Keith Sadler

Keith Sadler was an unemployed Gentleman’s Outfitter and had been a senior assistant at Marshall’s store before it closed. He occupied the flat across the landing from the one recently taken by Bet Lynch on Ludlow Avenue.

Quietly spoken and polite, he was the total opposite of Bet’s type of man but she got on well enough with him and chatted politely as neighbours. He told her his troubles with finding employment but she encouraged him not to give up and keep on trying. Desperate for a job, he wondered if Bet’s fellah, Dan Johnson, could get him a job as a lorry driver but Bet gently pointed out it wasn’t quite his cup of tea.

A few days later, Bet asked him to look at her iron that wasn’t working. He was unable to fix it but they agreed that she could use his iron if he could use her board. Shortly afterwards, Dan came into the flat and found him making free use of the board. He kept his temper but when Bet was out of the way told Keith to stay on his side of the hallway from now on, or else.

Keith was understandably retiring with Bet when she next saw him but she got out of him that he’d been warned off her. Keith finally got himself another job and brought a bottle round to celebrate. They went into his flat to drink it, even though Bet had told him that he’d got Dan all wrong. That night, Bet knocked on his door in a slinky black number to ask him the time. Dan turned up at that moment, walked calmly up to Keith and punched him in the stomach, doubling the little man over with pain. Bet was stunned and confronted Dan. He shrugged the matter off and told her that if one bird gave him aggro, there was always another just like her round the corner. With that, he collected his things and walked out of her life.

1980

 * Mon 12th May
 * Wed 14th May
 * Mon 19th May
 * Wed 21st May