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SPOTLIGHT

FOREIGN LANGUAGE NEWS 026

Spotlight on John Searancke

Dogs, classic cars and

prunes for breakfast
Johns first book tells the story
of how the intrepid trio embark
on their journey of a lifetime and
relocation to the north of Tenerife. Adjusting to a completely
new life abroad, buying a home,
making new friends, and integrating with the local Spanish
community are just some of the
highs and lows that befell them
along the way - with Freddie having some of his own unbelievable
(but true!) exploits with his newfound canine friends.
John Searancke: author and
restaurant and book reviewer
extraordinaire
Prunes for Breakfast is a
fascinating story
Archive photo of British
prisoners at the moment of
liberation by men of the 9th US
Army on April 12, 1945

After I sold the hotel I moved

to Lancashire, where I had
met and later married Sally.
We started a new business
together, a commercial legal
services company, something
completely new for both of us.
During that time we fell in love
with Freddie, a Jack Russell/
Staffie cross puppy, whom we
rescued from the RSPCA.
We sold out on a high after
some 10 years, enabling us
to move to Tenerife and have
never regretted it. Did I think
that retirement would be relaxation in the sunshine? Far from
it! I think that Ive never been so
busy, soon becoming restaurant
reviewer for Island Connections
- I was flattered to have been
invited to the position.
Sally thought I needed a hobby,
and I wanted to acquire a classic car. I looked at many on
the island, but either they
needed too much work on
them, or were, frankly, ridiculously expensive. In the end I
cast my net wider and eventually bought an old Mercedes
300 SL convertible (it had its
25th birthday this year!) from
a specialist in England. Driving it down to Tenerife took up
a couple of chapters or so in
my first book, though the pitfalls of trying to import an old
analogue car into the Canary
Islands could easily fill a book
all by itself.
I was also invited to become
a book reviewer on the panel
of a well-known English pub-

Photo: Imperial War Museum (IWM BU 5985)

John Searancke is an author,

classic car enthusiast and
restaurant and book reviewer
extraordinaire.
Many of our readers will be
familiar with Johns marvellous restaurant reviews for
the north of Tenerife which
we regularly publish in Island
Connections.
We managed to catch up with
him recently to chat about his
recent book launch, his second
since he moved permanently
to Tenerife with his wife Sally
and their dog Freddie.
We began by asking him to tell
us a little of his fascinating
personal history:
Well, I was born in Derby in
1943, and home was in Ashby
de la Zouch, an old market town
in Leicestershire. I was sent
away to board at Kings Mead
Preparatory School, Seaford,
and then on to Rugby School.
Being at Rugby has certainly
stood me in good stead throughout my life, and I could not
have asked for better.
Im still not quite sure exactly
how it came about but soon
after I left Rugby I found myself
articled to a firm of solicitors
in Ashby. It was not a happy
period for anyone concerned,
although I have to concede that
I learned a lot during my time
there. It was clear that I was too
much of a free spirit to enjoy
being chained to a desk, however. The only highlights were
trips out to criminal courts or
prisons. I loved court work and
must have been to every prison
in the Midlands. I passed my
free time commissioned into
the Territorial Army and still
proudly display my certificate
signed by HM The Queen.
When my parents marriage
sadly began to founder, I relocated to West Sussex to help out
at their latest venture, a small
country hotel. I stayed there for
nearly 35 years, soon taking
over and changing and extending the place considerably. My
restaurant in the hotel held 2 AA
Rosettes for good food for several years right up until I sold
the business in 2000.
My son Marcus has turned 41,
and is an accountant. Married
to Tina, they have provided me
with two lovely grandchildren,
Josh and Sam. They live in Hove,
where we visit them regularly.

lisher. They send me a couple

of dozen or so books each year
for review before they hit the
bookshops.
Meanwhile, Sally took on
a hobby of her own, helping Spanish youngsters with
their English reading at a
local school, whilst I, at last,
devoted time to writing. Never
having done anything like that
before, little did I realise that
writing seemed relatively easy.
All the difficulties started afterwards, when it came to having
my words professionally edited,
before Dog Days in The Fortunate Islands came to be published.

Johns lovingly restored MG

Colourful characters, anecdotes

from their journey through
mainland Spain in an old classic car, and also some of lifes
not-so-perfect moments are
woven into an exciting series
of adventures. We loved this
book so were very keen to hear
what John had to say about his
latest: Prunes for Breakfast One Mans War: Based on a
True Story.
My second book is an entirely
different proposition; a different genre, and written in a distinct style to test my mettle.
Many years after the deaths of
my parents, my aunt handed
me a box filled with letters my

father had written to my mother

between 1940 and 1945. It is
the story of my father, Eddie
Searancke, from the time of
his calling up in early 1940
to his release from a German
prisoner of war camp in 1945,
and his return to England to
try to pick up the pieces of
his old life. The letters take
readers through five captivating years as Eddie rose through
the ranks to end his war as a
captain, elevated to that rank
in the field as his troops faced
the formidable might of the SS
Panzers.
The letters also reveal where
his battle came to an abrupt
end, in an orchard surrounded
by the enemy and captured
after a series of bloody skirmishes as the British army

spearheaded its way from the

beaches of Normandy. The
truck journey as a prisoner
across France and Germany,
with comrades dying each day,
may be as hard to read as it
was to tell - not to mention
the new life and harsh rules
which were rigidly enforced in
the camp in northern Germany
but for me this was a chance
to rediscover the father I had
never really known. And I can
only hope that readers get as
much out of the insights into a
troubled time as I have.
Both of Johns books are
available as a paperback or
e-books. If you would like
more information, check out
the contacts below we certainly cant wait to read Prunes
for Breakfast.
n

Website: www.johnsearancke.com
Meet the Author at Rukia Publishing: http://www.rukiapublishing.com/meet-the-author-john-searancke.html
Facebook pages: https://www.facebook.com/john.searancke.1 / https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dog-Days-inThe-Fortunate-Islands/867368390009475 / https://
www.facebook.com/PrunesForBreakfast
Troubador Publishing: http://www.troubador.co.uk/shop_
booklist.asp?s=john%20searancke