As mentioned, I assumed that Frank Fawcett had simply drifted into obscurity. Frank did produce some books at East Lodge in the 1890s but nothing of any significance. They may have been instigated by his father before his death in January 1893, they may have been on Frank's own initiative or he may have been fulfilling contracts with publishers. They include the first and only Cricket Annual 1892 edited by William Dewar, Waterspouts on the Yorkshire Wolds by J Dennis Hood and Filey Sea Wall, a Souvenir, none of which are mentioned by McLean, and a rather poorly produced reprint of the 1813 Poetical Sketches of Scarborough. The Cricket Annual contained an article by the most famous cricketer of all time, W G Grace, and was described in a review by the Leeds Mercury as "a credit alike to the editors, the publishers and the printers". A review in The Times on 5th January 1893 said that "The sporting library is further enriched this week by the issue of the Cricket Annual, 1892". Poetical Sketches of Scarborough was the first, and only, in a series by the Diera Press which would have gone on to include Blackpool, Brighton, Dover, Margate, Ramsgate and Hastings. I've seen copies stating Limited Editions of 60 and 260, with and without individual copy numbers written in. It contained a large number of advertisements including two full pages for B Fawcett & Co. We should probably also include the 1895 second edition of British Fresh-Water Fishes by Rev W Houghton, printed by "B.Fawcett & Co., East Lodge Printing Works, Driffield." It lacks the magnificent coloured illustrations so characteristic of the 1879 first edition.

I have recently discovered another surprising though controversial work privately printed by B. Fawcett and Co., most likely in 1893 - The Monk by Matthew Gregory Lewis. Lewis was only a teenager when he wrote this "shocking, erotic and violent" book. Originally published in 1795, its unsavoury content caused a family rift and it was dramatically edited by Lewis and re-published in 1798. The Fawcett version was advertised as "an unabridged reprint of the exceedingly rare first edition." Lewis became a Member of Parliament at the age of 21, a seat having been bought for him by his father for £2,600! More information on the Poems and Novels page.

A little more research into the Fawcett family provided some very interesting results and yet another opportunity to digress. Sadly, recent research has revealed that not every story has a happy ending.

Frank was born in 1861, the son of Benjamin and Martha Fawcett. This was at a time when the East Lodge printing works was at full capacity and at the pinnacle if its success. Frank was their seventh child and Benjamin already had two more children from his previous marriage. Frank's older brother, Arthur, died in 1871 at the age of 15 when Frank was 10. His older half-sister Sarah died in 1877 aged 27 and his younger sister Sophia died in 1879 aged 15. They all died of tuberculosis.

On leaving school, Frank became a bank clerk in Driffield. Maybe he had no talent or aptitude for art, engraving or printing, maybe he just wasn't interested or maybe there were no suitable vacancies at the printing works, or maybe it was a combination of all of these or none!

During the 1880s Frank would have seen his father in his 70s with the advancing years taking their toll on his health and eyesight. Along with the demise of Groombridge the publisher, the departure of Francis Lydon, the printing works in decline and East Lodge advertised for let this would have painted a depressing picture for Frank.

On 16th March 1890, in Driffield, the Banns were read for the marriage of Frank to 27 year old Lydia Jenny Louise Wasser, who was almost certainly pregnant at the time. They were married three weeks later on 3rd April 1890 in Hull, 25 miles from Driffield. Their son, Cyril, was born seven months later on 7 November 1890. Lydia, was born in Lausanne, Switzerland on 13 January 1863, the daughter of Jean Louis and Jeanne Marguerite Wasser. I can't find any records of any other of her relatives in the UK. In 1891 Frank, Lydia and Cyril are still living in Driffield at number 15 New Road. On Thursday 12th March 1891 Frank was fined ten shillings for keeping a dog without a licence. Rabies was a major concern in Victorian England and the Dogs Act of 1871 introduced the dog licence in order to try and control the problem.

Benjamin Fawcett died in 1893. Frank was his executor and he took over the printing business, somewhat reluctantly I suspect. He was advised and represented by the family solicitor, Luke White. White was, at various times, a Justice of the Peace, Chairman of the Town Council, a County Coroner, an Alderman of the County Council and a Member of Parliament. He was Knighted in 1908. 'How are the mighty fallen!' In 1919 Sir Luke White had a warrant issued against him for misappropriating the assets of dozens of clients. He was too ill to be formally charged and died shortly afterwards in the Driffield Workhouse Infirmary.

In 1894 the Fawcett's printing business was declared bankrupt and the contents of the family's beloved East Lodge and the printing works were put up for auction. Frank, Lydia and their two children, Cyril and Frank Dubrez, moved to Hull. They set up home at number 28 Princes Road and, I suppose, started to try and build a new life for themselves in difficult circumstances. Cyril was baptised in Hull on 13th March 1898 aged seven.

Apologies for digressing even further at this point. Apart from the fact that he was the finest of Victorian colour printers, my interest in Benjamin Fawcett also stems from the fact that he was somewhat of an unsung hero in my local town of Driffield where we've lived in the same house for over forty years. Frank's move to Hull revealed another totally unexpected connection. The two houses that Frank and his family lived in on Park Road and De Grey Street are but a few hundred yards from the house in which I was born in 1951, the house where my parents lived in the 1930s, our first house in 1976 and our youngest daughter's first house in 2009. One of the joys of historical research is how it transports you back to a bygone age and allows you to visualise people, places and circumstances, something which is very true in this case.

Frank and Lydia had four children in total, one died in infancy, Cyril Bernard Fawcett was born on 7th November 1890, Frank Dubrez Fawcett was born on 15th November 1891, both in Driffield, and Margie Wasser Fawcett was born on 4th April 1896 in Hull. Dubrez was Lydia's mother's maiden name. In 1901 Lydia is living at 93 De Grey Street in Hull with the children, Cyril 10, Frank Junior 9 and Margie 4. Frank Senior, a self-employed publishing agent, is boarding in Scarborough. After over a decade in Hull they moved to London.

In 1911 the family are living in West Norwood, London. Frank Senior is a Fine Art Publisher, Cyril is an accountant's clerk and Frank Junior is a journalist. Things are looking up for the Fawcett family. I can't help but speculate whether the Fawcetts and the Lydons were in contact at this time but up to now I can find no evidence to indicate either way.

The people and events described below are based on the assumption that the Frank Fawcett mentioned is our Frank, Benjamin's son. The evidence does point to that being the case. I wish it wasn't, maybe it isn't. If anyone has any further information that would help to confirm this, or otherwise, please get in touch.

Sadly, it was not long before things took a turn for the worse.

In August 1912 Frank Fawcett is declared bankrupt. At around the time of Great War, 1914 to 1918, Frank was having an affair, and several children, with another woman. It must have been devastating for Lydia with her two boys about to leave home and go off to war.

On 31st January 1916 Frank Dubrez Fawcett joined the Army as a Rifleman Private in the 21st London Regiment, the First Surrey Rifles. He was sent to the Western Front at the height of the War. After six months in the field Frank suffered a gunshot wound to the chest. He was admitted to a Field Hospital on 7 February 1917 and discharged from the Army on 9th January 1918. He was awarded the Silver War Badge. Frank and Lydia's other son, Cyril, signed up on 19 January 1916 and was posted to the Royal Flying Corps, Farnborough, on 7 August 1917.

During the war years, Fawcett & Co of 125 Strand published a number of interesting items. These included The Lord Roberts Memorial Fund Stamp Album, A Rubaiyat of the Trenches (author, "de C.") and The Piccadilly Puritan. Evidence suggests that the proprietor of Fawcett & Co is almost certainly our Frank Fawcett Senior.

Frank Senior appears to have gone into partnership with 'Austin Fryers' to promote and produce a number of theatrical productions. In particular Ibsen's Ghosts and A Sister to Assist 'Er. Austin Fryers was the pen name of William Edward Clery (a.k.a. William Edward de Clery.) Clery could charm the birds out of the trees. He was a larger than life though flawed character. He rose to prominence as a trade union activist in the Post Office in the 1880s and in 1902 he was an unsuccessful Liberal Parliamentary candidate. He was also a playwright, novelist and actor-manager. Clery was beset by financial problems and was guilty of dishonesty, fraud and criminal activity. He borrowed extensively and considered repayment an inconvenience. He was in and out of court for a variety of reasons including taking legal action against others. He was sarcastically reported dead by the Daily Star in 1922 after which he unsuccessfully sued the Daily News Limited. Clery had so obviously got no chance of winning the case that the jury passed a note to the judge effectively saying that there was no point in continuing! In 1930 Clery was found living in poverty and was "rescued" by friends and family. He died a year later and was buried in consecrated ground.

Frank Fawcett may well have been a victim of Clery's charm.

A Rubaiyat of the Trenches, mentioned above and published by Fawcett & Co., was undoubtedly written by William Edward Clery as "de C." A number of signed copies are known, inscribed by "Austin Fryers, de C." It's a sarcastic and cutting parody of Edward Fitzgerald's 1859 translation of the original Rubaiyat written by Omar Khayyam almost a thousand years previously. A rubaiyat is a quatrain, a form of poetry consisting of four-line verses. It is possible that the Foreword by "A Friend" was actually penned by Frank Fawcett whose task it was to "faithfully transcribe the finished copy for the printer." The book was cheaply produced. It was printed on only one side of the paper under a blue cardboard cover with the title and author, "de C", printed on a small rectangle of paper and simply glued onto the cover.

Even though the poem starts off with the assertion, or suggestion, that the writer is "Here in the trenches", it is highly unlikely that Clery actually went to war. Although there are a number of William Clerys in the military records of that period, none that I've seen fit our Clery who was 53 years old at that time. The upper age limit for conscription at the outbreak of war, 41, was increased to 50 in 1918. The Rubaiyat was undoubtedly written from what Clery perceived to be the point of view of a soldier in the trenches. The poem questions the role of God in war, a view that has unsurprisingly troubled scholars, philosophers and others since the beginning of the civilised world.

After the war, Frank Junior returned to journalism. In the Pall Mall Gazette of 16th December 1921 he's extolling the virtues of the gramophone as "it has emerged from its purely entertaining stage and has become an instrument of musical education." He also tells us that the gramophone is now suitable as a 'Yuletide gift' which can be made "sans peur et sans reproche"! Without fear and without reproach, how audacious is that!

The 1919 Electoral Register shows Frank Fawcett and Lydia Fawcett living at number 65 Baytree Road, Brixton. This could have been Lydia's son, Frank Dubrez Fawcett, though it looks like all or most of Frank Dubrez's entries in the Electoral Register include "D" or "Dubrez", sometimes misspelt. It could also be due to issues with the accuracy and timeliness of the Electoral Register.

In the 1921 Census, Frank Senior, "58" publisher, born in Driffield, is at 142 Middle Street, Deal, in the far flung south-east of Kent. He is with his "wife", Violet Fawcett, 35, born Norfolk, and their three children, Rodney 5, Audrey Violet 3 and Violet Vivienne newly born. 142 Middle Street is a three story terraced house only 50 yards from the beach, the 1921 Census took place on 19 June, they may have just been on holiday. I have, so far, been unable to find any actual record of the marriage of Frank and Violet, or any divorce from Lydia. It seems that Frank and Violet had a "common law" arrangement which has no legal status. Rodney's birth certificate, registered in Fulham, states born 2 May 1916 at 12a/4 Johnson Mansions, Frank Fawcett Father, artist (painter), Violet May Mother, living at the same address. Although Johnson Mansions is a prestigious location, 12a/4 probably means that No 12 was divided into separate flats and 12a/4 was a quarter of one of them. The Court Directory for 1918 shows Mrs Fawcett living at No 12a Johnson Mansions. The Court Directory was a list of residents "not engaged in trade". A Violet May was born in about 1885 in Hastings, Sussex and was adopted as a child by Susannah Smith of 34 St Mary's Square, Lambeth. Frank and Violet's daughter, Violet Vivienne, has on her birth certificate, born 11 November 1920 at 773 High Road Leytonstone, father Frank Fawcett, publisher, mother Violet Fawcett formerly May. I have been unable to confirm any birth details for Violet May.

In 1921, Frank Dubrez Fawcett is living at 65 Baytree Avenue, Brixton with his mother Lydia, retired, and his sister Margie. Frank is described as Advertising Manager at the Meerloo Publicity Service, 106 New Bond Street, London. The Meerloo Publicity Service was started in 1917 by Miss Anne Meerloo in one room in Piccadilly. She was a rare, high profile woman in the advertising industry who championed the role of women in commerce and advertising in particular. She was a founder of the Women’s Advertising Club of London. In 1921 she sold 40% of the business to Lord Lathom who became chairman. In The British and Colonial Printer and Stationer 7 July 1921, under Commercial Inteligence - New Companies, the Meerloo Publicity Service Ltd is listed with its first Directors as the Earl of Lathom, Anne Meerloo and F D Fawcett. Lathom resigned as Chairman in 1926 and Miss Meerloo died after a long illness at the age of 37 in 1927. The business folded shortly after.

Frank Dubrez Fawcett married Ethel Harwood in 1923. In the 1939 Register they are living at number 156 Park Road, Brentford where Frank Dubrez is described as a Journalist & Advertising Expert.

Frank "Dubrey" Fawcett, 43 Holland Park, went into Receivership on 3 April 1925.

In the 1939 Register, Violet Fawcett, "widow", is living at 25 Maunsel Street, Pimlico with her son Rodney, Advertising Artist, and daughter, Vivienne, Machinist Embroideress. Frank Fawcett Senior did not die until 1955 though he fell on hard times around the late 1920s and effectively disappeared from view.

In 1939 Lydia and her daughter Margie are living in The Waldrons, Croydon.

Sadly, again, Frank Senior is in considerable difficulties. The 1939 Register shows that Frank, journalist, born 15 May 1861, "widower", is living as a single man at Rowton House, Kings Cross. This is definitely our Frank, son of Benjamin. Frank's "wives", Lydia and Violet, are still alive at this time. Rowton Houses were the modern, late Victorian equivalent of work houses. They were a chain of six hostels built in London by the philanthropist Lord Rowton between 1895 and 1902 and one in Birmingham in 1903. Their aim was to provide decent accommodation for working men in place of the squalid conditions prevailing at the time. The model was copied in other cities across the UK and in Europe. The King's Cross Rowton House was used as a transit stop for evacuees and refugees during and after the Second World War. Post war, it became a refuge for the elderly poor. It was in use until 1960 and subsequently converted into the Mount Pleasant Hotel. It was increasingly used to house those in need of care and was eventually demolished in the 1980s to be replaced by the King’s Cross Holiday Inn, "one of the ugliest buildings in London". It is now the IHG Crowne Plaza Hotel.

Frank Senior's slide into despair had started much earlier. The Electoral Roll shows his address as follows:

1933, 1935 Rowton House, Kings Cross.
(1939 Register, Rowton House, Kings Cross.)
1945, 1946, 1947, 1948 Rowton House, King's Cross.
1947, 1948, 1950, 1951 Bruce House, Kemble Street, just off Drury Lane. A similar establishment to Rowton House.
The overlap is probably due to either Frank alternating between the two or the vagaries of the Electoral Register.
The Times, 10 June 1914 - "To see the aristocrats of the underworld one should go to Bruce House."
1952, 1954, 1955 Southern Grove Lodge, Stepney. Formerly the Whitechapel Union Workhouse, subsequently a Workhouse Infirmary and a Public Assistance Institution (a hostel for homeless men).

Could Frank Fawcett's association with William Clery have contributed to his own downfall? Maybe their partnership continued as they descended into penury in the late 1920s?

The newly released 1921 Census provides a wealth of useful information to aid historical research but the gap between 1921 and 1939, when we get the limited data provided by the Register, is somewhat of a dark age for family history research. It was also a period of massive change on a national and global scale - social, political, economic, science, the arts and entertainment. There was so much going that individual stories can easily pale into insignificance. The Electoral Roll, though limited in its quantity, quality and accuracy of data, is one of the few sources that can help fill in the gap.

While working as a journalist Frank Dubrez Fawcett 'moonlights' as an author. He produces about two books a month under a number of pseudonyms for the publisher Modern Fiction, including the Miss Otis series by Ben Sarto. I've just managed to acquire a copy of the first book in this series, Miss Otis Comes To Piccadilly 1942. Though sold in millions it has been described as a "soporifically badly written introduction of blonde American gang-leader Miss Otis to well-mannered England." These stapled paperback books, produced for some light relief during the dark times of the second world war, were not designed for longevity and it proved very difficult to find a copy, more so than many of his grandfather's books! Frank becomes one of the most prolific post-war writers of UK 'pulp' fiction. Under his real name of F Dubrez Fawcett, Frank also publishes a number of diverse but more mainstream works including The Wonderful Isle of Ulla-Gapoo 1946, an exceptionally well-loved classic of its genre, Dickens the Dramatist 1952, a significant and well-respected reference work, and Hole in Heaven 1954, the first of a series by British science fiction writers. A contemporary review has Hole in Heaven pitched above Childhood's End by Arthur C Clarke, the author of 2001: A Space Odyssey though another critic describes "the action plodding, the ideas thin, the characters dull, the book awful." He translated World Uniforms from the Italian and also wrote for the Sexton Blake series. His Air Lock A G 75 appeared in the Evening Standard Second Book of Strange Stories 1937 alongside works by some more well-known authors, G B Stern, Alexandre Dumas, Edgar Wallace, Dorothy L Sayers, Agatha Christie, E M Forster and many others. Researchers into popular post-war fiction, having made a detailed study of The Demon Barber of Broadway 1953, have deduced that the author, 'Griff', was in fact F Dubrez Fawcett.

Lydia Fawcett died in Croydon, Surrey in 1946 aged 83.

In May 1949 a case was heard in the High Court , actually two cases simultaneously, a claim and a counter-claim, Modern Fiction Ltd v. Fawcett and Fawcett v Modern Fiction Ltd & Turvey. F Dubrez Fawcett's rather risqué books published by Modern Fiction were extremely popular and it was a dispute over the rights, usage and ownership of pseudonyms. It was common practice for publishers to employ different writers to produce work under the same pseudonym. Frank, or rather his lawyer, argued that a pen-name was the property of the author. Mr Justice Romer thought that Frank was "a truthful and reliable witness" but that he was "of a somewhat temperamental and excitable disposition." Frank won the case and with it the sole rights to a string of pseudonyms.

Frank Fawcett Senior, a resident of 2a Southern Grove, Stepney (a.k.a. Southern Grove Lodge), died on 5 March 1955 aged 93, occupation unknown, and was buried on 11 March just around the corner in the Tower Hamlets Cemetery. He was buried in public grave number R5976 along with three other recently deceased residents. The cause of death was myocardial degeneration, chronic bronchitis and senility. The burial was signed off by J J Sullivan of 2a Southern Grove. It would appear that Frank had little, if any, contact with family members for decades.

Violet May Fawcett died in Lambeth in 1960 aged 74.

Frank Dubrez Fawcett died in Beckenham, Kent on 26 July 1968 aged 76.