Michael Hargreave Mawson responded to hundreds of questions with patience and generosity. Dr Glenn Fisher, FRHS, was kind enough to look over an early draft of the Crimean section. Special thanks are due to both these experts and also to Inge and Michael Trevor-Barnston, MBE, and to Major Colin Robins, OBE, for their courteous assistance concerning the Crimean War and medals.

All historical inaccuracies and blunders within these pages are my own.

Huge thanks to Polly Borland and Katie Hadwen-Beck for their round-the-clock help with Australian idiom.

The letters of Alice Gale in Part 3 were taken in part from the diary of Ally Heathcote, held in the collection of Museums Victoria, Australia, and are quoted with kind permission.

Extra-special thanks to Bobby and Billy Alessi for kind permission to quote from their song, Oh Lori.

Thank you to Tim Jones for the tour of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers Museum at Caernarfon Castle.

Thanks to my first readers, Charles Hudson, Violet Bannerman, Nell Hudson and Gabriel Hudson, and to Polly Samson and David Gilmour for their help and encouragement.

Thank you to the dream-team of Felicity Rubinstein at Lutyens & Rubinstein, Mary Mount and Isabel Wall at Viking.

Annie Lee and Emma Brown, thank you for your brilliant editorial help.

The one and only John Byrne was wonderful and culled many commas.

In writing this book and After the Party I was greatly helped, encouraged and sometimes challenged by Fira Karimova. My profound thanks to her for her wisdom, curiosity, patience and sense of humour.

THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING

Find us online and join the conversation

Follow us on Twitter twitter.com/penguinukbooks

Like us on Facebook facebook.com/penguinbooks

Share the love on Instagram instagram.com/penguinukbooks

Watch our authors on YouTube youtube.com/penguinbooks

Pin Penguin books to your Pinterest pinterest.com/penguinukbooks

Listen to audiobook clips at soundcloud.com/penguin-books

Find out more about the author and discover
your next read at penguin.co.uk