The Life and Times of “Arfer Teacake”

“Arfer” (1932)

Arfer Teacake was the cockney nickname given to the author when he was a boy. The book is an account of the most memorable episodes in the authors long life, from the aftermath of the 1914/18 war through the Great Depression of the thirties, the 1939/45 war and its aftermath to the financial crisis in the second millennium. It tells of his early memories of life in a sweetshop; as a schoolboy with a rifle; teenage thoughts and experiences; Fascism; the Territorial Army and the outbreak of war. During the war:- Dunkirk; the bombing of London and its effect on family life; being on a gun site; getting a Commission (Mess etiquette and the Brigadiers tea party) preparations for D Day. After the war:- married life, tragic death of son, Chairman of a District Council, a reception at Buckingham Palace and surprisingly varied career with travel to the out posts of the British Empire, Switzerland, Australia, Ceylon and Turkey. Retirement years:- too much alcohol, working in a in a factory environment; visiting South Africa after Apartheid; the trial and tribulations of old age.