A reminder that Paddy’s Memorial Service will be held at St James’s Church, Picacadilly at 11.00 am on Thursday 15 December 2011.
You are advised to arrive early. Map.
Patrick Leigh Fermor
He drank from a different fountain
A reminder that Paddy’s Memorial Service will be held at St James’s Church, Picacadilly at 11.00 am on Thursday 15 December 2011.
You are advised to arrive early. Map.
Patrick Leigh Fermor 
Thanks for the reminder. Will be flying on Thursday morning.
Amazing – I was not aware of PLF until a family holiday to Crete in 2005 when we discovered a great deal about his involvement there in the war. It all started coming together after that as I learnt he attended the same School as me, Kings Canterbury where he made his last visit in 2007 I think. I have recently read The Cretan Runner by George Psychoundakis – a great read but must admit not having read any of PLF’s books.Can anyone suggest the best one to start with!? Tim can you help?
I intend to be there on Thursday – I am sure it will be well attended, lets hope it is.
Tim – I note you attended PLF’s funeral. I would have been there but ironically it clashed with the memorial service for Canon Pilkington, my headmaster when I was at Kings.
I think you could do worse than start with A Time f Gifts, then move on to Between the Woods and the Water, and then reverse to Mani and Roumeli.
Guy,
Firstly apologies for not answering sooner. To know more about Paddy in Crete you
might want to read William Stanley Moss’s book Ill Met by Moonlight.
Paddy has written an official account of the Kreipe abduction and it can be found in the National Archives – and possibly on my website http://www.illmetbymoonlight.info (forgive me again, I need to update the site badly and cannot remember what might be tucked away on there) There is also an account by G Harokopos entitled The Abduction of General Kreipe. Both need to be read with some reservation, they are the authors own works! Paddy has written a private unpublished account, whether there are plans to publish I cannot say at present. I’ve also found some interesting remarks in In Tearing Haste. Wings of Mercury, edited by Paddy’s biographer Artemis Cooper is also well worth a read as a means of getting to know Paddy better.
Tom is of course spot on with recommendations for works written by Paddy.
If you get a chance to get hold of copies of The Stronghold and Hide and Seek by Xan Fielding, a fellow SOE operative and friend of Paddy, they are well worth a read-mind though copies now go for as much as £400 a throw! A few public libraries still have copies. I too hope to be there on Thursday (wrong side of sixty, 6’5″ glasses and a stick) Should pick up some further fascinating insides as well as have the chance to honour his memory.
Tim
Many thanks for this most useful information. I will look out for you on Thursday – I should be sitting with the delegation from the Kings School, Canterbury (I am told that their choir will be singing)
Guy
Aha! Maybe other’s have made the same mistake as you Ian. 😉 I’m Tim not Tom!
Although I had been in touch with Tom before the funeral, it was there that we first met and indeed he was amongst the good company who repaired up that long drive beside the church to the hotel bar.
Quite seriously though, I felt that it was noticeable at the funeral how easily all of us, united in our admiration of Paddy, from near and from far, mixed with one another freely. Quite an achievement to bring such a disparate bunch together without a thought as to other differences- but then that says it all about the appeal of Paddy.
Umh. Perhaps I’m an exception to the rule then Ian as I am most certainly neither of those,. I did repair to a local hostel after the funeral with a few fellows and it proved a most interesting lunchtime.
I tried to after the funeral but the nearest seemed to be miles away, certainly none in Dumbleton. Anyway Tom, you are counted as a Good by the clubmen, editors & ambassadors 🙂
Great & Good only, peasants repair to a pub.
I believe not, though an invitation is required for the post Memorial Service reception
Is i ncessary to have a ticket for the Memorial Service?