I've known my friend Louise for 36 years,
on-and-off, and she's like a big sister, far away, but I always look her-up
when I visit the Channel Islands and we have a good giggle and catch-up on
stuff, as you do! I suspect she's like a big-sister to hundreds - if not
thousands - of islanders and off-islanders who have found her shop over the
decades, and hung around for a chat!
I also knew her late partner Colin, he
would occasionally rib me on my Dad, but without malice, Colin was someone who 'lived'
life . . . to the full, and didn't have time for malice! I in turn would rib
him on his Aurignac Liquer! [hope I've spelt that right!]
Well it happens that a few years ago, and
not long before illness caught-up with him, Colin suggested to Louise that they
go on a back-packing trip round Europe. Now, a gentleman never asks a lady her
age, but suffice to say I'm in my mid-fifties and they had a year or two over
me! But off they went, like a couple of teenagers! I don't know the entire
itinerary, but I know they did France and the Mediterranean . . . at some point
winding-up in Corsica.
The little port/village they were staying-in
had a shop, outside of which was the below figure, and Louise rather fell for
it, suggesting it would be nice to have one outside her little shop, back in
Alderney. Colin - being Colin - offered the Corsican shop-keeper some geld for
it, which the Corsican turned down . . . well, you would, wouldn't you?
Not to be thwarted, Colin worked on the
shop-keeper every-day, for the rest of their stay, and in the end the shop-keeper
gave in (if you knew Colin - you would, wouldn't you!), and a deal was done.
This left two pedestrians with a life-sized pirate to drag round Europe! "Don't worry love" says Colin (who
always had the enthusiasm and confidence of three men); "I'll ask round the harbour, something will
come up!"
Well . . . Colin - being Colin - found a
lorry driver who was willing to take the statue, and - after some work round
Europe - would deliver it to St. Malo, on a given date, and the pair of them
continued on their trip, not knowing if they would see - the now - 'their' Corsair,
ever again! Louise thought they wouldn't!
A few days (or weeks?) later they were back
in St. Malo, waiting to return home, and after some hanging-around and
nail-biting . . . the lorry turned up! We can't begin to imagine where the
pliant passenger had been, or what he's shared the back of the lorry with . . .
fridges, pot-plants, fresh produce, a couple of pallets of die-cast widgets,
four tons of leaflets for an International bank, pop-corn makers from Taiwan .
. . we'll never know?
Monsieur l'Buccaneer was off-loaded, final
payments made, and now our two intrepid travellers were stood on the quay-side
in St. Malo with backpacks and a six-foot statue of a Corsican corsair . . .
still with sword!
Calls were made, a return was affected by
the live persons, and a day or two later a boat from Alderney dropped in to St.
Malo on the QT and surreptitiously picked-up a ridged passenger, who was
trafficked into the UK, armed, without the correct paper-work and under the
noses of the red-coated Revenue Men!
As you can see, he now stands proudly
outside Louise's Louise, where he
guards the forecourt, being taken-in and put-out daily with a system of
ramp-boards (he's not light, and there's quite a step); a permanent reminder of
Colin's love for Louise, his eccentricity (which was undeniable!) and their
grand trip together.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
At 1:1-scale I'd love it to be the largest
plastic figure on Small Scale World, but we had 'giant-lady' from Woking a year
or two ago (more to come on her/'them') and she was 2:1! He's obviously fiberglass-reinforced two-part
epoxy-resin, is hollow, and has a real leather baldric, steel sword and a wig of
'pirate' braids held in place by a bandana.
He's Colin's Corsican corsair from Corsica
. . . Best Poirate Ever! Ahaarrrrh!
Or should that be; l'Ahaarrrrhe!
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