Firstly he was the most fun of all our overseas buyers. When we knew that AD was arriving there was always a sense of ‘what will he get up to this time! He was so well thought of and had many friends in our small Somerset village…everyone seemed to gravitate towards him.
I suppose I really ought to be talking about the 50 years of Donelly Auctions trading but A D’s character and social antics get in the way.
On one occasion we were due to pack one container and AD said he would help as we were a man short. He had to run an errand first so I thought we should start without him. Just as we were closing the packed container doors AD rocked up. So sorry he had been waylaid! It turns out he had gone to Bristol to take Jane out to lunch!!…we forgave him.
It’s hard to choose one occasion that we remember most. There was the mad rush to Hospital during Wincanton races when AD suddenly found it difficult to breathe….(he was fine)…or the lady in Somerton ‘Big Dawn’ who had a huge crush on A.D. and he spent one whole trip hiding from her.
But the best was when about 20 of us all traveled to Cornwall to celebrate Roger Raisens 50th birthday. It was a ‘black tie’ event so A.D needed to hire one. He did look outstanding in the tuxedo with a red bow tie. As the evening progressed and much wine was consumed by all A.D decided he would like to make a speech. He was good at that. He stood to speak and we all listened intently. Then a burning sort of smell started to drift through the dining room. We thought maybe the kitchen was on fire. But the smoke was coming from the window sill behind A D. In fact it was A D that was on fire. He hadn’t noticed a candle burning on the window sill and he was well alight. Needless to say, he was fine and we all thought it hilarious. On returning the tuxedo later that week we saw that the jacket and the shirt were burned through!
Thankfully Donelly Auctions have managed to continue without A.D and we send our congratulations on your 50th Anniversary.
PS Sorry if this sounds like a eulogy and not about the Company…but for us AD was the Company!
…we enjoyed the memories.
Jimmy and Lynn
