Engine Punk

It's happening again. First there was the giant lamb born to one of Caroline's ewe. In fact, they're Jacob's sheep but belong to Caroline. This means that as sheep they are usually quite modestly sized. Then there's been all the soul-destroying influences we've been subjected to. We can't do anything fun because it damages the environment. We have to think about everything before we do it, audit our actions and ensure they stand up to scrutiny. Whose scrutiny? Why the Conformorians of course! Did you ever doubt they didn't really exist? And now here's Monika-Sandra, a third instance of real life following my fiction (although I suspect the Conformorians have been around for years before I ever wrote about them). You know the character called Heidi in The Horsepower Whisperer had a pet bat? A friend of mine called Heidi has rescued this little person. Unfortunately Monika-Sandra the Pipestrelle bat had a broken wing and died a few days after the...

Last week I met the most extraordinary person – my editor. I’ve worked with Caroline Petherick on two books now over about two years but never met her before. It was only recently that I visited her at her clifftop home near Looe. I should have done this earlier for she’s full of bright ideas, is fascinated by the world in general and knows an awful lot of interesting stuff. What prompted this get together was a rather surprised e-mail from her a fortnight ago. Caroline is almost over-qualified as my editor for in addition to being a damned fine proof reader she has a pilot's licence and keeps sheep. Recently her flock of Jacob’s sheep have had lambs and one of them was enormous. Having worked on my book The Wormton Lamb, she had to tell me and I had to see this phenomenon for myself. Caroline lives in idyllic surroundings not far from the Monkey Sanctuary and with spectacular views of Looe Island. Her flock is a necessity. They keep her 35 acres under control. Their fleece...