I’ve only just heard the news of Graham’s passing, not having seen him for many years. We lived next door to each other in Netherfield Road, back in the day.
He was a few years older than me, so I kind of looked up to him, as he knew loads of stuff that I didn’t. He introduced me to the Beatles and Chuck Berry and taught me to play chess, although he got a bit miffed, when I started to beat him.
We built lots of dens. One was in the large cupboard in his bedroom. Others were dug into the steep banks of the brook at the bottom of the road. Our best effort ended in flames. Literally. Someone set it on fire. We were pretty sure who the culprit was but as he was bigger and older than both of us, retribution wasn’t an option.
On Saturdays we’d go into Bolton town centre, visiting the museum, aquarium and Tognarelli’s temperance bar, before perusing the shops, although I don’t remember us actually buying anything.
My family moved away after a few years, although we kept in touch as my Mum and Graham’s were great friends. Later on I used to tag along at the Friday pub crawl, although I was still underage then. The routine was always the same. Millstone, Old Three Crowns and the Boars Head, before calling in at the Olde Pastie Shop for a couple of meat pies.
There was an art to eating them. You had to take a bite out of the pastry and then hold the pie away from you so the scalding hot gravy that poured out didn’t ruin your clothes. We used to look in the window of Harker and Howarth’s music shop while we ate, at the Fender Stratocaster guitars that were way beyond our budget.
There were fewer nights out after Graham and Ursula got married, but I had a couple of sessions with him in Horwich. Mark was just a baby then. I didn’t see him after that, although I kept up with how he was doing via the mum network.
I’ m greatly saddened that Graham was taken way too soon and at the ill health he suffered in his later years. But I can’t help but smile when I think of him. He was a great lad, blessed with charm and a bit of star quality and completely impossible not to like. It’s heartening that so many people remember him fondly.
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