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Robert Hugill

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  1. Robert Hugill
    My phone pinged and I looked at it, a message from Dan ‘Check your email!’ When working I often turned email off, or switched off the Wi-Fi, so that there were fewer distractions. Checking now, I found that there was an email from an address I did not recognise, with the title ‘Vacanza in Inghilterra’. It was from Ercole, from his business email address. He was coming to London next week for a conference and was planning a few extra days here, were we around and could he come to stay? There
  2. Robert Hugill

    Thirty-Nine

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Thirty-Nine

    Thanks for all the nice comments. I do have plenty more stories up my sleeve, including returns to Brian, Gordon & Russ along other goodies I hope people enjoy.
  3. Robert Hugill
    The trip to Moortown had all taken rather less time than they had planned, even their lunch had been rather early. On the motorway back, with Keith driving, Thomas was looking at the rather elderly book of maps. “Do you fancy calling in at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park? It’s a bit late, but we’d still have a couple of hours?” “What is it?” “It’s a country park which has sculpture in it, you wander round and look at contemporary sculpture in the landscape.” Keith sucked his lip, “So
  4. Robert Hugill
    Thanks. Currently trying to write a new one and constantly finding it seems to overlap with stories past!
  5. Robert Hugill
    Another one of those British colloquialisms, guys in the office where I worked used it all the time. A very 'blokey' word!
  6. Robert Hugill
    We were sitting in a cosy restaurant in North London run by mates of Len’s. A former pub, full of mismatched old furniture, the food was imaginative and received Dan’s seal of approval. I have to confess that the menu appealed to me too; you’ve got to love somewhere that does posh fish fingers! The meal was Greg and Len’s idea, and they insisted that it was their treat. Even if Len got mates’ rates, it would still cost a bit. Things had moved fast, evidently. “Well, here’s to the bakery.”
  7. Robert Hugill
    Driving over to what should have been Keith’s home turf felt strange; he didn’t recognise any of it. Had the city changed that much, or had he deliberately forgotten? “Do you ever think about going back to your childhood home?” Thomas was driving them in his car, he grunted, “I’m not sure I ever had one.” “But the places you were brought up?” “They all felt borrowed, not ours. Dad moved roughly every five years and sometimes stayed close so that Nate and I were not disturbed
  8. Robert Hugill

    Lunch and Tea

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Lunch and Tea

    I never worked in the fashion industry, but I wanted Vaughan's inspirations to be visual (whereas mine are not). A close friend studied fashion & design at university and remains a very visual person so I drew hints from his reactions and comments to life. When he comes with me to the opera, I get lots of useful comments about the visual elements and the fashion details! 'toining hat' simply means that it toned (in colour) with the rest of her outfit.
  9. Robert Hugill
    The gift from Paola and Tony was for dinner at Tonelli, a high-end Italian restaurant in central London. But Dan had made a joke that it was a shame we couldn’t take Gran. Somehow a mad idea became a reality, dinner for two transformed into lunch for three. We had had the even crazier idea of including Mother as well, but I had quailed at the thought of coping with Mother and Gran together, and Dan had laughingly agreed with me. Perhaps we’d take Mother somewhere when we went to visit next.
  10. Robert Hugill
    Keith had been going over to Nico’s when he could, to help Nico’s rather slow and painstaking work on the motor and the transformers. But this weekend was the big push, Nico had virtually finished and so Keith was going to clean and re-assemble. Left to himself, Nico would probably have just wiped the piece with a damp cloth, but Keith was determined to do it properly. So, he got there early and set up his stall, going over everything as had been recommended to him by the museum people in M
  11. Robert Hugill

    Repercussions

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Repercussions

    I have to confess that I managed to finish the first draft of the novel with Mother never having a name, but after her first appearance here, decided she needed one!
  12. Robert Hugill
    I tried to be fair in my article on the Verona exhibition, doing justice to the imagination of the setting and even managed to bring in the idea of dialogue with the past with, of course, a mention of Scarpa’s interventions in the Museum. But I had to be candid about the pictures and managed to talk about the change in style from Moroni’s earlier works. Finally, I stopped tinkering, clicked send, and mentally ducked. Thankfully, for my peace of mind, the article was being produced by an on-
  13. Robert Hugill

    Thirty-Six

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Thirty-Six

    Thanks!
  14. Robert Hugill

    Thirty-Six

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Thirty-Six

    Keith is my earliest story, and I haven't tinkered. Otherwise... My partner has already been pointing out links between characters in other stories. The Hugillverse indeed!
  15. Robert Hugill
    ‘It's just a drink to say thank you to the people who are supporting the restoration of the Michael Atkinson. There’s been a lot of interest in the project, and people discovering his work, which is great. But we want to try and keep them on board, as there are other bits and pieces in the school which need work. Some of it’s Listed, which makes it bloody expensive.’ Alison’s pitch had been low key and Keith had, foolishly he now thought, agreed to say a few words about the restoration. The
  16. Robert Hugill
    Fitting in Greg’s visit to The Manor might have seemed small fry, but Francis Heyward had taken an interest and was keen to make it happen. So, a few days after the party, I drove down to The Manor and met Dan at the gate. Greg and Len arrived in an elderly Ford Fiesta; we joined them and walked up to the house. Greg was as unforthcoming as ever, perhaps regretting it all, what he’d let himself in for. It was Len who commented on the house, its ugliness, its size, and he speculated on the k
  17. Robert Hugill
    Sunday, they got up promptly for a run. Keith didn’t exactly love it, but he found the quiet time with just him and Thomas rather relaxing in a strange sort of way. And after, they had brunch which probably undid all the good the run had done them. They were just returning from shopping (Saturday being devoted to work, Sunday had to be a day for shopping and jobs) when Thomas’ phone pinged. He answered the message and looked up at Keith puzzled. Caroline was coming over, bringing him someth
  18. Robert Hugill
    In fact I lifted the title, its a combination of 'Clouds of Witness' (Dorothy L Sayers' novel) and 'The Cloud of Unknowing' (classic text of Medieval Christian mysticism, and no I've never read it!)
  19. Robert Hugill
    Dan unwound by telling me the whole tale, over a glass of his new whisky. I was curious, “Do you think that Francis Heyward goes for big blokes?” “What, because he’d got his security in jocks. Maybe. Brandon’s sexy enough if you like ‘em big, solid though, no flab. But a couple of the others are real fearsome buggers. One judging by his jock, one guy was really packing it.” “Giving you ideas, was it?” “Hardly, but you couldn’t help notice the way it bulged. Extra-large too. I
  20. Robert Hugill
    A message from Alison set Keith in a panic, the restoration was on. And as a result, on Saturday he and Thomas drove up to the school and proceeded to dismantle and wrap up the Atkinson. Thomas disappeared to his office and reappeared with boxes and tissue paper for the more delicate items. When asked where they came from, he grinned, ‘Don’t ask!’ But had then explained that they had been donated by a sponsor for a project and not used. Nico’s workshop was probably what had been intended as
  21. Robert Hugill
    Thanks. Always a bit of a worry when you do it.
  22. Robert Hugill
    Half-an hour before things kicked off, one of the guys, new bloke, dropped out with a pretty lame excuse. He won’t be back. Rotas needed adjusting, as it was my first big do, I stepped into his jockstrap. So to speak. Mind, my regular outfit showed enough off as it was. But the idea was to experience everything, show that the guv’nor was willing. Mind, it meant I had to explore the delights of the men’s mess-room in the basement. Pretty basic, just lockers, basic refreshments, and posters i
  23. Robert Hugill

    Thirty-Three

    Robert Hugill commented on Robert Hugill's story chapter in Thirty-Three

    Missed the General Fiction list this week, so pleased it's catching people's imagination
  24. Robert Hugill
    Tuesday, Thomas worked from home (and this time it really was working as when Keith popped his head round the door of Thomas’ flat, he was always on the phone). Keith had a series of errands to run, things to buy, people to see. Then in the afternoon, they made their way to Harpur Castle. This time Keith felt a little less overawed and was more prepared. He didn’t feel he could bring Greg’s copy of Pevsner but had made notes. After checking in (and their room seemed to be identical to the l
  25. Robert Hugill
    Thanks, and yes I remember most of those idioms but have rarely used them since my parents passed!
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