Jonathan Mosse talks ‘Johnny-no-hands’…
FROM early childhood I clearly remember the overwhelming feeling of wonder, in the run up to Christmas, when a packet of festive greetings cards would arrive in the post. Nothing out of the ordinary there… except that the card designs had all been painted by either the artist’s mouth or one of their feet.
Variously known as Joliver, Olly John and Johnny-no-hands, Owen John Oliver was born in 1925 without hands and with a club foot. Refusing to be defined by his disability, he grew up to excel as a chef, artist and, for the bulk of his life, a tug skipper on the River Mersey where his ingenuity, in circumnavigating his physical shortcomings, knew no bounds.
Throughout his life (he died aged 88 in 2014) he retained the flexibility of babies and young children to bring his foot up to his mouth and it was the big toe and its adjacent sibling on his good foot that performed all the delicate tasks that everyday life demands: both work and personal. Describing Joliver as dexterous would have been an understatement and, in precocious mood, he had been known to demonstrate how to tie a bowline… behind his back!
Eventually forsaking success as both chef and a fine artist (entry to the Slade only debarred by his place of residence – so he trained at Northampton Art College instead) Joliver took to the water like a duck and was soon the proud skipper of Hobbit: an ex-lifeboat converted to tug. ‘Duties’ were many and varied, including ‘ferryman’ for members of the Rochester Cruising Club through to towing lighters, not unknown to exceed the capacity of his diminutive vessel!
For an able-bodied person these were no mean feats, especially as they took place in parts of the country as widely spread as Cornwall, Kent and the Midlands. An ingenious, pedalled three-wheeled contrivance (of his design and making) effectively formed the link, later to be adapted into a tiny, weatherproof living space while on his travels.
By no means about Joliver alone, this extraordinary account – titled A Life Without Hands – is a well-rounded account of two fascinating lives, documenting the points where they both intertwine and divide, punctuated by the highs and lows of two people who, for the most part, lived on and around the tidal River Medway.
The author, Frances Beaumont, also shares her frank and open story of a long and fulfilling life, which included a touching on/off relationship with the book’s main protagonist. It was indeed a brave move to pen, publish and market this narrative which is beautifully written and presented.
Joliver took his Waterman’s exams becoming licensed to work his tug along the East Coast from Ramsgate up to Ipswich. This is Thames barge country and Hobbit was much in demand for moving barges and as a general mooring tug. He also provided a safety boat for large civil engineering projects involving the Medway. The retrieval of a dead cow was, however, something of a one-off!
Below Rochester the Medway opens out to accommodate a mishmash of islands, creeks and old gun emplacements, left over from the war, together with a few small settlements strung out across remote marshland marshes. Joliver knew all the channels and shortcuts and, for the most part, could navigate this complex estuary without charts, with only the occasional need to drop a lead-line to check for depth.
Throughout the book, boats, boaters and boating abound in a myriad of different forms as Joliver clearly loved everything that floated. He adapted gear so that he could use it one-footed, so to speak, and many an onlooker was rendered speechless on seeing him throw a mooring line with his foot.
Joliver’s good nature, helpfulness, wisdom and skill were legendary, freely shared with all, and he clearly did much to foster the vibrant boating community around Rochester and Chatham. Just as today, many inexperienced people lived aboard, often in craft that were well past their sell-by date, yet he was unstinting in the advice and support he proffered.
Today my feeling of wonderment is in no way diminished when that pack of Christmas cards lands on my mat, although this year, a century after Joliver’s birth, it will be tinged with a feeling of sadness and regret that I never had the privilege of meeting him in the flesh and seeing him in action.The book can be obtained from: francesbeaumont.co.uk or Kindle edition from Amazon.
