‘Richard’ Wakely is one of the characters in Barefoot on the Cobbles whose christian name had to be altered to avoid confusion. In real life, he was named William and he lived in the hamlet of Peppercombe. Born in 1835, he began his working life as an agricultural labourer and around the time of his marriage to Eliza Found in 1860, he trained as a ship’s carpenter. In order to ply his trade with Waters’ boatbuilders in Appledore, he walked in to town each week, returning to his family at weekends. William was still working in his late seventies even though he would have been eligible for an Old Age Pension.

The Wakelys had a son and five daughters who survived infancy, two others died as babies. William himself died at the age of 95, in 1931.

‘Her father’s tar-stained holdall was slung across his shoulder and thudded on his back with each successive step. It receded into the distance, as he gained more ground. Richard seemed unaware of his daughter’s presence, let alone her exertions. Lost in thought, he spat a plug of tobacco into the bank and kept his gaze firmly forward, glad that the heat of the day was abating for the journey. Richard contemplated the long walk ahead of him.’

Barefoot on the Cobbles will be published on 17 November 2018. More information about the novel can be found here. Copies will be available at various events in the weeks following the launch or can be pre-ordered from Blue Poppy Publishing or the author.