Introduction

You are in an English pub. It is mid-week and mid-morning and the place is empty and dark, empty except for the barman, and an old man sitting at a table over by the window.

Your eyes rest on the man, he sits in profile with the bright arched window behind him giving his dark figure the look of a stained-glass effigy. But who is the effigy of? A knight of renown? A great hero? A patron saint? No. It’s none of these. It’s just a hopeless old soak finishing his second pint of the morning before heading off to the bookies. And yet, even knowing that, you still don't look away.