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Perfect chance for under fire David to escape reality
DAVID Blunkett MP has had a rough few days but he'll be able to put his feet up and relax thanks to one of his oldest friends.
Author Geoff Nelder, a long-standing friend of the Sheffield Brightside MP, has offered to read his latest novel on to a CD so Mr Blunkett can listen to it.
Escaping Reality is a humorous thriller based in northern England about a wrongly imprisoned musician who escapes.
Geoff, a former geography teacher, was friends with Mr Blunkett and his ex-wife Ruth when he was a student at Sheffield University.
He lived in Nether Edge in the early 1970s and taught as a student teacher in Silverdale High School, Manor Comprehensive and Jordanthorpe Junior schools.
The 58-year-old quit teaching to become a full-time writer but has kept in touch with both David and Ruth.
"Ruth was David's fiancee when I knew her and we used to sit next to each other in geography lectures and go to each other's flats," said Geoff.
"I've stayed in touch with them both and I sent David a copy of the book. He said he would like to read it but needed it on CD so I got in touch with his PA and the Royal National Institute for the Blind about recording it."
Two of Geoff's friends who are actors will spend 11 hours at the weekend recording it on to a CD for Mr Blunkett and Geoff hopes it will also be made available to other partially sighted readers.
"I have re-written an abridged version of the book as an audio script. There are no sound effects but hopefully the RNIB will be able to so something like that with it."
It's not the first time that Geoff, who now lives in Chester, has tried to cheer up his friend.
"When he does go through a bad patch I usually send him a supportive letter but then again so do thousands of other people.
"We swap cards and keep in touch with letters but we don't often get the chance to meet up. When he was Education Secretary he came to visit my old school in Chester but the headteacher wasn't very pleased as he expected to monopolise the visit but David wanted to see me so we had a chat while the headteacher paced up and down the corridor outside!"
n Escaping Reality is available on Amazon.co.uk or log on to www.bramblingbooks.com for more details about getting it on CD.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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