WITH pictures of African plains on his living room walls and a dog named Zulu, local poet, Bob Allen's South African roots have certainly influenced his current life.

Since his birth in Australia in 1927 Bob, who now lives in Clayton-le-Woods, near Leyland, has led a full and varied life.

His most current accomplishment is to have 12 poems published in an anthology due out in March.

Bob said: "I've always been a short story writer and I began writing poetry last year.

"I saw a piece in the The Citizen about a publishing house looking for poems so I sent five of mine in.

"They accepted them and published a couple. Then they sent me a letter asking if I would submit more for this anthology which features 12 poets.

"Since I was brought up in South Africa but have lived here since 1960, my poems are based on both countries. I tend to write largely from life, using personal feelings and experiences. I think of most of my ideas when I'm out walking the dog."

The countries Bob gets his inspiration from is shown by the titles of the poems accepted for the anthology. They include 'Chepstow', 'Cape Town' and 'The Tribal Heads'.

Bob has a varied job history including the literary world. He was an etcher when metal prints needed to be made in publishing and he has also been a political commentator for the South Wales Guardian.

However, his main job was working for a number of years in the wine and spirits trade and he owns his house thanks to the Wine and Spirits Benevolent Fund.

Bob has been married to his wife Helen for 48 years and they have two children and one grandchild. Bob walks two miles each day with his black Labrador cross, Zulu, and when the weather's warm he even enjoys bodysurfing in the sea.

The anthology called 'Through the Dusts of Time' is published in March.-