Our protagonist, Aloysius St. James Spottisworth-Gack, comes from a long line of brewers. A long line indeed...
The firm of Gack&Bacon Ltd was ancient even by European standards. It was founded on 17 November 1559—exactly one year to the day after Queen Elizabeth I’s coronation. Legend has it that the brewery came into existence due to an astonishing demand for beer as the populace started to relax after the contentious and violent reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I. The very name suggested an aura. The “Gack” came from the surname of the family who had owned the concern in a continuous line since its origin. The “Bacon,” however, was shrouded in mystery. Many fans of its products claimed that Bacon was the surname of a partner of the original Gacks, who was involved in the brewery’s founding. There were whispers of a falling out of epic proportions between the two men, with rumours of some renegade Baconites somewhere in England still plotting their cold dish of revenge. Contradictory stories spoke of a heroic tale of brotherhood as the two men fought side by side in the Elizabethan Navy, Bacon losing his life in battle against the Spanish while a wounded Gack wept by his side. Others maintained that the word referred to a highly unusual ingredient that was responsible for the remarkable flavours of some of their finest brews. Finally, there were enduring tales of how the firm’s name related in some manner to Sir Francis Bacon, who was known to have counted the Gack&Bacon pub, The Pig & Trebuchet, among his favourite haunts. Perhaps the notion of a man named Bacon taking his mead in a pub named for a pig brought him great amusement. In any event, Sir Francis had given the pub its famous motto:
“A Crowd is not a Company, and Faces are but a Gallery of Pictures, and Talke but a Tinckling Cymball, where there is no Love.”