Mission Accomplished
Posted: Sat Jul 23, 2011 6:05 am
Hello 'Friends'
I have just returned from my trip to the U.K. and can now report - 'Mission Accomplished'. There were one or two problems that needed urgent attention which I'm pleased to say have now been solved. I took a series of photographs including at the Crematorium, Ruby's apartment in the harbour area, the Residential/Nursing Home, Babbcombe Downs and Babbacombe Bay. Hopefully the little story that I have written, together with the photos that I took, will enable 'Friends' to familiarize themselves with the various sites in Torquay where Ruby and I used to frequent.. Read on...
I knew when I started out on my mission to the Crematorium that the grave would be in desperate need of attention and there was a strong possibility that the stonemason still hadn't re-painted the white lettering on the marble plinth as I had repeatedly asked him to do. I arrived at the graveside to discover that he had at long last done the job, perhaps because prior to departing I did ring to pressurise him before I left saying that I was flying in to Exeter on a special mission to the Crematorium and stressed that I hoped that he wouldn't allow me to waste a return flight to the U.K. only to find that he hadn't done the job. The rest of the scene was quite sad, the grass had grown over the edges and the problematic conifer tree had now been 'topped' out by someone but it looked a mess. I went down on all fours and started to 'clean up' and looked up to see a lady returning to her car in the car park after attending to a grave, we exchanged "Good Mornings" and she drove off. Two minutes later a maintenance man arrived and told me, in no uncertain terms, "You can't plant that tree there" It became evident that the lady, who had just departed, had told the maintenance man that I was planting a tree. I explained to the man that I hadn't planted the tree and that it had been there for at least a year, or even more. He said that he "hadn't noticed it before" Strange that because it was at least a meter high, if not more, but in fact it had been 'topped out' plus the fact that it was the only conifer tree there. I further explained that it would most likely have been planted by one of Ruby's fans, or a very kind 'well wisher'. The man was adamant, the tree must go. He asked if I was the closest relative and I confirmed that I was. Whereupon he asked if I would give permission for him to remove the tree. I further explained that for some considerable time I personally had been quite concerned about the tree for fear that it's roots would eventually spread underneath Ruby's marble plinth and, even worse, it would threaten the interred ashes in the grave behind Ruby's. I confirmed that as far as I was concerned he could remove the tree BUT I explained, the person who planted the tree would more than likely be very upset. Now that I had given him my consent he went off to consult with his boss and when they both retuned I had to repeat the story to him. They both set about the task of uprooting the tree and quite naturally the roots were well set and very difficult to uproot. I was quite concerned in case they disturbed Ruby's marble plinth by the way they were struggling to uproot the tree but with the aid of a jagged knife that I had borrowed from the owner of the Guest House where I was staying they eventually uprooted the conifer tree.
I temporarily left the scene to go to B&Q to buy some loose white stone chippings and on to a supermarket to buy yet another pair of scissors because I was obviously not allowed to bring such an item through security. I looked around the various shops in the area and found some very nice red roses and then headed back to the Crematorium. With the aid of a length of battening and a paint stripper, once again borrowed from the owner of the Guest House, I managed to cut straight lines around the plinth and left a gap of around two inches to be filled in by the white stone chippings. I had spent nearly all day on this mission but when I had completed the task I felt highly satisfied with the end result. I took a series of photos and departed clinging to the hope that the authorities at the Crematorium would not object to the white chippings surrounding the grave, only time will tell.
My return flight was not until two days later so I had time on my hands. With this in mind I decided to take a nostalgic trip around Torquay and Babbacombe to see some of the places that Ruby and I shared together. My first stop was the Harbour side apartment where Ruby spent her final years. I took some shots from outside Ruby's apartment coupled with the view that she enjoyed looking out of her windows to see and enjoy. Across the harbour one can still see The Pavilion Theatre where Ruby starred in a record breaking pantomime run in a production of 'Cinderella'. I appeared in the show with her playing rather an odd part as a Leprechaun, a kind of go between to Cinderella and her Fairy Godmother. The comedian Derek Roy starred as 'Buttons', a part that he was renowned for. I don't know whether the box office record still stands but it was 50 plus years ago so that is doubtful. 'Fings Ain't Wot They Used To Be' and the old Pavilion Theatre is now a shopping precinct but the exterior remains the same - The interior of the old theatre, the auditorium, is now full of modern day shops and a central elevator leads up to where the Circle would have been which now has a very comfortable Cafeteria where Ruby and I spent a very nostalgic hour or so with the vibes of the old Pavilion Theatre very much in evidence, - Happy Memories.
From the Harbour I drove up the Babbacombe Road to see again the Residential-Nursing Home where I visited Ruby on so many occasions. I didn't stay too long looking at 'Aspreys' as it was becoming a little too painful. From there I drove on to Babbacombe to see once more the sights that both Ruby and I enjoyed so much - Babbacombe Downs and Babbacombe Bay. Ruby didn't ever play the Babbacombe Theatre but I couldn't resist taking some shots of it whilst I was there. I noticed that, like most theatre venues these days, there is no summer season show, only one niters and on the hoardings outside I saw a few familiar names i.e. Jimmy Tarbuck. Cannon & Ball, and a bill with three comedians on - Duncan Norvelle, Ian 'Sludge' Lees and Frank Carson. I stayed around Babbacombe for quite a while soaking up the memories. I am pleased that I was able to make the trip, it meant so very much to me.
I hope that readers will find something of interest in my little story of - 'Mission Accomplished'
My very best wishes to everyone,
Adios Amigos. Bernie.
I have just returned from my trip to the U.K. and can now report - 'Mission Accomplished'. There were one or two problems that needed urgent attention which I'm pleased to say have now been solved. I took a series of photographs including at the Crematorium, Ruby's apartment in the harbour area, the Residential/Nursing Home, Babbcombe Downs and Babbacombe Bay. Hopefully the little story that I have written, together with the photos that I took, will enable 'Friends' to familiarize themselves with the various sites in Torquay where Ruby and I used to frequent.. Read on...
I knew when I started out on my mission to the Crematorium that the grave would be in desperate need of attention and there was a strong possibility that the stonemason still hadn't re-painted the white lettering on the marble plinth as I had repeatedly asked him to do. I arrived at the graveside to discover that he had at long last done the job, perhaps because prior to departing I did ring to pressurise him before I left saying that I was flying in to Exeter on a special mission to the Crematorium and stressed that I hoped that he wouldn't allow me to waste a return flight to the U.K. only to find that he hadn't done the job. The rest of the scene was quite sad, the grass had grown over the edges and the problematic conifer tree had now been 'topped' out by someone but it looked a mess. I went down on all fours and started to 'clean up' and looked up to see a lady returning to her car in the car park after attending to a grave, we exchanged "Good Mornings" and she drove off. Two minutes later a maintenance man arrived and told me, in no uncertain terms, "You can't plant that tree there" It became evident that the lady, who had just departed, had told the maintenance man that I was planting a tree. I explained to the man that I hadn't planted the tree and that it had been there for at least a year, or even more. He said that he "hadn't noticed it before" Strange that because it was at least a meter high, if not more, but in fact it had been 'topped out' plus the fact that it was the only conifer tree there. I further explained that it would most likely have been planted by one of Ruby's fans, or a very kind 'well wisher'. The man was adamant, the tree must go. He asked if I was the closest relative and I confirmed that I was. Whereupon he asked if I would give permission for him to remove the tree. I further explained that for some considerable time I personally had been quite concerned about the tree for fear that it's roots would eventually spread underneath Ruby's marble plinth and, even worse, it would threaten the interred ashes in the grave behind Ruby's. I confirmed that as far as I was concerned he could remove the tree BUT I explained, the person who planted the tree would more than likely be very upset. Now that I had given him my consent he went off to consult with his boss and when they both retuned I had to repeat the story to him. They both set about the task of uprooting the tree and quite naturally the roots were well set and very difficult to uproot. I was quite concerned in case they disturbed Ruby's marble plinth by the way they were struggling to uproot the tree but with the aid of a jagged knife that I had borrowed from the owner of the Guest House where I was staying they eventually uprooted the conifer tree.
I temporarily left the scene to go to B&Q to buy some loose white stone chippings and on to a supermarket to buy yet another pair of scissors because I was obviously not allowed to bring such an item through security. I looked around the various shops in the area and found some very nice red roses and then headed back to the Crematorium. With the aid of a length of battening and a paint stripper, once again borrowed from the owner of the Guest House, I managed to cut straight lines around the plinth and left a gap of around two inches to be filled in by the white stone chippings. I had spent nearly all day on this mission but when I had completed the task I felt highly satisfied with the end result. I took a series of photos and departed clinging to the hope that the authorities at the Crematorium would not object to the white chippings surrounding the grave, only time will tell.
My return flight was not until two days later so I had time on my hands. With this in mind I decided to take a nostalgic trip around Torquay and Babbacombe to see some of the places that Ruby and I shared together. My first stop was the Harbour side apartment where Ruby spent her final years. I took some shots from outside Ruby's apartment coupled with the view that she enjoyed looking out of her windows to see and enjoy. Across the harbour one can still see The Pavilion Theatre where Ruby starred in a record breaking pantomime run in a production of 'Cinderella'. I appeared in the show with her playing rather an odd part as a Leprechaun, a kind of go between to Cinderella and her Fairy Godmother. The comedian Derek Roy starred as 'Buttons', a part that he was renowned for. I don't know whether the box office record still stands but it was 50 plus years ago so that is doubtful. 'Fings Ain't Wot They Used To Be' and the old Pavilion Theatre is now a shopping precinct but the exterior remains the same - The interior of the old theatre, the auditorium, is now full of modern day shops and a central elevator leads up to where the Circle would have been which now has a very comfortable Cafeteria where Ruby and I spent a very nostalgic hour or so with the vibes of the old Pavilion Theatre very much in evidence, - Happy Memories.
From the Harbour I drove up the Babbacombe Road to see again the Residential-Nursing Home where I visited Ruby on so many occasions. I didn't stay too long looking at 'Aspreys' as it was becoming a little too painful. From there I drove on to Babbacombe to see once more the sights that both Ruby and I enjoyed so much - Babbacombe Downs and Babbacombe Bay. Ruby didn't ever play the Babbacombe Theatre but I couldn't resist taking some shots of it whilst I was there. I noticed that, like most theatre venues these days, there is no summer season show, only one niters and on the hoardings outside I saw a few familiar names i.e. Jimmy Tarbuck. Cannon & Ball, and a bill with three comedians on - Duncan Norvelle, Ian 'Sludge' Lees and Frank Carson. I stayed around Babbacombe for quite a while soaking up the memories. I am pleased that I was able to make the trip, it meant so very much to me.
I hope that readers will find something of interest in my little story of - 'Mission Accomplished'
My very best wishes to everyone,
Adios Amigos. Bernie.