Meeting some interesting people in Bedworth

The Leyland Beaver was booked for a funeral in Bedworth, a former mining village between Coventry and Nuneaton, which locals call ‘Bedeth’.

The Floral Tributes were an interesting mix of ‘BIG G’ a ‘Football’ and a ‘Domino’. A great amount of thought took place before the layout was finalised. Should the ‘Domino’ sit on the short side or lay on the long side? Should the three Floral Tributes be held on three levels and in what order? David woke up during the night with an ideal solution which involved ‘BIG G’, four letters on a five letter bar, fixed to the top of the headboard with the ‘Football’ and ‘Domino’ secured just beneath ‘BIG G’ in a rectangle bounded by the ‘B’ and second ‘G’.

The final touch to complete this unique layout was to include an A3 picture of the Deceased close to the head of the coffin. The picture was cropped from an image taken on a cruise ship with the setting sun behind the photographer, which caused both the Deceased and his wife to have reddened faces. However, Andy Walder of Tech Office in Trowbridge used software to reduce the red content before printing and laminating the picture.

The route to Bedworth involved going up the Fosse Way to Brinklow and instead of turning right onto the A4455 to Leicester you take the B4209 and follow this all the way to Bedworth. The toilet facilities on the Fosse Way are as rare as Rocking Horse Manure, so David has had to use innovation to find suitable comfort stops en route. For a number years David has been able to use the Management toilets at Ainscough Crane Hire near Princethorpe, which were available from 0630 hours. What David hadn’t realised was that the trip to Bedworth would prove to be his last call into Princethorpe as shortly afterwards Ainscough Cranes reduced the status of the depot, making it a satellite location with no management on site. David would like to put on record his appreciation for all the kindness he has received from Ainscough Crane Hire over the years.

The driveway at the Funeral Directors was very tight for the Leyland Beaver and if David had reversed down the narrow track he would have prevented other people accessing the car park such as Florists or family members. So David decided to park the 1950 Leyland Beaver on the wide tarmac pavement in front of the Funeral Directors and gave out Business Cards to a number of passersby who expressed an interest in the Vintage Lorry.

With All Saints Church being in the centre of Coventry a special dispensation was required to go into the town centre beyond the huge bollards which were retracted into the ground. A large crowd watched David on the deck as the Deceased was off-loaded and wheeled into the church. On previous Coventry funerals David has had to use all his skills to avoid being ticketed by Parking Wardens and when he saw a female Police Office approaching the vehicle David feared the worst. However, he needn’t have been concerned, she commented how clean the lorry looked and how it was a fitting final journey for a Loved One. Her own Dad was in a Care Home and she asked if she may have the contact details for Vintage Lorry Funerals. So rather than David receiving a ticket, he gave the Police Officer a Business Card.

The next person to shake David’s hand was a former Land Rover worker who had delivered 4 x 4s using a Leyland Beaver Lorry and Drawbar. He asked David if his lorry had a Simms fuel injector pump because the lorry should move slowly on tick-over which was an amazing advantage when reversing a four wheeled trailer. David confirmed that MXV 610 has the same skill-set and this has helped David when he is asked to undertake complicated reserving manoeuvres, although David was quick to acknowledge that his complications are minimal compared with a 1950 Lorry & Drawbar Driver.

A very ill looking man in a wheel car being pushed by a young lady came past the lorry, David waved to the man, who waved back and asked to be wheeled over for a chat. It was obvious from the man’s accent that he was from Scotland originally and when David said that the Beaver had been to Stranraer the man’s face lit up. David explained that the Deceased in Stranraer had always wanted to be first in the new part of the cemetery which was on a steep hillside. He got his wish, however, in David’s opinion he wouldn’t have wanted the space he got because it was at the bottom of the hill and not at the top of the hill, which had a magnificent sea view which included Ailsa Craig, the island of granite that was use to make curling stones. So when the cortege entered the cemetery, everyone turned right towards the grave, but David drove straight on to the top of the hill, got out of the cab, took off his beret and pointed to Ailsa Craig. The man in the wheel chair, who said his name was Jock, knew the cemetery and thought David had done a wonderful thing.

Jock then waved Dave to come closer to him and Jock used the rave on the deck to pull himself closer to David. Jock then whispered that he was formerly in the Forces and he was the last surviving soldier in his unit. Some were killed in action during tours of Ireland, and some after leaving the Army had lost their lives in accidents but some took their own life. Jock said he felt guilty that he was still alive and yet all his mates were dead.

David told Jock that he knew exactly how he felt. When David’s Grandson was born with a life limiting condition called SMA Type 1 and was given a life expectancy of 9 months David prayed that God would take his life during the night and spare the life of his Grandson. David awoke disappointed that God chose not to grant David’s prayer. Jock clasped David’s hand firmly and started to cry saying that it was the first time that anyone had understood how he felt. David found out that the lady pushing Jock in his wheel chair was his wife. David then told Jock that he needed to brave for his wife and she was the reason that he should cherish each day he had left on this earth.

All this took place whilst the Church Service was taking place.