Driven

Funfairs were never my idea of fun. I’ve not been to one for years, but when the children were young, Joan and I were dragged off to our local park where, from time to time, a fair pitched up.

Besides the ridiculous prices charged for their fleeting thrills (cheap, but not cheap) and the endless stream of even cheaper, synthetic fibre cuddly toys offered as ‘prizes’, I’ve a very weak stomach for roundabouts, enormous spinning teacups, big-dippers and the like. Once I went on a small ferris wheel suitable for parents with small children, and after a couple of revolutions had to beg the operator to stop to let me off. The lout in control completely ignored my entreaties and when I reeled off at the end of our go, I could scarcely keep my lunch down, all much to the shame of my children. This must be when they first felt embarrassed by a pare