The Three Graces – Chapter 3

The Loner or

The Law Student by

Paul Andrews

What's this story all about? An amusing and exciting tale of student life at Liverpool in the Swinging Sixties.

Mark is a nervous student. He is ruled by an overwhelming, irrational fear of people – particularly girls – which shows itself in a bad stammer, and a terror of heights.

Fiona is the girl of his dreams, but she is in a steady relationship with a lifelong boyfriend in Scotland. Mark realises he is never going to get anywhere in life or in love unless he undergoes a complete personality change.

He is befriended by Bob, who has a passion for potholing (and free love), and a plan is hatched. If Mark can beat his fear of heights – an escapade down a cave or two should sort that one – maybe he can also overcome his fear of girls and win Fiona....

So begins a whole series of madcap adventures, featuring a yacht race, horse riding, underground adventures in Yorkshire and Mendip caves, dances, parties, and some wild and riotous student incidents, often involving too much alcohol and close shaves with the law.

Gypsum Cavern

What do the Critics say? Author Harriet Vyner says:“. Student life in sixties Liverpool was amusingly described – and like the descriptions of potholing – it almost made me nostalgic for the all night parties of youth. However, nowadays, I prefer a good read – which ‘The Loner’ very much was.” Author Jessica Blair says: “Nevertheless the feeling for the period comes alive through Mark and his friends and I am sure this will be a popular book with readers from that generation.” Chris Howes (Editor of Descent Magazine) says: “The final word? This is a highly enjoyable piece of almost-escapism into a world of caving now gone with the decades; you may even recognise some of your own fears, thrills and escapades. If you were around in those years, the feeling of reliving an era will come flooding back, from student demos to college parties and of wistful references to Woodstock instead of Glastonbury. The read is worth your whiling away a few hours between trips.........................But muse over the theme of The Loner – it carries more than the obvious message”.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

Bill Spence (also known as best-selling author Jessica Blair) says:

“Mark Flitley is a successful lawyer with his own boat which he is racing with a new crew member, Carol, who seems slightly familiar to him.

She is intrigued as he tells her that as a young man he was a lonely youth with no friends and who had to see a psychiatrist in order to help him to stop stammering and gain confidence.

He relates the story of his life, his unhappiness at school and university during the 1960s until joining a potholing club started to change his attitude and future.

Dances, parties, alcohol and close shaves with the law all contribute to his story and at the end of it Carol tells Mark about herself and reveals where they met before.

This book, by a local author, is a pleasant read with characters that came alive, though it takes a little time to become familiar enough to care about them.

The reminiscences of the sixties are strong, though atmospherically probably rely too much on the music, and as the book is set in Liverpool, there could have been more about the music from that city, rather than from America.

Nevertheless, the feeling for the period comes alive through Mark and his friends and I am sure that this will be a popular book with readers from that generation.”

Gazette and Herald 23rd December 2009

"Having once been persuaded into potholing in China (the language barrier having allowed our hosts to think me an expert) I was curious to see whether the shock and awe of that experience would be captured in Paul Andrews' novel  ‘The Loner’ – it was in abundance. The descriptions of the caves almost made me want to attempt the experience again – especially as the lead character Mark, was attempting it from a similar position of terror.    I thought it was clever and convincing to have this lead character be somewhat unsympathetic at times, whilst I could only empathise with his lack of confidence. Student life in sixties Liverpool was amusingly described – and like the descriptions of potholing – it almost made me nostalgic for the all night parties of youth. However, nowadays, I prefer a good read – which ‘The Loner’ very much was.“

Harriet Vyner author – ‘Groovy Bob’ and ‘Among Ruins’

WHAT THE CRITICS SAYReview by Harriet Vyner

Poetic Justice CrawlNote the boots!

WHAT THE CRITICS SAYAnd the Loner has reached Afghanistan!

Lt. Dan Bull, Royal Artillery, Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, says:

"Speaking of paperbacks, just finished Loner by your man Paul Andrews: whilst it was badly edited (refering to school rugby

team as the First XI and not the first XV in the first chapter grated through the rest of the book) and some of the passages were exceptionally long and dull (his Greek Class, some of the pot hole descriptions) I actually quite enjoyed it and wanted to get to the end and find out how Mark sorts himself out. Quite

an undertaking writing and getting a book published and whilst it probably won't win him a Pullitzer you have to be impressed."

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

Tom Tyson, Barrister-at-law, Leeds says:

"The Loner captures the bizarre blend of humdrum punctuated with intervals of exhileration which

comprise the early stages of a carreer in the law. A sharply observed, thrilling and suitably comic court scene is both authentic and entertaining - from the

nerves of the accused to the brash self-confidence of the dapper barrister, culminating in the excitement of the eventual verdict which I will not spoil by revealing

here"

View from Mount Pleasant 1967

MEET THE CHARACTERS

FIONA Fiona loves horses and competitive sports like tennis and squash. She sees college or university as a kind of finishing school and is devoted to her childhood boy friend who is at a university in Scotland. She likes to be the centre of attention and gets involved in student politics. She also likes to surround herself with male admirers - provided they’re safe and no threat to her love for her absent boyfriend. She finds Mark boring and unattractive at first, but is he?  MARK A young man with secrets, Mark is the son of an accountant, who has received a very conventional education at an independent school. A nervous student, ruled by an irrational fear of people, he is an easy victim for the school bully. After failing to get into university, he ends up studying law at the Liverpool College of Commerce. He wants a girl friend – perhaps someone just like Fiona. He realises he has to completely change his personality if he is to succeed in life and in love, but how? Fear of people leads to a terror of being afraid of people and an even greater fear of being afraid. Fear, fear of fear and thoughts of Fiona are the driving forces which lead to some amusing, exciting, and sometimes extraordinary and absurd madcap adventures, both socially and underground. And Fiona- she seems unattainable, but is she?  

Meet The Characters

PABLO Pablo is an apprentice. A tough young working man, he enjoys hard outdoor sports like climbing and caving. He does hard physical work and despises students as being far too soft. Can Mark belong to his potholing club and win his respect? BOB Bob is the son of a doctor and of the doctor’s secretary. His father has a surgery in one of the roughest parts of Leeds. So although from a wealthy professional background, Bob has seen deprivation and doesn’t like to see people suffer.  He likes motorbikes, and hard physical exercise like rugger and potholing. He also likes a good social life and has such a good time at his first year at medical school that he fails his exams, and ends up studying sociology in Mark’s college. He becomes a socialist, and is proud to live in a student house in the middle of Liverpool’s dockland. He is certainly not the marrying kind, but can he have so much fun with one girlfriend without getting emotionally involved? PAUL Paul is Bob’s friend. He is studying for a degree in sociology, rides a motorbike and chews gum, He would prefer a pint to a dance with a girl any time. But is he really so uninterested in girls? 

Meet the CharactersSUSAN Susan is Fiona’s friend. She shares Fiona’s passion for horses, and likes outdoor pursuits. Confident of her own beauty she has no wish to waste time studying, when she could be earning real money as a secretary. Sooner or later a rich young man will come along and sweep her off her feet, and she’ll be set up for life. In the meantime she’ll have fun, and  - variety is the spice of life – she’ll have plenty of lovers and boy friends without being tied to any of them. Then she meets Bob, who also believes in free love. They become kindred spirits who enjoy each other’s company and play well together. So can they bring their relationship to an end before it gets too serious? JUDGE JOLLY The judge is at the top of his profession. He has a wayward son and a daughter who wants to become a pop star. What is the world coming to? Then in court, he comes face to face with a young man in the dock who reminds him of his son.  JOHN CONKERTON John Conkerton is the only true character in the story. He runs a nationally renowned law school at the College of Commerce. He does 6 month cramming courses to get articled clerks and law students through the dreaded Part II Law Society professional exams (since replaced by an easier test after a longer and more expensive course). He makes a brief appearance, and an attempt is made to reproduce the famous pep-talk he used to give to students at the beginning of each course. Many solicitors who qualified in the 60’s and 70’s have him to thank for their careers. 

The author and friends in Easter GrottoMid – 1980’s

Paul AndrewsPaul Andrews believes in writing about things he knows. He was a law student in Liverpool in the 1960s - when times were good, standards were high, unemployment was minimal; graduate unemployment was unknown; the drugs menace had not caught hold; students had to make do on their grants and holiday earnings, were keen on sport and the outdoors, and had high ideals and a lot of fun.

The Loner’s official website:

www.the-loner.co.uk

Please visit for more information, including cave descriptions and exploration accounts and more photographs

It’s still there! 42 Enid Street, Toxteth, Liverpool 8. The Loner is not a true story; the characters are imaginary; but the inspiration for “Buchanan Street” comes from student life in this house in Sixties Liverpool.