hotels in Blackpool, Saltdean, and Cliftonville. Butlin's grave is in the grounds of Blair Adam house, Jersey. Early life William Heygate Edmund Colborne Butlin was born on 29 September 1899 in the Cape Colony (part of the modern-day Republic of South Africa). His father, William Colborne Butlin, was the son of a clergyman; his mother, Bertha Cassandra Hill, was a member of a family of travelling showmen. They met at a young age when Bertha's parents were working a country fair that William attended. Their marriage was considered not socially acceptable in Leonard Stanley, Gloucestershire, where they lived, and they emigrated to South Africa. William founded a bicycle shop to support the family, and they had two children, Butlin and his brother Harry John (known as Binkie) Butlin. When the marriage failed, Butlin's mother returned to England with her children and rejoined her own family in Coaley, near Bristol. Within a short time, Harry contracted polio and died. In his autobiography, Butlin recorded that his mother remarried and emigrated to Canada circa 1910. For two years, Butlin, and his cousin Jimmy Hill boarded with a widow in Bristol. In December 1913, his mother returned to England and married Charles Robotham in Swindon. Butlin's mother and stepfather then asked him to join them in Toronto. He accepted their offer, but was unhappy at school in Canada; where he was mocked because of his English accent, and he left school at fourteen years old. Eventually, he worked as a messenger at Eaton's, Toronto's largest department store. One aspect of working for the company was that he was able to visit their summer camp, which gave him his first taste of a real holiday. Later, he transferred to Eaton's advertising department where he drew black and white adverts, whilst studying at night school. In 1915, during World War I, Butlin volunteered for service in the Canadian Army. Knowing that the army already had a full quota of despatch riders, Butlin intended to volunteer for service in that category in the knowledge that although his application would be declined he would still receive an "I volunteered" badge for his actions without having to serve. While applying, Butlin forgot to tell the recruiter of this intention, and was consequently allocated to the Canadian Expeditionary Force which was involved in the fighting along the Western Front. He was subsequently posted to the 170th (Mississauga Horse) Battalion