John Douglas Todd was born in Birkenhead in 1895 into a line of merchant navy skippers. 
He was second son in a family of 5. 

Dougie's father died in 1910 following the loss of his ship.
This caused a family crisis so Dad gave up ideas of going to Oxford or Cambridge (his headmaster Mr Ure had been so impressed with his mathematics that he had offered to support him for a university place) and sat the current Civil Service exam passing out 2nd and being posted to Edinburgh to the Dept of Ag and Fish.

That, of course, is where he met Katey Sim and her best friend Bee (Isabel Hutchinson). 

To get a paid holiday he joined the army cadet force which explained why in 1914 he landed in France and almost immediately got blood poisoning which he eventually survived and was sent home to the Royal Scots base in Catterick. 
He served out the war as an orderly there, was discharged home to Edinburgh and became even more involved with the Hutchinson/Sim  families. 

In 1922 he married Bee in Braemar.  He spent his life in the Civil Service and must have been acceptably "civil" for he ended up flogging old war ships to the deserving poor. 

In the 1920's he played chess then he started bridge, and played in the first London Association Trophy (his team was captained by E J Cleal, Dad's partner, A Higgs and Mrs E R Higgs).  I have the Trophy but it is undated but must have been early 30's.

    
Going back to Dad's family he had 2 brothers, Charles who died in the 14/18 war and Len who went to Australia in the 20's, marrying Florence and dying of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma about 1945. Florence returned to this country after the war and I met her a few times but do not have her address; he also had 2 sisters Norah and Eileen, both are now dead and neither were married nor had children)

    As you observed my generation is popping off at a disastrous rate so if  we can help with any acceptable, or otherwise, recollections please let us know. It was great fun meeting "young" Tom so please commiserate with him about his poor hearing.

IDHT - GH February 2006.