There were three families on holiday on the Isle of Wight. It was around 1978 I suppose, 9 children in all, aged from about 6 to about 11.
As usual I had them all together, this day with a great variety of "fishing tackle" from the eldests "Beach Caster" down to the youngest two's crab-lines. We had pitched up on this rocky spur near Bembridge. I had spaced them all out fairly evenly around the sides & front of this spur. I was not engaged in fishing myself, I was waiting to give the first one who caught anything a hand. I had on an immaculate pair of white trousers with a black shirt covered by a very expensive cardigan, all finished off with a pair of black shoes. I was just checking one of the little 'uns crab-lines when one of the elder kids screamed my name. I spun on my heels & went backwards into the water ! Now, theres two things you ought to know, one is that I cannot swim, the 2nd as I found out very quickly was that this spur was a very very large rock about 20 feet high. Oh & the tide was in.
When I reached the bottom of the water I scrambled up the side of this rock as quickly as I could, still believing that one of the kids was in trouble. Later, much much later the kids described me either like a cork coming to the surface or as most of them said like Tom (as in Tom & Jerry) going up a wall whilst being chased by the bulldog. Anyway, when I got to the top I asked who had screamed & why, It turned out it was my own son who thought he'd had a bite. The kids were now standing there looking at me with as you can imagine a variety of expressions. I told them not too politely, that the first to laugh was going into the water too. We packed up all the gear & they silently followed me back to our caravans.
The looks I got along the way were enough to convince me that I looked a picture, if only we'd had a camera. The moment the doors of the caravans closed you could hear the gales of laughter the kids had been withholding all the way home. I told my lot they could now laugh if they so wished, but only once I had gone to the shower block. That night in the clubhouse I had to explain to all & sundry what had happened.
George.