of the family book a ticket and go speculatively to another country.”


Noticing that other writers weren’t documenting this type of story, Errol decided to write one himself. “I had to do as much research as I could because my own experience was radically different,” he says. “I didn’t come as a youngster, I was an adult when I came to England. I didn’t go to school here; I didn’t have to hustle around for accommodation. I came by plane not by boat. It was quite difficult to imagine what it was like.


“It didn’t strike me when I came to England, but it was still a post-war country. Rationing had only ended in 1961. When I went to the city, where I attended my lectures with the Council of Legal Education in Temple, there were lots of buildings that were still bombed out. Other aspects of the country, the economy, the food that people ate, all indicated a certain type of Britain that had changed a lot since. I tried my best to speak with people and do as much research as I could.” Many Rivers to Cross was nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Errol was pleased to know that people across the country were reading and empathising with his character. It also meant that “publishers need not be all that reticent about children’s attitudes to race or class. It was a very good surprise! On this occasion, I was able to go to the event that announced the winner. With the Kate Greenaway I wasn’t able to as I had my bar final exams the next day.”


Thinking about his reception by the publishing profession and book trade, Errol recognises he is in a different position to many writers, as writing and illustrating children’s books wasn’t his main activity. “I was still involved more with painting and sculpture so never set about trying to get an agent. I never approached a publisher, I was always able to have enough ideas coming to me from the contacts I had with a handful of publishers so I’ve never been in a good position to gauge the level of interest overall. “On the whole though, it hasn’t necessarily been a fantastic marketplace for black writers or illustrators, it has always been quite restricted. One of the big differences in the 1980s was there was a London based showcase for black publications with the International Book Fair of Radical Black and Third World Books which created a lot of interest which included mainstream publishers who began taking stalls there.”


Alongside his fiction and information books, Errol has also written plays. “I was involved with Tricycle Theatre. One of the co-founders had promised to write a play, but something happened and at very short notice I was asked to write a play. It turned out to be very successful, so I wrote a few others, especially for theatre in education. It’s a very good discipline to be given a theme like environmental concerns ,which is associated to education, and then to do your research and come up with a storylines that allow you to explore the issues.” Errol is currently working on a few writing projects, including an appraisal of Guyanese abstract expressionist painter, Aubrey Williams. Aptly he has also been inducted into his old school’s Hall of Fame and has been invited to contribute his reminiscences, an opportunity to think about the significant achievements he has made throughout his career. PEN&INC.


Spring-Summer 2021 PEN&INC. 21


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