Fat Boy!
Fat boy was the name grandson Benjy, gave to one of his sketches for Big Blue Sky. Thank you Benjy, and to the other grandchildren, daughter and friends, who contributed sketches to illustrate the text.
‘Fat boy’ was Roger (but not his real name, of course), who was my best mate during my childhood years in Wroxham. Well, on and off best mate. He was rough – Roger the Rough – and when we fell out, or I told him my mother had ordered that our friendship should cease, he simply sat on me until I agreed to be his friend again. I would limp home covered with clumps of moss, and mud, and leaves, and my mother would be more adamant still that the friendship must end. And then we left Wroxham – and fat boy.
Beefy was thin, Sludge was fat (like Roger the Rough), Shadley’s name was a mystery, and Bog Rat was avoided. And if those nick names were intriguing, how did three chaps I knew come to be christened ‘Grum’? Well, outside of Norfolk, there are most probably very few Grums. In fact, none. But Norfolk has lots of them, and they enjoy mardles, even if much of the mardle is basically, squit.
Big Blue Sky should now be in bookshops across the county, but if you would like a signed copy, just send me an email.
There ya goo!
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