h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

with reference to the article regarding the boot and the main haunt of ponty groves ! to me as he was my uncle it's a utter load of drivell! his main haunt was the ' high west' not the sailors return there was a spoon over the bar there saying stir it up ponty! as the man died in 1988 - 89 the barman ca,t know much about him! as local folk know he was a character he saved a sailor whilst under fire at portland and was known for rowing a bath across weymouth bay!get the facts right about where he used to frequent please! i loved this man and sorely miss him and his wife my aunty maude!

Thankyou yorkist. I have been trying to find out more about him but to little avail. I had to rely on what I can glean from what the locals tell me. Sometimes this is conflicting so I had to conglomerate the information to get to as close to the truth as possible.

I value your information but, in future, I would appreciate it presented in a much less aggressive manner. There was no need for your diatribe and it's not the way we do things in these parts .

When you've calmed down I would appreciate it if you could suggest the accurate the accurate way I should present that information.I will then request that the Entry be UPdated and will put you down as 'Additional Research by Yorkist.
But, in future, please try to grow up and behave in a more gentlemanly way. In this way this site stands a chance of improving.

... in other words, this siteoperates in a spirit of cooperation.

PS ...and the facts are right in as much as the oar is nowe in The Boot and the words on it definitel say, 'Ponty's Holy Batten' and, at the other end, 'There she are!'.

As I said, there is now a segment missing and this segmment may well have said 'Stir it Up Ponty' but that is definitely not on it now.

BTW, when I was researching this Entry I tried to find out more about him, but Googling doesn't throw up any hits. As I don't live in Weymouth I didn't get the opportunity to go to the local library to see if they had more information.

My intention has been to research him more meticulously and write a specific Entry. However, now you're here this would make a fine subject for your first Entry

thanks for your reply regarding my uncle pont! i agree i was just a bit tetchy about the entry about him thats just me being over defensive my apollogies! if you get in touch with the local weymouth paper 1988-89 there was a large entry about him when he died! i have fond memories of him when the lifeboat marroons going off and him peddling his old shopping bike all the way from his home on grenville terrace down to the lifeboat, i have a photo of me stood in front of the frank spiller locke lb in the 60s i dont know if i can post them on here as yet ! things i can tell you about him are that he always wore a flat cap had a glass eye1 never did find out how he lost his eye ! he had a son called leonard too and his brother bob used to ferry people over the quay in a rowing boat. as for other info bout my uncle pont i know he once climbed the church spire while blind drunk so as you see he was a bit if a character! ill have to search out my fathers old address book to find the addresses of his other kin if they are still around! the last time i heard from my aunty maude was when ponty died then she told me i had a cousin starring in howards way! victoria burgoyne, and to come down when i could, when i got the chance she had died too! i will keep you posted if you find any thing out please let me know, thanks!

Yorkist . I'll correct the bit about his favourite haunts in an Update, but keep the rest the same as the Entry really only concerns the story behind the oar which is now in The Boot.

However, as I said, I did have it in mind to write an Entry on Ponty Groves as, from all I've heard, he was quite a character.

However, I'd be quite happy to leave this to you if you had a mind to tackle it, as you obviously have first hand information. Do you think this is something you'd like to do