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Between 1945 and 1963, more than 2.5 million 18-year-olds were
called up for National Service. Alf Townsend was one of them, and
here he tells his story - the highs and lows of life as a lowly
Aircraftman Second Class in the early 1950s. Before national
service intervened, Alf was 'heading down the criminal road at top
speed', having grown up in a north London slum, where money was
short and local villains were revered. Bad Lads is a warts-and-all
account of Alf's time in the RAF, when he was transplanted into a
completely new world of misfits and officer types, rogues and
entertainers, all amusingly described in his own inimitable style.
'Blitz Boy' is a recollection of life in the Blitz and of
evacuation to Cornwall. Charismatic author Alf Townsend tells the
harrowing and touching tale of what it was like for a young
inner-city child to suffer the trials of war at first hand.
Forty years ago Alf Townsend passed The Knowledge - after 14,000
miles on a moped round central London. Since then he has covered
millions of miles in his taxi. This book includes a selection of
his extraordinary and hilarious tales of everyday life as a cabbie,
in which we meet Mr Whippy and Violent Pete, Bread Roll Mick and
the Motorway Mouse, Claude the Bastard and the mysterious Mr X. Alf
also examines the history of cab-driving in the capital - including
the variety of taxis that have been used - and even tries to shed
some light on the most ancient and obscure Hackney Carriage laws
that are still on the statute book. (Do you know why a taxi is so
tall? So a passenger can get on board wearing a top hat: it's
true...) Concluding with a look at the seamy side of night work,
the rise and rise of the mini-cab, and what the future may hold for
the London cabbie, Alf Townsend's book will be entertaining reading
for all Londoners, and anyone else who has travelled in the back of
a black cab.
Alf Townsend is a London cabbie with nearly fifty years'
experience. In his new book, he gathers together for the first time
the complete history of London's cabs in wartime - not just in the
Second World War when cabs were converted for other uses
(firefighting, ambulances, armoured personnel carriers, etc), but
also in the First World War, when the cabbies had to endure
hundreds of zeppelin attacks by night. With over 90 photographs
supporting Alf's usual lively and readable text, this book is sure
to reveal a hitherto unknown aspect of the capital in wartime.
Between 1945 and 1963, over two and a half million eighteen year
olds were called up for national service. Alf Townsend was one of
them, and here he tells his story - the highs and lows of life as a
lowly Aircraftman Second Class in the early '50s. Before national
service intervened, Alf was 'heading down the criminal road at top
speed', having grown up in a north London slum, where money was
short and local villains were revered. This book is a warts and all
account of Alf Townsend's time in the RAF, when he was transplanted
into a completely new world of misfits and officer types, rogues
and entertainers, all amusingly described in the author's
inimitable style.
In his new book, well-known London cabbie Alf Townsend tells us the
complete story of the black cab, from its origins in the
seventeenth century to the brand new taxis which now grace the
capital's streets. The history and development of the black cab is
explored here in Alf's straightforward writing style, alongside
ninety colour and black and white images. This is a light-hearted
romp through the world of 'the knowledge', the vehicles, the
streets of London and the cabbies themselves, and is full of juicy
snippets and fascinating quotes which will be of great interest to
anyone who loves this London icon.
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Cabbie (Paperback)
Alf Townsend
2
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R255
R221
Discovery Miles 2 210
Save R34 (13%)
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Out of stock
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Tales of being a London cabbie
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