In late 1971, Robbie Hinds gave up his lease on 5 St David's Place Parktown. His commercial film company had not been a success so I, as his Assistant, Art Director, Driver, Stills Photographer and Caretaker was faced with finding a new home for my myself, my wife and infant son. Another 'orphan of this storm' was Gordon le Sueur who had a room in the annex behind 5 St David's (previously a boarding house). My great friend Arthur Cantrell came to our rescue. He was an old friend of Geoff Maitland, a distinctly eccentric Englishman, who had been renting No 12 Queens Road or 'Wynnstay' but was vacating soon. I hurried up the hill to speak to Geoff Maitland about taking over his lease.
Wynnstay was designed in 1913 by the architect Percival Hill Mitchelson (The Heritage Portal)
Geoff Maitland had been eking out an existence as an aerial photographer, perhaps something he had done in the war, when he probably met Arthur Cantrell. He proudly showed me his darkroom in a converted pantry off the passage to the kitchen. It was rather makeshift and I noticed there were no safelights rigged above his developing trays. Apparently Geoff was in ignorance of safelights and had been processing his prints purely by guesswork in total darkness! I'm sure he had other harmless...
