Posted by John Nichols on November 20, 2005 at 03:02:44 from 70.191.148.241 user Mcneacail.
In Reply to: Re: Ian Wright of Eastern region posted by Harry Miller on November 20, 2005 at 01:52:50:
This is one of the stories on the WBS about Ian. The writer did not give a recognizable name, but I thought this was great.
I spent a wonderful day (or I think it was wonderful, but really the second half is a bit foggy...)with Ian a couple of years ago. He picked me up at a pub (his suggestion) by the train station near the marina where he moored Patience, and drove me to the basin. I got the royal tour of his boat, and we spent some time looking at other wooden boats, critisising clorox bottles, leering at pretty women, and yapping about stuff in general.
We then proceeded to "The Jolly Sailor" for lunch. Lunch consisted of a great ham sandwich for me. Ian ordered a huge plate of bangers and mash (that's literally how he ordered it "Huge plate...") and complained to the bar keep that he was going to starve to death trying to survive on the meager portions he was served. It looked like a weeks worth of food to me... Ian inhaled that plate of food before I was halfway through my sandwich. Between the two of us I think we put a serious dent in a keg of Adnam's Broadside.
Sitting next to a fireplace in a creaky old pub listening to Ian tell his stories as the other patrons in the room constantly called out revisions in the name of honesty, or consistency, and Ian countered back with friendly insults,with his little dog curled up by his feet, on a dreary drizzly afternoon in England. Smoke from his hand-rolled cigarettes luring me out of a yearlong smoke free zone.... Around 4 or so (see I told you the second half was a little foggy) Ian had the barman call a cab, and a few minutes latter Ian poured me into the cab and told the driver to make sure I got on the right train... That will remain one of the best afternoons in my life... He was a joy to meet, and I will miss him.