My post back in August concerned David Farrar’s Autobiography ‘ No Royal Road’ which I had then just acquired and now have got down to reading. I am quite a slow reader as opposed to a skim reader, so hopefully I make sure I retain the majority of it – if I don’t then often I re-read a passage.

David Farrar was the youngest child of the family and was born in 1908 in Forest Gate London – or so it says on Wiki. Not sure about this as I can’t find where he actually says this in his book. i maybe think that he was born in Essex and moved to London at a very young age. He had an older brother Albert, a sister and another brother.

David seemed to get on very well with Albert and looked up to and admired him. Albert could and often did play the piano that they had and David started to learn but he does not refer much to his sister or other brother.

David along with his father and Albert often went to the cinema at a weekend – in those silent days – something they all three loved. His father had a love for entertainment particularly the Music Hall.

He describes very clearly the tragedy that befell the famiiy when David was 13 – so 1919 or so.

Albert became unwell and confined to bed at home. Doctors came but he didn’t improve and so he was admitted to hospital where he died some days later. What he died of isn’t made clear but at that time it could well have been the terrible Flu epidemic that ravaged the World.

The family were devastated – the piano was not played as it wrought such painful memories for them – although after some weeks Mrs Farrar realised that this was doing the remaining children no good at all and so playing was then recommenced

What a sad time that would have been for them

On a lighter note, the family always looked forward to their holidays down on the farm in Hainault, Essex owned by relatives of his mother.

There is much more to come from this Autobiography which has been very hard to find – and expensive when you do