The Legend of Salt and Sauce Third Edition!

I hope this post isn't premature, but I have finally got round to looking into producing the third edition of "The Legend of Salt and Sauce". At this present time I am going back through my research and contacting the various people who helped my father and I in the development of the book. If anyone reading this blog can assist, please do not hesitate in emailing me. I hope to include new contemporary illustrations and photographs of the various elephants mentioned in the book as well various writing revisions and hopefully some new information. This time I wish the book to be available in electronic format as well as printed form, allowing it to stay print.

New Blog for Pen and Spindle

The Pen And The Spindle: The Pen And The Spindle Post Updates February 22, 2009

Sam Lockhart's Elephant Walk - Video

On 24th May I attended the unveiling of "Elephant Circle" in Leamington Spa and set up a stand to sign the first copies of "The Legend of Salt and Sauce". The event was organized to not only unveiled this newly repaired and re-located sculpture by Nicholas Dimbleby, but also to celebrate Leamington's historical links to elephants. The root of this association starts with Sam Lockhart the circus elephant trainer. Sam features in "The Legend of Salt and Sauce" as he was the brother of fellow elephant trainer George Lockhart who was tragically killed by Sauce in 1904. I also dedicated an appendix in my book to Sam's life. Despite George's elephants having a more celebrated history in the UK, Sam was the more successful of the two brothers, and during the early part of the twentieth century he famously walked his elephants around Leamington Spa. While I attended the unveiling I couldn't resist the opportunity of filming the famous "Elephant Walk", the slipway where Sam walked his elephants down to bathe in the river Leam. Here is the footage we took: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1zKlz4j7sc

First signing date for "The Legend of Salt and Sauce"

I am happy to announce that "The Legend of Salt and Sauce" will be launched at Blackpool in conjunction with the Circus Friends Association AGM and rally on Saturday 7th June. I will be reading an extract from the book accompanied by my father, who helped me out on a lot of research, and will also be giving a Power Point display of photographs. The exact venue has not yet been confirmed - I was hoping and partly assuming it was going to be at Blackpool Tower Circus (as reported in the above link). Further details will follow in future blogs.

Blackpool is a great location for the launch of the book, as the elephants worked there at the Tower Circus at various times. The Tower was also the place where Lockhart Jnr. continued to cement his reputation as the "Doyen of ringmasters".