In a boozer over in Southall, Jed O’Hara was extremely drunk and was giving it the large. ‘My old mush will kill that shitcunt Brady when I tell him what’s happened today. Who do these two-bob Irish tinkers think they are, eh? They ain’t fit to clean the boots of us O’Haras.’

Aware that there was a crowd of Irish travellers standing no more than two feet away, Sammy grabbed his cousin’s arm. ‘Come on, Jed. We’re both pissed and we’ve gotta get this horse-box home. We don’t wanna smash the fuckin’ thing up, do we? Your old man will kill us.’

Aware of the Irish travellers glaring at him, Jed pushed Sammy away and marched over to them.

‘When you see your old mucker Paddy Brady next, you tell him from me that Jed O’Hara ain’t finished with him yet. Ex-prize-fighter, my arse, the cunt looks more like a bus driver to me.’

‘I’m a good pal of Paddy’s. Now fuck off, you little shit, before you get badly hurt,’ one of the older Irishmen in the crowd warned Jed.

Jed, being Jed, decided to try and punch the fella. He missed and was quickly escorted away and marched out of the pub by some English travellers who were pals of Jimmy’s.

‘I think I’d better drive,’ Sammy said as Jed got shoved in the driver’s seat.

‘Shut up, I’m fine,’ Jed insisted, turning the ignition.

As Jed pulled out in front of a car without checking his wing mirror and very nearly wrote the motor off, Sammy sighed. It was a long old trip around that A406 and in the state Jed was in, he just hoped that they made it home in once piece.

Alice O’Hara smiled at Georgie’s excited face as she took the iced fairy cakes out of the oven. Georgie would be five in a couple of weeks’ time and today Alice had decided that if Georgie was one day going to secure a sought-after husband, then it was high time her granddaughter learned how to bloody well cook.

‘Hurry, the cakes are ready, boy!’ Alice shouted. Her grandson had had the hump earlier on and had stomped out of the kitchen because Alice wouldn’t let him help ice the cakes. ‘Cooking’s for girls, Harry. Your dad will kill me if he finds out I’ve been teaching you to bake cakes, boy,’ she’d told him.