Page 26 - IT'S A RUM LIFE BOOK FOUR Volume 1 "Northcote 1984 to 1998"

I have explained in “Buying Northcote”, just what miracles had to be performed to actually
save some of our sanity and exchange our “Georgian Country House” for this
comparatively tiny residence tucked away down a narrow twisted country lane.

Once here we had to stay here and at the same time find some means of income and help
Ruth cope with the undoubted shock of the upheaval and total change.

As I was explaining it was not all doom and gloom.

“THIS IS THE BBC”

We had a phone call one day; it was one of those remarkable things that can happen from
time to time.
The call was from a programme presenter for BBC Radio Nottingham. His name was
Dennis McCarthy.

We had met Dennis the previous year at a Charity event to raise funds for supplementary
Cancer Care at the local Pilgrim Hospital. The lady who arranged that event, Lynn Ellis,
had been known to us and we had attended at her request.
Our task had been to “deliver” the dignitaries to the event in our ‘Victoria’ Carriage, the one
we used for weddings. Those dignitaries had been the Mayor of Boston and Dennis
himself, representing Radio Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.

ON THE TELEPHONE
Now Dennis was very well known in the dog world as a breeder of Afghan dogs; in fact he
was an undisputed authority on dogs of all types and breeds.

He explained that he had been asked by BBC Television to produce a programme on
“Working Dogs”.
The idea had come from the department who produced “One Man and His Dog”, and they
were looking at other ideas that would interest the same kind of audience.

Dennis had already arranged a venue and time for shooting the film. It was to be at Belvoir
Castle, a most imposing residence, the home of the Duke of Rutland, standing on the edge
of a large hillside overlooking the Lincolnshire/ Nottinghamshire border.

The shooting of the film was to take place in three weeks time and Dennis wanted to have
Dinan the Dalmatian carriage dog on his programme.

At this time Dinan was about at the peak of his working life. He had appeared with both of
our carriages at countless weddings and in many cases managed to cause more interest
than the bride herself, although she was never aware of this.