeks of practice after school hours, with Bill Stuart pounding the school piano. The final was held in a packed Memorial Hall. The judge said the three voices were excellent! However, I had won from David and Bev Hill in that order, because the judge said I sung it whilst looking up to heaven “like the Lark ascending”. Truth was, I was so damned scared I hadn’t taken my eyes off the clock high up at the far end of the hall.
My working life started at the age of 11. The 8 shillings earned delivering newspapers paid for my bicycle. Mum was also working whilst Dad was earning the pittance they were paid in stables. Aged 15, I was doing 4 different jobs on Saturdays 6am to 6pm plus another news round on Sundays. It was difficult finding the time and motivation to study, but it helped the household budget and taught me the value of money. Many of todays “snowflakes” have never worked by 18 or 20. After leaving school I joined Barclays Bank Newmarket where I met up with many ex pupils of NGS including Dennis Sore, Margaret Edwards, Margaret Gates, and Betty Forman.
My goal was to be a pilot in the RAF, but after reaching the last 5 of my group of 55 applicants, I failed at the last hurdle. They said “apply again when a bit older, but the Fleet Air Arm would accept you now”. Difficult enough putting an aircraft down on terra firma I thought, let alone a moving deck”. Probably why they needed more pilots! I decided to pay for flying lessons later in life and did so in New Zealand.
After I left the Bank I joined an Insurance company in Cambridge as a trainee, 4 years later I was transferred to Head Office in The City for claims training. After 3 years I joined Chartered Loss Adjusters in Southampton. Using correspondence courses, I had passed the examinations to qualify as an Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute (ACII) but continued studying and needed to pass one last subject to qualify as a Fellow. Then abruptly the adjusters were reverting to a one-man office. Those ten years in insurance had been much more interesting than banking and with my qualifications, I should perhaps have stayed itn the industry, but my life would have never been so full or interesting. As I was about to contact other Loss Adjusters or Insurance companies, fate intervened. An International direct sales organisation “head hunted” me via a contact I had met in Glasgow when I dealt with hurricane claims. As they wanted a team in Southampton, I decided to give this complete change a couple of months, to see how it suited me. It suited me very well. Within 2 years I had moved again to London, as Managing Director of the UK Company. At 30 my earnings were now 5 times more than I had been earning in Insurance, despite all my hard won qualifications and experience. Now I trained and motivated around two thousand commissioned field distributors, plus salaried Regional Managers and head office staff – all older than myself.
We competed so successfully with over 20 worldwide franchisees, that four years later the International Company sold the franchise. I turned down a move to USA Head Office and offers from industry competitors. “I had another cunning plan”. On reflection, I took a huge and crazy gamble which very e sales company marketing Ph balanced hair, skin and body care via “Party Plan”. It took off quite quickly and on the back of that success I subsequently sold the franchises for Australia and New Zealand. After two trips to these two countries to assist them, I realised the huge business potential but also just how much my experience was needed. Letting my house in Tunbridge Wells, I moved to Sydney, Australia more especially to beautiful Manly.
I travelled extensively all over Australia and New Zealand, from the Blue Mountains, to skiing the Snowy Mountains, from the Indian Ocean to the tropical north of Queensland and scuba diving in the warm, clear blue Pacific waters. Then to the bubbling mud pools, and thermal and volcanic activity of stunning New Zealand. It was easy falling in love with it all. The friendly ribbing, the positive mental attitude of both nationalities and their will to win, the stunning weather and environment and much more. The original 18 months I had planned, became 33 years during which I took dual Australian citizenship. During my travels I visited John Sheldrick in Perth and Don Moyes in Adelaide and was visited by Peter Larke in Sydney.
In 1990 I was “head hunted” again, but this time back into the Australian Franchise of the very same company I had first managed in the UK in 1971. We merged our businesses and I became Managing Director once again until finally “retiring” in 2005. After a short break I became a Consultant, mentoring new direct sales organisations in Australia and overseas. Speaking engagements took me also to Europe and the USA where my impersonations were put to good use and greatly lightened up the talks.
Sport has always played a large part in my life. In London I represented the insurance company, in athletics, table tennis, tennis, football and even rugby – solely because rugby gave us a day off work. Fear gave me extra speed, compensating for my inexperience and I scored tries in the many games I played. During a trial for Cambridge City, I was kicked in the back by own player as I foolishly tried to pick up a ball. Maybe punishment for my “missing a try” when I mistakenly put down the ball over the dead ball line!!! End of rugby. My best “put down” however concerned football. After watching the match, my girlfriend asked had I scored. “4 out of 5” I replied. My first love was always football and after playing for Exning, I joined Histon in the Athenian League playing teams like Hatfield, Tilbury and Windsor and Stevenage now in the football league. In Southampton I played against teams like Basingstoke, Farnborough, Aldershot and Eastleigh. My burst of acceleration over 20 yards had helped me become a striker and I averaged around 20 goals a season, but it ultimately proved my downfall. Playing in Sydney at 45, a massive and inexperienced goalkeeper held the ball and my right leg, breaking my leg and main knee ligaments. End of football and Saturday became golf day. Twenty years later I had simultaneous knee replacements – but I can still ski, play table tennis and golf. Table tennis has been one of my main sports for nearly 60 years. I recall great contests in the Cambs league against Foleyan; Phyllis Everett (Nee Sore), her late husband Chris and her brother Dennis Sore. Their team and ours both gained promotion each year, one or the other winning the division. The head coach of a club I have joined in Kent, played for Cambridge and knew Phyllis and Chris very well. Small world!
After 33 years in Australia and many visits to England for business and visiting relatives and Old Foleyan reunions, Vanessa and I sold up in 2012 and “came home” with Bentley and Charlotte our two Golden Retrievers (no quarantine). We live in Wadhurst, 6 miles from Vanessa’s parents in Royal Tunbridge Wells, in a beautiful area of “outstanding national beauty”. It is also an area of great historical interest.
However, after enduring this last prolonged winter we are only just resisting the temptation to return to Australia and our many friends. Serving on various boards and committees keeps me busy; together with fighting for Brexit. I also provide 1:1 dog training. See “Dog Trainers in Tunbridge Wells” – on Google or Yell.com “Take the Lead” – which is also the basis of the dog training book that I am writing. It continues to be “a very full life” and I thank you all for being part of it!