David Hall
received a phone call from the Brother-in-Law of a man who had just passed
away.
Ellis
apologised for calling on a Bank Holiday Monday, he was just expecting an
answer-phone to click in, and he was delighted that David took the call. Ellis
said that he had got Vintage Lorry Funerals phone number from the internet,
however, he was surprised to find that a number of people were trying to copy
what David has achieved. Ellis said, ‘I don’t want any knock-off, I only want
the original because only the best is good enough for my Brother-in-Law, who
was only 56 when he passed away.’
David was
asked to speak with a Funeral Director in Ullesthorpe and a lady called Della
measured their driveway which appeared to be wide enough to accommodate the
1950 Leyland Beaver. However, when David arrived there his initial observations
were that the driveway had a number of pinch points caused by hedges, trees or
gates and it would be extremely difficult to get the lorry down the driveway.
The Funeral
Directors Staff were most concerned as the Deceased was thought to be over 25
stone and they were very worried about carrying him up the drive to get to the
lorry. Having seen their disappointment, David said that if the Funeral
Director could provide two staff, one to walk in front of the lorry and one to
walk behind the Leyland Beaver, then he would make an attempt.
Della had
arranged for both sides of the street to be coned off which was an immense
help. David then reversed into the entrance of the driveway with the Leyland
Beaver on full lock. Having a Simms Fuel Lift Pump the Leyland Beaver can
gently move on tick-over and allows David to focus entirely on when to release
the full lock. Once the Leyland Beaver was into the entrance of the driveway,
David took instruction from both staff members and the lorry slowly inched its
way down the drive on tick-over.
When David
stopped the engine he looked up and saw an amazing sight, the tower of a former
windmill which he hadn’t noticed as he approached the village earlier that day.
The Funeral
Director’s Staff were delighted and one handed over an envelope from the
Family, containing David’s money for the funeral. David joked, ‘I’m off home
now, I have already earned my fee, a bit like Len Shackleton’, the former
Sunderland Footballer in the 1950’s, also known as The Clown Prince of Soccer.
One of the
Funeral Director’s staff had originated from Sunderland
and knew all about ‘Shack’ who played in the days when footballers were all
paid £10 per week. Regularly Shackleton would do something magical in the first
10 minutes, Sunderland would score as a result
of his wizardry and after that he would just pass the ball telling his team
mates and the crowd, ‘I have already earned my £10.’ The gates at Roker Park
were locked 15 minutes before the kick off, with everyone inside keen to watch
‘Shack’s’ tricks during the warm up and he took his trickery into matches
sometimes playing a one-two with the corner flag. After he finished playing ‘Shack’
became a Journalist, however, he never lost his football skills and his party
trick was putting a coin on his shoe, flicking it up and catching the coin in
the top pocket of his jacket.
The Funeral
Director’s staff were amazed how David effortlessly turned the huge coffin on
the deck and secured it in place without any assistance.
David knew
very little about the Deceased other than he owned a haulage company. David had
no clue what he would meet in the haulage yard, however, he should have perhaps
picked up a message from the pile of Yorkie Bars that were left at the Funeral
Directors.
David
approached the road into the haulage yard and saw 9 white Scania Tractor Units
parked in a line on the grass perpendicular to the road. As David turned into
the haulage yard he encountered a crowd of over 200 people made up of Family,
friends, employees, Sub Contractors and support companies, including Crouch
Recovery. Two vehicles that were from Crouch Recovery were driven by ‘Fluff’
and Jamie both of whom have featured in ‘Trucking Hell’, on the 5Spike TV
Chanel.
At a given
time, every Lorry Driver simultaneously applied their truck’s air horn and the
noise was deafening. The horns were shut off in unison and there was silence
apart from the tick-over of the 1950 Leyland Beaver. It was an amazing send off
for a man whose whole life revolved around his family and his trucks.
At the church
8 men, all the same height and build stepped forward to carry the Deceased the
200 yards to the church doors.
The Deceased
was laid to rest in the church grounds and whilst David was waiting to speak
with the Family, he was approached by two Irishmen who wanted to look at ‘the
immaculate restoration that was undertaken on this vehicle’, as one the men put
it. Apparently news of the Leyland Beaver landing in Ullesthorpe went around
social media like a wildfire. The two men were impressed how sheets of
Aluminium were welded together to provide a one piece finish on the cab, just
like the Leyland Beaver had when it rolled out of the factory in 1950.
