Read his books at school and also afterwards - saw him interviewed seemed a really good guy The moment he met his brother after being separated from him was very touching in one of his books I read and i will always remember that...... RIP Leslie.......
I think I've read pretty much all his stuff with the exception of perhaps his last 2-3 novels. He'll be best remembered for The Virgin Soldiers and Dangerous Davies, but for me The Tropic Of Ruislip, That Old Gang Of Mine, Bare Nell and His Lordship were their equals. You know you're getting old when little pieces of your life, however small, are no more. Thank you, Mr Thomas, and may God rest your soul.
I'm re-reading Bare Nell at the moment. Probably just beats Ruislip as my favourite. Always got a kick out of reading at the start of the book that Leslie Thomas was a supporter of Quens Park Rangers.
I liked 'Nell', but always felt a bit uncomfortable that it was written in the first person about the sexploits of a tart, yet the author was a geezer. I could identify with the central character in 'Ruislip' and loved the bit about the flasher being a member of the golf club, diligently running around the greens, not across them, when being chased.
