From surviving the Second World War to meeting the love of his life, Bahrain-based resident and author Alan C Pitt opens up to readers in his tell-all memoir Derby to Bahrain 80 years of Change.
The 83-year-old retired British financial advisor was persuaded to pen and publish his life story by his eldest granddaughter, Nadia, so that future generations might get a glimpse of the radical changes that took place in the UK from 1937 to 2013.
In the 342-page book, which was published in May, Alan sheds light on the pre-war era in the UK and how it was followed by 10 years of austerity along with life-altering actions and decisions that led to his move to Bahrain.
He also shares his financial and retirement woes after investing his life savings in the stalled multi-million dinar Marina West residential project on Bahrain’s west coast, a development that has affected many buyers from the kingdom and Saudi Arabia.
According to Alan, who resides in Budaiya, the first and the last chapters of the book were the most difficult ones to write.
He said: “I started writing the book in the early part of 2011 in order to detail the enormous changes which have taken place during my lifetime, over the last 80 years.
“I would like people to gain an insight into the pre-war era, the restrictions imposed by the 1939-45 war followed by 10 years of austerity in the UK, the glory of the 1960’s, after the UK came out of severity and how each subsequent decade influenced both changes to work, sport and leisure time.
“In the first chapter, I talk about the impact that the Second World War had on the population along with sleepless nights during bombing raids as well as when food, sweets and clothes were rationed.
“Also, part of this book is devoted to an evolving love story which began on Christmas Eve 1951, interwoven with different facets of family life. The book also records the highs and lows of my career which came about seemingly by pure chance and good fortune rather than any forward planning on my part.
“One chapter of my book is dedicated to the Marina West project, which I bought into, and regrettably it stalled in March 2010. The plight of off-plan apartment buyers in the Marina West project is very close to my heart. This particular chapter in the autobiography has been rewritten several times over a period of three years mainly to record the drawn out events involving Marina West.”
When his loving wife Ethel, who he refers to as Effie, was diagnosed with Churg-Strauss syndrome, an autoimmune condition that causes the inflammation of small and medium-sized blood vessels in persons with a history of airway allergic hypersensitivity, Alan thought it would be best for them both to move to Bahrain to be near their daughter Linda, 57, an executive assistant to the co-chief executive officer and chief financial officer of Investcorp, and granddaughters.
Linda, who has been living in Bahrain for 37 years, was very close to her mother, as were her daughters Nadia, 32, Yasmine, 29, and Emaan, 20. The three girls are all gold medal winners on the Bahrain national bowling team.
Alan sold his house in the UK and paid out BD84,000 on a two-bedroom apartment costing BD88,000 in order to get permanent residency. Alas, he saw neither the residency nor the apartment and instead depleted his assets on a rental apartment.
He said: “We had budgeted for a cash flow covering rent, living expenses and quarterly payments to Marina West up to the scheduled December 2009 completion date. I had allowed for the possibility of a further six months delay period but certainly never thought the project would be delayed for years!”
Alan’s book couldn’t have come at a better time as plans are currently underway to resurrect the project.
A new proposal created by the Bahrain Real Estate Association (BREA) states that the project will be divided into 11 parts with different banks set to help arrange the rescheduling of loans and other mortgage options.
According to reports, Shaikh Abdulrahman bin Ali Al Khalifa, BREA’s honorary president, confirmed that the banks involved would approve the loan rescheduling if the project was divided into parts which means that loan facilities can now be extended to fund the completion of the project’s 10 residential towers, offering more than 1,000 apartments, and an 11th tower planned as a five-star hotel.
Alan believes there has been tremendous progress since 2013 thanks to his dear friend Hassan Al Husseini. Hassan was a former chief of government affairs policy and planning for oil giant Saudi Aramco and was hoping to spend his retirement days with his wife in their Marina West apartment. He used to organise group gatherings with the Marina property buyers which included Bahrainis, Saudis and other expatriates from 25 countries including the UK, US, Canada, Germany, France, Australia, India, Pakistan, Kuwait and Lebanon.
Sadly, Hassan will not be able to witness his four years of hard work trying to revitalise the project on behalf of 600 apartment buyers come to fruition as he passed away in May last year at the age of 68.
Alan said: “Off-plan buyers of every stalled private real estate project have witnessed tremendous progress by the Bahrain government since June 2013 when Hassan led a group of Marina West homeowners to meet ministers, who paved the way for us to contact the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other authorities to get the ball rolling.
“Writing this chapter all stemmed from the late and sadly missed Hassan Al Husseini, a Marina West homeowner whose drive and enthusiasm never waned throughout, from April 2010, in organising Marina West Homeowners both in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
“Hassan’s editorial and communication skills were impeccable. My part on behalf of the homeowners was to analyse and quantify how the payments to the Marina West project appeared to have gone awry. Hassan incorporated much of this information in petitions and appeals to the various authorities.
“Much of the information, plus a little more besides, has already been submitted to the relevant authorities and readers of my book will get more of an idea of what has been taking place in the interim.
“The New Real Estate Law No 66 of 2014 resulted in a Settlement Committee being established and meetings have been convened to review the long stalled Marina West project. The Marina West Homeowners, specifically, along with other homeowners/investors, are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the Settlement Committee’s next review on September 7 this year.”
Alan’s autobiography, which was printed by Al Ayam Publishers, is being sold exclusively at Words BookstoreCafé located on Palm Square on Budaiya Highway, priced at BD15.
His chronicle is dedicated to his soul mate, Ethel, who passed away on April 13, 2012, and to his children Andrew, Linda and Adrian as well as his grandchildren Nadia, Yasmine, Emaan, Phillip, Adam, Faye, Chloe, Charlotte and his great grandchildren Eleanor, Sami, Harriet, Maya, Rayaan and Mohammed. He said: “The feedback from family, friends and acquaintances is far beyond my expectations; I am absolutely delighted with the outcome.”
