Please support her

Second entry from me today as our friend Gemma is thinking of closing her journal.  She says that as she does not get many readers, there is no point.  Now, we cannot have this can we?  You all know what to do dear readers and here is the link

Gemmast25

 

 

So hot!

It is so hot here that it is a wonder I am not a puddle of fat on the floor, absolutely unbearable. Our little weather station is registering a temperature of 96 degrees (our garden is very sheltered). They forecast storms coming in tonight but whether they will reach our area remains to be seen, I certainly hope it is cooler tomorrow.

Not much to write about.  I have a health issue at the moment that I need to see the doctor about, I have been putting it on hold because of little Daniel.  However, we discovered today that my doctor has gone away for two weeks and his partner, the only other person I see, is not working again until Monday.  So I have to wait.  Otherwise, they have a succession of agency locums who know absolutely nothing about me which would not suit me at all.  At least the two partners there know how difficult it is for me to get to the surgery and they do make allowances for my anxiety.  I can only hope that it is nothing too serious and that another few days will not make a great difference one way or the other.  I know you will send out good thoughts for me.

Pip had to see the vet again yesterday.  He is still holding up pretty well and she has now advised giving him a spoonful of cod liver oil in his meal as well as Black Kohosh tablets.  They had to take him off steroids because of the side effects they had.  He does struggle to get up sometimes though and it is sad to see.

Becky and Daniel continue to do well.  The inside building work is all but done apart from the plumber who is working there today.  Dean is going to have a lot of decorating on his hands but from the photos I have seen it has all been so worthwhile. Their home is now much bigger and much lighter and Nathan and Daniel will have a large play area for when the weather is bad.  I truly have to admire Becky, with all the pregnancy problems she had, having to cope with the builders from 7 a.m. every morning until early evening for weeks on end and now with baby Daniel.  She has coped wonderfully and I am very proud of her.

All I neednow is to get my medical problem sorted and hopefully then wecan all relax and look forward.  Christmas is going to be lovely this year as Nathan will appreciate it for the first time.  Christmas......... oh dear, can it really be that close?  Afraid so, September tomorrow and time will just fly by now.

Hope you are all having a good week.

 

 

Then There Were Four (Ducks)

Looks like our summer has returned as it is hot and sunny today and the forecast for the next few days is good.  Unfortunately, due to some very wet and windy days and cold nights all our hanging baskets have suffered and are looking sorry for themselves but as we are nearly into Autumn we cannot complain.

I intended to expand my wooden duck family so we now have two new members - ducklings rather than adult ducks -  called (what else)................................Nathan and Daniel.

They look good with our two original ducks:-

I was having a long conversation on the phone with Becky this morning.  She told me that yesterday, Daniel was in his Moses basket and started to cry.  Nathan went across to have a look.  After watching him for about a minute, Nathan went and got a dummy and tried to put it into Daniel's mouth.  How sweet is that!!!!!  He is showing a lot of understanding for one so young.

I would like to take this moment to send good wishes to all those in the path of Hurricane Katrina, especially those who cannot leave due to varying circumstances and escape to higher ground.  Please know that we are thinking of you here in England and of all of you who have relatives in the area.  Hurricanes are very rare in the UK and we count ourselves lucky.  I hope there will be few lives lost.

Bank Holiday here today so we shall be having a very quiet time.  Hope you all have a good Monday. 

BROTHERS

Mike got these shots of Nathan and Daniel today.  Nathan looks so grown up, it is hard to believe he will not be fourteen months old until Monday.  I think we can safely say that he approves of his little brother.  What a delight to see them together. God bless them both now and always

Finally a photo of the happy family together at home.  A lot of work lies ahead of Becky and Dean but oh how rewarding that work will be and what joy it will bring.

HOME!

I am so pleased to report that Becky and Daniel came home at 12.30p.m today. She has done so well that they let her out. They were able to spend and hour and a half with us.  Also her back pain has disappeared which is a great relief.  The builders are still  in so they are going to have their hands full.

Nathan has seen his baby brother twice in the hospital and stroked his hair. Today he was with us and sound asleep when they arrived and stayed asleep so no pics of the two brothers possible yet but I am sure it will not be too long.

Daniel has already received lots of presents, has been added to the family tree both on the computer and on a chart we have on the wall, we have had a lovely couple of cards. I would like to thank those who sent me e-cards and e-mail.  Mike has just gone to arrange for a lovely bouquet and some balloons to be sent to Becky.

Here are the photos I know you were waiting to see. I hate having my photo taken these days as they always show the double chin!

Dean has the next two weeks off work to look after his little family and I will keep you all updated, in fact you will probably get tired of me writing about the boys and posting pics!

Both Mike and I are tired now, it has been a stressful time for us as well.  Now we can relax and enjoy.

 

More Pics and Thanks

Becky and Dean have asked me to pass on to you thanks for all your lovely comments and messages of goodwill, they were so happy to receive them.

I do not wish to become a baby bore but there are two pictures that I cannot resist sharing with you today.  The first is of Becky and Daniel and the second of Mike and Daniel.  You can see the baby much better in these shots.

Amazing how much they change in just twenty four hours. Becky looks so happy doesn't she?  She did not have to go through all the drama there was with Nathan and that has made a big difference.

Now for the proud Grandy. Becky says that she can see Mike in Daniel.  Well, time will tell.  I am not convinced that Daniel's dark hair will remain beccause if you look at his eyebrows, they are very fair.

I cannot wait to see and hold the little fellow for myself. Now Nathan has moved up a rank.  He has always been "little man" - now he will have to be "little big man" and Daniel will become "little man".

I will post a picture of myself and Daniel as soon as I get to meet him and get one taken. That moment cannot come too soon for me.

Thanks again from all of us for all the good wishes

Sharing Newborn Pictures

Becky and Daniel

Dean and Daniel

Daniel

Thank You

Mike and I would like to thank you all for your good wishes so far on the birth of Daniel.  We have seen photos and he certainly is a big boy.  I hope to post some for you tomorrow or maybe even later tonight.

I am printing off the previous entry with all your comments and Dean will be taking them in to Becky tonight when he takes Nathan to meet his little brother for the first time.

So on behalf of Becky and Dean as well, we would like to thank you all so much. It has been wonderful being able to share our joy with you.

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT

           

 

Mike and I are delighted and happy to announce that our second Grandson came into the world at 9.47 a.m. this morning by C-section.

DANIEL LUKE weighed 9lbs and 4ozs.  He has masses of really dark hair and proud daddy Dean says that he looks nothing like Nathan at the moment and more like Becky.  Daniel and Becky are both doing very well.

We thank the Lord for a safe delivery and pray that Daniel will be blessed all his life.

As we have Nathan full time at the moment, I am sure you will understand that I will not be commenting on journals for a couple of days.  I know that you will all be happy for us. I will post photos of Daniel when I can.

Muggy Monday

Earlier in the year they warned of us a heatwave with very high temperatures which we would experience in July and August.  Well, it never came apart from a couple of very warm days.  Now it is looking as though summer is over and done.  Where did it disappear to so fast?

Mike took this shot of the sky from our front door last night, it does not really do justice to it, the colour was something to see

The old saying goes "Red sky at night, Shepherd's delight". Well, it has not held true. No bright sunny day for us in fact it is absolutely pouring with rain and the sky is solid grey but it is very muggy and airless.  I had hoped to spend some time in the garden enjoying the fruits of our labour earlier on but the outlook for the week is not good.

Spent a busy day yesterday giving the bathroom a really good cleaning including washing the floor and then washed down all the kitchen cupboards.  Found a bit of painting for him indoors to do (he was not impressed).

Those of you who follow this journal regularly will know that I managed after many years to trace a line of my family and made contact with a cousin.  Well, things got a bit difficult there because he took the opinion that his family was absolutely nothing to do with mine (although we share the same Grandparents) and I got the impression that he thought I was just being nosey.  So, I got a few snotty e-mails to that effect.  He then requested a copy of the family tree which I sent him only to have him pull it all apart and telling me which paragraphs I should delete etc. etc.  I told him that if he did not like it, he should send it back and he did.  Happy to report that I was not to be deterred and although we have agreed to differ on various issues, he has now supplied information and I have provided him with a photograph of his mother when she was a little girl that he had never seen. So, all has ended well there.

So all that remains is for me to spell check it, add photographs and then it is complete. I shall not do that, however, until after the new arrival who naturally has to be added.

Hope you all have a good week.  I have a busy day tomorrow looking after Nathan so will probably not post again until Wednesday.  Take care all.

 

Happy Anniversary J-Land

The world of journals is celebrating its second anniversary.    So, happy anniversary to all journal keepers.  It has to be one of the best thing that AOL has ever done.  Of course, here in the UK journals have not been going for quite that time but we are all part of one big global village.  What a wonderful community we have here. I have come to know some wonderful people and have shared in their ups and downs, their joys and sorrows, their day-to-day lives and they have shared in mine and supported me in good times and in bad.  You really do feel that you know people and come to care for them and think about them.    Long may journals continue.

Well, the ducks have proved popular. I have had five people ask me for the site and one person has already placed an order so we are getting a little duck appreciation society going here!  I think the firm should send me a free duck for all the publicity I have given them (some hopes).  For those of you who do buy , I hope you  enjoy your ducks as much as we are enjoying ours.

Cannot believe how chilly it is here for August.  No sitting outside in the garden.  No, I am off to give the bathroom a good cleaning.  No rest for the wicked.

Ducks

Hello everyone.  Well, the rain finally stopped and at the moment we have some sunshine although showers are forecast throughout the day.

Some of you said you would like to see my ducks.  One of you commented asking if they are the wooden ducks with name tags.  Yes, they are.  You can have whatever name tag you desire.  I shall hopefully be expanding my collection and get one named after Nathan and one after the new baby when he/she arrives and we know the name.

They come in various poses and you can have natural wood or painted white, duck-egg blue, etc. etc. You can also purchase carved duck eggs.  I do not think I shall go that far as Nathan is bound to use them as balls and they would be thrown all over the garden and probably disappear forever amongst the shrubbery.

Anyway, here they are:-

I noticed in the second picture that I have a nice crop of weeds in the lawn to deal with.  Well, they can wait for the time being. I am using the excuse that it is too wet anyway.  These two ducks are called Happy and Lucky and who knows, maybe they will bring us happiness and luck.  Mike and I both think that the natural wood is beautiful both to look at and to touch.  We will bring them indoors during the winter if the weather gets very bad.

So, things have gone a bit quackers around here (did I hear a loud groan?)

See you again soon. Oh, if anyone is interested , let me know and I will give you  the site where I bought the ducks, the manufacturers themselves. They ship to the U.S.A. as well.

Wet Friday

Well, there we were yesterday sizzling with almost ninety degree temperatures and high humidity. We woke today to pouring rain, grey skies and him indoors decided it was cold enough to put his cardigan on!!  At least we do not have to water the garden which makes a nice change.

Well, not much been going on here except the usual things.  It was Dean's birthday yesterday so they popped over to see us.  Nathan, Dean and Mike played ball in the garden.  It is amazing how Nathan can actually throw a ball, lifting it right over his head and sending it to his Daddy or Mike.  He certainly is advanced.  It was a joy to see them.  We are still waiting for his first coherent word. It seems he has put all his energy into walking and learning to play ball.  He is also dab hand at turning the tv on and off and using the remote control which he always seems to find no matter where they hide it! 

I have got myself a new acquisition.  A pair of wooden ducks.  My neighbour who throws her garden open to the public has a pair and I fell  in love with them so much that I have been using a picture of them as a screensaver.  Anyway, I did a hunt on the web and found the firm who makes them out of natural wood and they arrived yesterday.  I was going to take a picture for you but the heavy rain put an end to that as they are standing out by the pond.  When and if money permits, I am going to order a couple more with a duckling or two and have a little flock of them.  I love things made out of natural products and I can also have them in the house when the weather gets really bad.   I told him indoors that they were an advance birthday present to myself although my birthday is not until next month.  Anyway, he likes them as well so he did not moan.

I notice the leaves are already developing Autumn tints so it looks like it is coming in early just as it did last year.  The summers seem much hotter but much shorter.  Autumn is a lovely time with all the fiery colours but I do not like to see the trees bare in the winter time.  This year seems to have flown by.  Wonder if everyone feels the same.  Does time go faster as you get older?  It certainly seems to.

I am gradually getting around to all your journals as and when I can.

Well, enough waffling.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and that life is being kind to you.  God bless.

 

Trust Me!

Trust me to do a journal entry the day that journals goes to pot.  I posted one this morning then noticed that all previous entries had been reduced to a couple of lines, my list of favourite journals had gone as had my favourite sites.  Then I was informed by the people who commented that there was a problem with journals.

So, I logged on just a short while ago to see if it was fixed only to find that the entry I posted this morning has gone.  Oh well, never mind.

I know that some of you had already read it. To the others who did not, it was just general chit chat about Mike having a bad cold, us losing a whole tank of tropical fish due to a heater malfunction which cooked them ( Mike and I were both very upset) and a little about Becky. I also mentioned that Nathan is walking all the time now and that fact that I will be doing my journal at irregular intervals whilst awaiting the birth of our second Grandchild which is not too far off now.

I shall not be switching on all my alerts because of circumstances but I shall be visiting all of you from time to time.  I know that you will all understand that family comes first.

Wishing you all a great week.

Taking A Break

I have decided to take a break from journals for a few days. I shall also be turning off alerts. See you later.

 

Tales From A Law Office - Part Two

Mr. F. and Indian Clubs

Mr. W.G.S. was a stickler for accuracy. You were not allowed to make mistakes in legal documents, well not in his firm. In other law firms I have worked for, correction strips or fluid were allowed but Mr. S. forbade them. If you made a mistake, the whole document or letter had to be re-typed -  hard work in the days before electric typewriters and computers.

However, I am grateful to him because it certainly improved my typing skills and has stood me in good stead to this day. I soon got used to the archaic language that was used "the party of the first part, second part, third part" " messuage"  etc.  - the legalese which is probably still used today and  I also learned how to sew legal documents binding them together with coloured tape. I was earning the grand sum of six pounds and ten shillings per week. (Most people get far more than that an hour nowadays) Out of this grand sum I had to fund my fares to London on both the overground and underground trains, pay keep to my Mother and buy my clothes and make-up. What little was left would be spent on records or books and it was impossible to save anything.

As I have previously mentioned, Miss I. was in her fifties and the other two typists were in their thirties and there was I, a few weeks short of seventeen years of age - a youngster in their terms. I did a lot of growing up at W.G.S. & Co., pretty soon became unshockable and learned a great deal about human nature.

When it was established that I was good at what I was doing, I was assigned the position of secretary to Mr. F. He was the general manager of the firm. His office was very cluttered as well although he could not match the dusty mountains of his boss. He was a very short, very stout man in his early sixties with a round red face and a bulbous nose, quite bald but with a few stray hairs combed across his head. He was always with jacket off and wearing braces as well as belt. He perspired a great deal and was endlessly mopping his brow with his handkerchief. It must have been a great embarrassment to him that I was so young because often the divorce or rape cases contained explicit sexual detail. It would fall to him to mention some of these details in dictation. He would constantly clear his throat, mop his brow even more furiously and stammer over his words. My face would burn, not only with my own embarrassment but with his. He would also apologise "I am sorry Miss F. - sorry you have to listen things like this. This is not the sort of material young ears should have to hear." The more he apologised, the more embarrassed he got and the more he sweated and mopped.

I remember one day I had to type up some personal diary extracts that were to be used in evidence. Mr. F. gave me no warning except when handing me the papers he did remark he hoped I would be able to cope. He also told me not to look at the photographs that were in the back of the dossier. Of course, when someone tells you not to do something, it is the first thing you do. I got my eyes well and truly opened I can tell you. These diary extracts were very explicit indeed. As I was typing them I thought of my father and how he had protected me from anything of a sexual nature. I thought of him sitting in his own office in another part of London at that very moment, never dreaming that his "baby"  might be reading and typing such pornographic stuff as this. Poor Dad, he would be horrified. Well, I did cope and when I handed Mr. F. the finished documents he told me “Never keep a diary Miss F. Never keep a diary or a journal of any kind. You never know what sort of trouble they will get you into."  Oh, Mr. F. if you could see me now! I do keep a diary and I write this journal and you, dear Mr. F.  are being featured in it.

The strongest memory I have of Mr. F. and one which still makes me laugh to this very day concerns Indian clubs. I had been taking dictation for well over an hour and lots of it was pretty lurid. Mr. F. had never been one for normal conversation with me, usually it was strictly business. But this day after sweating and mopping through another set of sexual references, he suddenly looked me straight in the face and said. "Indian Clubs, Miss F."  "Pardon?" I said, looking and feeling bemused.

"Indian Clubs" he repeated. "Whenever I get the urge," he explained, " I get out my set of Indian Clubs and have a good work-out." It took me a few seconds to realise that what he was referring to was the sexual urge. I stifled a  laugh and tried my best to appear serious and dignified. Looking at Mr. F. I could never imagine him having an urge of any kind let alone a sexual one! "Oh" I said - for want of something better.

"Yes," he continued, "we live in a world gone mad (wonder what he would make of it today, it has got much worse since his time) "all this filth here, all these people behaving like animals, all this lack of moral  fibre and fortitude, none of it would happen if they would only use Indian Clubs."  By this time I was fighting the urge to collapse in hysterical laugher. "No", I said, trying to keep a straight face, " probably not".

"So, Miss F. get yourself a set of Indian clubs and use them on a regular basis and that will stop any urges you might feel from getting the better of you".  I broke into a hasty fit of fake coughing to cover my hilarity but after I left his office, I giggled loudly all the way down the corridor.  When the two typists asked what had me so amused and I told them, our whole office erupted in gales of laughter except for the formidable Miss. I. who defended "her men" with the ferocity of a Tigress and adopted the face of someone who had just sucked a very sour lemon.  I wondered if she had her own set of clubs!  That night I told my father what I had been doing (minus details of course) and he looked a trifle perturbed. I then related what Mr. F had advised me to do. My father was drinking a cup of tea at the time, he spat it all over himself and the floor as he laughed so hard that the tears actually ran down his face.

Poor Mrs. F. I imagined her having the urge and using her wily ways of seduction on Mr. F. only to have him run off and get his clubs out. I knew they had three children so he must have kept them locked away on some occasions.  From then on, whenever I saw him I could only picture him in his underwear, standing at an open window and throwing clubs into the air with one hand whilst frantically mopping his brow with the other.

Did I ever buy myself a set of clubs? Certainly not - and as for any urges I might have had - you will never know, Mr. F. - oh, you will never know. Only my diaries ever held those secrets.

No, this is not him!

Tales From A Law Office - Part One

I was walking along Whitehall . It was a hot July morning. It was a Monday. My stomach was in knots. The previous Wednesday I had been at school celebrating my very last day as "a child." Now, here I was on my way to my first employment at W.G.S. & Company, Solicitors at Law. No longer would I have teachers to support me, now longer could I run to my parents if things did not go as planned. I was out in the wide world on my own.

As I looked up towards Trafalgar Square, I remembered all the wonderful days I had spent exploring London and how I longed for this to be just such a day. A day where I could wander historic lanes and alleyways, browse in little shops, stroll the vast rooms of the National Gallery, visit historic churches, ramble around the Tower of London or cruise down the Thames.  No, today was different. I was employed. I had allowed myself plenty of time so was very early and decided to walk the length of Whitehall. I was overawed by the government buildings, so grand, so imposing. I was very conscious of my high heels clack-clacking on the pavement. Then I reached my destination. A tall high narrow building right next to the Whitehall Theatre and only yards from Trafalgar Square.

Stepping into that place was like a journey back in time. Outside might have been like many other buildings in this imposing road but inside it was like something out of Dickens! Heavy dark furniture, gloomy walls, nothing bright and airy about it to lift my spirits. I was greeted by the office boy who showed me up to where I was going to work. A tiny office with four desks. My desk was next to the desk of Miss P.I. Miss I to my mind, seemed almost as old as the office furniture. Looking back, she would have been in her fifties. A tiny birdlike woman in twin set and pearls. Nothing passed her. She ruled her little kingdom with an iron hand. She had been with the firm all her working life and retired home each night to a lonely little flat, her aging mother and her cat. She was very suspicious of this "newcomer."

For the first few days I was just given mundane tasks to do, taking some of the load from the two general typists until they got to know if my work was up to standard. I did not meet any of the men who manned the place except to see an occasional head poked around the door. But, it had to come. I had to face the great Mr.W.G.S. himself and the two general typists bombarded me with stories of how difficult he was and how I had better prepare myself. Miss I, who was his personal secretary, said nothing.

The day came. I was told to take my shorthand pad and pencil along the corridor as Mr. S. wanted to give me some dictation. To this day I can still remember the way my heart pounded. After all, this was the BIG man, the founder of the firm himself. I had to knock three times on his door, each one louder, until I got the command to enter. What a shock! If I thought that the furniture in other rooms was Dickensian, it was nothing compared to this place. The room was vast, it was a cavern. Huge windows on one side, grimy and in need of a good wash. A massive Grandfather clock in one corner with a tick so heavy and loud it was a wonder that the whole of Whitehall did not reverberate to it, a massive oak desk so vast that quite a few people could have danced on the top of it. Endless bookcases, floor to ceiling, full of dusty tomes on all aspects of the law and everywhere files. Piles of them. Heaped in corners, heaped behind the desk, great teetering mountains of them. One slam of the door would have brought the whole lot down. It was dark, I had to peer into the gloom searching for some sign of a person. Sunlight never entered here. Suddenly, from behind a huge pile of papers he appeared, instantly standing upright. I had stepped back into the Victorian era! He was tall, very tall, well over six feet and very thin with rheumy eyes. He was well into his eighties. He wore a high starched collar and a long frock coat, glasses perched on the end of his nose, sparse white hair plastered down. He gave the appearance of being dusty himself, as though he had worn those clothes since the day that he entered the world, it was as if he and the office had been born at the same time and in another century. He peered at me down his long eagle-beaked nose. For a time there was only the ticking of the clock. Then "well, sit down gel, sit down". I had to clear a pile of files from the chair which faced his desk. I said "Good morning sir" to which he replied "Eh?" I repeated my salutation. Again the "Eh?". My heart started to pound, I wanted to escape. Then "You'll have to speak up gel, I am deaf you know, I am deaf" and he wildly gesticulated to his ears and turned his head so that I could see the deaf aides.

I sat down pencil  in hand and waited. Work commenced. It took a long time. He could never seem to find the papers that he was looking for, clouds of dust lifted into the air and hung there as he rummaged. He had the habit of dictating very fast and then falling silent. He spoke so fast that I could scarcely get it down. Every so often he would ask me to read back what he had dictated and I would get so nervous that my shorthand seemed like coiling snakes to me. Luckily I had a very good memory and could reel off lots of it by that alone,  although I did make the occasional mistake.

Then would come the interludes. I would sit waiting, nothing would happen. He would sit there totally silent with his eyes narrowed or sometimes closed. Several times I thought he had actually nodded off. I would sit patiently waiting, listening to the loud thumping of the clock and looking out of dirt smeared windows onto the rooftops of London buildings seeing how streaked they were with pigeon droppings and often seeing another bird add its own little package to the white mess. Then he would scare the hell out of me by suddenly thumping hard on his desk or leaping to his feet saying "Ah, got you that time gel, got you - you thought I was asleep didn't you, you thought I was asleep." He was very hard on the nerves was Mr. S.

You were never quite sure when dictation was over. All would fall silent, I would wait only to be told "well, what are you waiting for gel, get on with it, get on with it, time is money". Obviously I needed the files to work with. He had his own way of giving you those. He would throw them at you - literally. Files would come hurtling across the desk, some losing papers on the way so that I had to scrabble on the floor to retrieve them. His aim was pretty accurate but you had to watch it when the box files came. They could take your eye out! I soon learned to drop my pad and pencil and give my full concentration over to catching the flying documents. After a while I became expert at snatching them in mid flight. On looking at Mr. S. I could swear I always detected the trace of a twinkle in his eye.

Next installment: Mr. F. and Indian clubs.

 

Now Performing At Drury Lane...........

The Theatre Royal is the oldest working theatre in London and is also one of the most haunted. Originally built in 1663 although the present building only dates from 1812. Here is the story of its three famous ghosts.

Joseph Grimaldi

was born in London in 1779. He was the founding father of all modern day clowns and is still remembered annually by clowns in their own church, Holy Trinity in Dalston, East London. He was the original “Clown Joey”. Since his time all clowns have been referred to as “Joey”. Grimaldi started the trend of wearing white make-up and his personal trademark was two bright red triangles on his cheeks. He sang comic songs and performed in the earliest Pantomimes eventually changing from straightforward clown to Pantomime Dame. He was the person who established the tradition of the Panto Dame. He became the mainstay of the Drury Lane Theatre.

In 1823, bad health and exhaustion forced him to retire at the early age of 45. Years of athletic stage performances had taken their toll - he could hardly walk. He became penniless and was helped by other stars giving benefit performances and by a £100 per year pension from the Drury Lane Theatrical Fund. His last years were spent sitting by the fire in a pub and every night he was carried home on the back of the Landlord. He now haunts the theatre he so loved and is a mischievous spirit. Actors, cleaners, all sorts of staff have felt his spectral boot on their backsides as they go about their work. He made a strange final request - that prior to his burial his head should be removed from his body. This request was apparently carried out and his disembodied white face has been seen floating around the theatre on many occasions.

DAN LENO.

Dan Leno was born in London in 1860 and he was to take up the mantle of Grimaldi. He started originally as a clog dancer but went on to perform monologues and comic songs. He first appeared as a Panto Dame in 1886. The following year he was booked to appear at Drury Lane where he was to remain for sixteen years as the star. The role of Mother Goose was specially created for him. In 1901 he appeared by Royal Command before King Edward V11 which earned him the title of “The King’s Jester”. The strain of his success was too much for him and in 1903 he suffered a breakdown. He died completely insane the following year at the age of only 44.  Dan had an embarrassing problem - he suffered from chronic incontinence and to disguise the odour he would douse himself with cologne. The strong smell of lavender is often very noticeable around the theatre although Lavender is never used there.  People passing the dressing room which was once occupied by Leno often hear the rhythmic drumming of feet. Dan is still there rehearsing his clog dancing. Actors and others have also found themselves being pushed in the back when passing this room and occasionally, onstage.

THE MAN IN GREY

Perhaps he is the most famous of them all although nobody knows who exactly he is or was. The spirit is of a young man wearing a powdered wig, white-ruffed shirt, grey riding cloak and three-cornered hat. He also walks with a limp. He defies tradition by always appearing during the hours of daylight. He materializes on one side of the upper circle and crosses to the other side where he astonishes witnesses by melting into the wall. More than half the cast of "The Dancing Years" were on stage for a photo call when they all witnessed the ghost cross the upper circle and disappear. He has been seen by audience members, famous actors, firemen, stage-hands, managers and many other staff at the theatre. He is sometimes spotted sitting in the end seat of the fourth row by the central gangway of the upper circle. A cleaner, thinking it was a real person actually went to speak to him at 10a.m. one morning. He vanished before her eyes and she was very startled to look around and see him disappearing into the wall.

During theatre renovations in the 1870’s a hidden room was discovered behind a wall, the very wall through which the man in grey always vanishes. Inside workmen found the skeleton of a man. It was surrounded by remnants of a grey cloak and had a dagger protruding from the rib cage. It is only speculation but the story goes  that the remains were those of a young man who came up to London during the time of Queen Anne. He fell in love with an actress at the theatre and was murdered by her lover in a fit of jealous rage and his body hidden and the crime concealed.

The man in grey is a very popular ghost with the management and actors as heonly ever appears at thebeginning of a successful run at the theatre. Such shows as "The King and I", "South Pacific", "Oklahoma" and "Miss Saigon" have been honoured by his presence but there have been many others. He is therefore considered a good omen and treated with affection and good humour. He is also known to push performers to positions on the stage from where they can deliver their lines to best advantage. He has become the stuff of theatrical legend.

Among show business people it is said "the show must go on".  For Joseph Grimaldi and Dan Leno, it certainly does.