Many know actor, presenter and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah as paramedic Finlay Newton in BBC’s Casualty from 1999 to 2004. That was his big break and since leaving Holby General, he has appeared in many other TV programmes.
   He has also become a notable playwright and indeed Elmina's Kitchen was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2003, going on to win the Evening Standard's Most Promising Playwright Award of that year. His second play Fix-Up was staged at the National Theatre in 2004. In the meantime, he became the first black Briton to have a play staged in the West End, when Elmina's Kitchen opened at the Garrick Theatre.
   Among his other awards was the 2003 Screen National Film and Television Award for Favourite TV Actor.
   Kwame was born Ian Roberts, but changed his name in 1989 to

Jim and Kwame - but no Casualty!

Taxi Jubilee
Fifty years of the Austin FX4 London Taxi

Call Sign has little doubt that so far as taxi historians are concerned, the name of Bill Munro stands out as one of just two true experts. Sadly Phil Warren is no longer writing, but Bill certainly is and with Taxi Jubilee – Fifty years of the Austin FX4 London Taxi (Earlswood Press £7.45) he once again demonstrates a remarkable insight into the job we all do and that he too has carried out over the past forty years. His book gives a sense of pride in knowing we work for an industry with such a long and distinguished history. It only concentrates on just the last fifty years of those 380 or so, but these were probably the most remarkable of them all, an era that saw as its centre an amazing icon – the FX4.
   Conversely, Bill then goes on to say that the cab could have become an icon out of default, because originally scheduled to be in existence for around 10 years before a new model took over, the cost of producing an upgrade became so great that the FX4 stayed with us until the TX1 poked its nose in! But by then, so used to the shape of the FX4 had drivers and passengers become, that the new model found an instant dislike and became known as a Noddy car until those same drivers and passengers became used to it. But to last 50 years is worthy of giving the FX4 its own excellent book - such as Bill Munro’s.
   Strangely enough, the book says that considering its amazing longevity, the vehicle itself wasn’t that good and indeed had some serious shortcomings. However, the makers had tried to correct many of the faults with previous cabs that drivers had constantly complained about over the previous years. It wasn’t always that straightforward though!
   But Taxi Jubilee isn’t just the story of the FX4; it uses that cab as its central focus but also tells what life for the trade was like around it. It explains who was who, the differences between Carbodies, LTI, M&O and even the stop / go Metrocab and Winchester.
   Well illustrated with 100+ colour photos, where this book leapfrogs other taxi books is that it doesn’t look as though its 72 pages have been typed and stuck together with some Prittstick! This is a professional and well-written book on the subject of taxis. If you just go out to work and couldn’t care less about this trade’s history, then you won’t be buying Taxi Jubilee, but if you take the slightest interest, then this book will explain in the clearest way most of what you need to know about taxi driving and the huge changes it has seen over the past fifty years. There have been many books over the years about taxis, but few that are recognised as classics in their field. Nick Georgano’s History of the London Taxicab, Maurice Levinson’s Taxi and Phil Warren / Malcolm Linskey’s Taxicabs – A photographic History are three that spring to mind. Taxi Jubilee is an excellent addition to that short list.
   If you have problems getting a copy either at Malcolm Linskey’s shop in Penton Street or on Amazon, you can contact the distributors direct via Mal Smith at:
Dairy House Distributors, Dairy House Farm, Front Street, East Stour, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8 5LQ. Phone on 01747 838219 or email mal@vintagetaxispares.com…