Duncan Raban

Jim the lorry driver

Hello there folks.

Yesterday i was driving up north in Suffolk, to visit a little boy called Hugo who i had photographed at Great Ormond Street Childrens Hospital last year, today he is one year old. Today was one of those very grim typically English February days vast dark grey clouds with a gorgeous swirling rain oh and freezing cold too. I was on a soulless motorway the very glamorous A 14 .... and i needed a cup of english tea so i took a turning off the motorway tolook for a cafe and within 5 minutes i saw a desolate transport cafe sitting all alone in a huge area of English mud and huge puddles it was still pouring with rain.It was called the Mid Stop cafe it was just a glorified garden shedwith painting peeling off there was a big sign hand painted in red with the words ... CLOSED .... there were two juggernauts parked up with their curtains closed...... i guess with the drivers asleep.I thought wow this looks perfect for tea and a bacon roll, what a shame it's closed, however as i drove out of the car park i saw a lighton, so i reversed up to park and see if anyone was inside.

As i walked towards the cafe i had a Duncan feeling i thought i bet i meet some one here who is really interesting. Sure enough it was open and it was empty however just one lady cooking sausages. I said hi there and sat down and ordered tea and a bacon roll. As there was no one in there i chatted to Beverley the chef who was a wearing gorgeous pink top, she was so nice and had been working 6 days a week all on her own here for 14 years and said although the cafe looked awful and run down, she loved the lorry drivers that stopped regularly it was like a private club of great characters who had become good friends.

Then a big trucker parked up and walked in, and he looked a bit scary he was covered in tattoos and lots of gigantic gold rings on, he sat down and asked for the olympic breakfast with 2 extra eggs sunny side up.I thought he looks interesting i wonder who is he, so i walked overand said hello there i love your gold rings they are just fabulous. Hisname was big Jim Molyneux a born and bred trucker of 40 years. Within minutes i felt i had known Jim years i heard stories of his life on the road and the tragic loss of his wonderful 46 year old wife who died so young from chain smoking and now he was pretty lonely his best friend was his truck.I said he looked so great that i was going to photograph him for a project I was shooting on the people of England. He said your are joking i am just a truck driver, i said oh no Jim you are a fabulous truck driver with a great big heart and you are so friendly.

Jim was doing the traditional dipping bread into his eggs, i loved his huge arms of tattoos and the contrast of his rings on his big hands, i thought wow those rings all have a story and they sure did each one was made during different periods of his life , one was a portrait of a race horse he had owned 10 years ago.

So here i was in a cafe in the middle of some woods miles from anywhere photographing a true english character the salt of the earth english character the BIG JIM MOLYNEUX.

An hour of conversation and 200 photos later we exchanged numbers and walked out together to the beautiful toilet block behind the wonderful Mid Stop cafe, where i posed jim up against the peeling paint for a portrait.Then i saw his big red truck and i said lets do a sexy photograph ofyou and your truck, i posed Jim at the front and said throw your arms out and shout at the top of your voice i love Manchester United.

Jim was laughing his head off and then he hugged me and said thanks for listening.

It's funny i did meet someone and what a character they were. Ifyou are ever in suffolk and fancy a fabulous english fry up with realpeople to chat to pop into the Mid Stop cafe on the A14 10 miles south of Bury St Edmunds.