Melinda Hughes

Did I give Russ Abbot Covid?

issue 06 March 2021

For the past few weeks there’s been a 7 p.m. curfew in Barbados as part of what the government calls a ‘national pause’ (lockdown, essentially). I’m actually grateful because it’s been manic lately. The excitement started with the visit of Captain Sir Tom Moore in December. I was commissioned by a golfing group called the ‘Sandy Lane Swingers’ to write and perform a song, ‘Marching on to Victory’, at a charity lunch. It’s a jaunty tune, composed by my co-writer Jeremy Limb, with a singalong at the end. Captain Tom joined in, waving his napkin in the air. As an encore I sang a verse of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ and he mouthed all the words. Despite his age and frailty, he was in good spirits and delighted to be in our corner of paradise. At that time Barbados was Covid-free with strict quarantine rules, which meant we could enjoy a hedonistic bubble.

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