The Pool of Life

[Herod the Budgie]

Hello Tom,
Hope you are well. I'd be very interested to know your opinion regarding Liverpool and humour. I know that you left many years ago but you have that wit which is often associated with our city. There have been myriad entertainers from Merseyside. Do you have any views on why Liverpool has produced so many great entertainers, artists and funny people in particular?

Regards and best wishes for Christmas,
Laurence (Liverpool)

[Tom Baker]

Laurence,

I only know about my time there from 1934 to 1949. The war was thrilling and the religious fervour very highly charged. So was our preoccupation with sin and Hell; especially Hell. Then there was football mania and the passionate desire to escape from it all. Ports are always interesting places and Liverpool was once a mighty port and the people were very influenced by tales from over there. Over there? AMERICA. Pop music, new words, tall stories a gogo. And the Irish influence was very powerful too: that and theology. We were all studying theology and eschatology from about the age of six. All these little details may have had some influence on my attitudes towards life. I know that, as I look back, I'm almost glad I was born.

Tom