Born
in 1932 of a self-obsessed mother and a rigid, abusive father,
R. Thomas (Reg) Clark was evacuated from war-torn Bristol
to
Ackworth in the Yorkshire coalfield because of German bombing
raids in World War II. He failed his 11-plus, and from this
unpromising start in life he underwent a commercial education
at Wakefield College. Reg Clark worked successively in local
government, the Royal Artillery, Royal Army Pay Corps, the
Admiralty, Marks & Spencer management, community involvement,
and his own enterprise. In addition to service postings, his
journey through the "University of Life" involved no less
than 24 different homes.
His
fragmented childhood, his almost non-stop mobility, and his
domestic traumas engendered in him a heightened sensitivity
and insight into the attitudes and behaviour of those he encountered
along the way. He has 4 children, 7 grandchildren, and 4 step
grandchildren, and lives in retirement in the South Cotswolds.
