Downshire is a
relatively small English county but like a pocket battleship it packs a lot in,
a short but beautiful coastline, a channel port, the Ancient forests of
Dancingdean and Pepperstock, the craggy ridges and manmade lakes of the
Pepperstock Hills National Park, the rolling hills of the Downshire Downs, the
beautiful Finchbottom Vale and farm land as far as the eye can see from the
Trotwood’s and the Grace’s in the south to the home of the Downshire Light
infantry, Nettlefield, and their affluent neighbour’s, Roespring and Tipton in
the north but our story takes place in the southern town off Abbottsford which
was the biggest in Downshire, its administrative capital and the seat of the
Downshire government.
It was also a place of
learning thanks to the Downshire University, a Cathedral City and was home to
Abbottsford Town football club.
It was a cold and
bitter winter in 1962, and one of the hardest Downshire winters in living
memory and eighteen year old Luke Osbourne found himself far from home in
Abbottsford that Christmas, a trainee in the restaurant at the Regents Hotel,
and he was penniless and alone.
He had spent most of
his money on presents for his family in Northchapel and the remainder on
postage to have them delivered in time for Christmas.
But on the day before
Christmas Eve, he got paid and the restaurant manager, Stefanos Calavittis,
told him
“Take the rest of the
evening off, we are booked solid tomorrow and Christmas Day and we are very
busy so there will be no time off for the next two day”
He was a very strict
manager but his bark was worse than his bite and he treated all the staff
firmly yet fairly.
“So go home and get
some rest” He added.
Luke trudged home
through the winding streets of the town towards his digs, where he had a room
on the top floor of a Victorian terraced house in Castleview Road, but he decided
to spend an hour at the Castle Pub.
It was run by Bob
Dalimore, ex Abbottsford Town center forward, and he would regularly regale
die-hard fans like Luke with stories of his glory days in the black and white
quarters, he also overlooked the fact he was under age.
The Castle soon became
his local as it was on his way home and the stocky, bald former football hero
always made him and fellow Knights fans welcome.
After nursing his pint
for an hour he wandered through the deserted winding back streets of the Castle
district, slipping and slithering on the icy pavements and his breath rose in
dense clouds in the sub-zero temperatures.
But suddenly two
menacing figures appeared out of the darkness and he was knocked violently to
the floor and after a sustained beating they left him bruised, bloody, cold and
wet, minus his watch, his signet ring and his pay packet.
After an indeterminate
period of time he struggled to his feet, brushing melted snow from his sodden
clothes and groggily set off to complete his journey home.
He could have gone
back to the pub where everyone would have rallied round but he was too ashamed.
His head ached from
the beating and his hands had lost all sensation but he rubbed them vigorously
together to restore circulation regardless.
As he stumbled along
he peered through the frosted dimly lit windows and saw families, gaily
preparing for the upcoming celebrations and he found himself wondering how things
were at home.
He had received a
letter from his mother only that morning and though it was intended to cheer
him up it had the opposite effect because in truth it held sadness between
every line.
“We will miss you, on
your first Christmas away from home” she wrote and he missed home even more.
Luke ached from the
cold and huddled deeper into his duffel coat as a black cab sped by, full of
drunken revelers, its windows steamed up.
The Christmas lights
twinkled from the windows in Castle View Road, and he looked up to his own
darkened window of his tiny attic apartment high above.
“Not far to go now” he
said to himself as number 85 Castle View Road was in view.
He struggled up the
narrow staircases up to his tiny attic apartment on the fourth floor of the old
Victorian building.
Once he got into his
room he spread his soaked clothing on the lukewarm radiator and crawled into
bed as outside the snow began to fall heavily and little drops of moisture
trickled down the frozen windowpane.
When he arrived
downstairs for breakfast the next morning, his landlady, Mrs. Oliver, took one
look at him and ordered him back to bed.
Fortunately he was not
the only member of the Regents Hotel staff to have rooms at Mrs. Oliver’s, so
they were able to let Mr. Calavittis what had happened to Luke and to testify
that he wasn’t malingering.
He spent much of the
day in his room under the covers until he suddenly heard a chorus of voices as
they wafted up on the crisp afternoon air.
So he crawled out of
his bed and wrenched the dormer window open and he saw far below in their back
garden his next door neighbours children running around and having fun in the
snow, his first reaction to the view of the Cooper family enjoying the weather
was one of sadness, but he quickly shook off those feelings and leant far out
and scooped up handfuls of snow from the slates and the Cooper children
shrieked and ran for cover as his snowballs found their mark.
“Merry Christmas Luke”
Sally Cooper called up to him and smiled “Come down and join us”
He liked Sally, she was
a few months younger than him and he had a crush on her.
“Yes please come” her
younger siblings chorused
Luke donned his duffel
coat and woolen hat and went downstairs and via the back garden of 85 and
joined the Coopers and was greeted by a volley of snowballs.
But when Sally saw the
cuts and abrasions on his face she was shocked by their severity and called off
her siblings attack.
“My goodness” she said
“Mrs. O said you were robbed, but I didn’t know they hurt you so badly”
And then to her
brother John she said
“Go and get mum”
When Mrs. Cooper
appeared and saw his injuries she went all mother hen over him
“You poor boy, look
what they did to you, you’re spending Christmas with us” she announced “and I
want no argument”
“I’m working all day
tomorrow” he said meekly
“Well you’re not
working tonight” Mrs. Cooper said “so you’re staying for dinner, George has
made Punch and we are having roast Goose tonight”
“He’d love to” Sally
said “Wouldn’t you?”
“Yes very much, thank
you” he said and Sally took his arm
“Come into the warm
then” Mrs. Cooper said “it’s getting chilly”
“We don’t just have
Punch and Goose this evening” Sally said as they followed the other inside
“What else could there
be?” he asked
“Mistletoe” Sally
replied and smiled so despite everything it turned out to be a wonderful
Christmas in 1962 after all.
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