George Orwell: a great single dad; & a walking route inspired by him

You probably have read Animal Farm or 1984 by the British writer George Orwell but did you know George Orwell was a fantastic father? 
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George Orwell believed he was sterile and adopted a son with his wife Eileen O'Shaughnesy in 1944 calling him Richard Horatio Blair. Sadly Eileen died in 1945 and whilst George was always searching for a wife to help him look after little Richard, he was a surprisingly affectionate and hands-on father. 

George was a dab hand at changing nappies and bathing Richard with a cigarette in his mouth. George bought a cottage in a remote island Jura, in Scotland to write and relax with his son. 

Richard said, ‘My father was completely devoted to me. When Eileen died, he really cared for me, which was very rare at that time. He fed me, changed my clothes and nappies, he gave me baths: most fathers at that time never did that sort of thing’.

This was extremely unusual for the time but then Orwell, despite studying at institutions associated with the establishment such as Eton College, was incredibly non-conformist. 

For those interested in discovering more about George Orwell, you can spot his home on 22 Portabello Road, Notting Hill where he lived in 1927. Apparently the room was so cold that George had to warm his hands over a candle-flame before he could start writing in the morning. 

Orwell would then set off in old clothes to meet tramps and down-and-outs who slept along the Embankment in spikes (shelters of last resorts), or workhouses. Many of the workhouses have been repurposed today as schools or NHS hospitals. 

Whilst there are old clothes sold in Portabello Market, they are generally vintage, antique designer brands. 

A wonderful walking route after you visit Portabello would be to walk through Kensington Gardens and St James's Park towards the Strand and finally ending up in the Embankment. Whilst you pass Kensington Palace, a monument to Peter Pan, a former leper colony (Green Park), the beautiful Palladian buildings on Pall Mall, you might also pass elements of inequality and inequity that inspired Orwell's novels.