Jim's legacy is in safe hands (From Bournemouth Echo)

Jim's legacy is in safe hands

7:00pm Wednesday 7th May 2008

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JUST over 15 years ago, Jim Cronin joined my wife and I on a trip to watch Bruce Springsteen in concert in London.

The seats we had were high in nosebleed territory and the presence of burly security men protecting exits and entry points meant that we were surely stuck up in the "Gods" throughout the concert.

But not Jim.

Using a mix of New York chutzpah and guile, he somehow made his way through the arena down to the front of the audience and enjoyed the rest of the night staring up the Boss's nostrils.

Jim was the only American friend we'd ever known and it was only when we subsequently met a few more that we realised that they weren't all loud, brash and very self-opinionated.

But it was those very traits - along with his wicked sense of humour, warmth for his family and friends and his love of his wife Alison - that made his death 14 months ago such a shock and so difficult to bear.

Obviously, nobody was ever going to feel that loss like Alison and her frank interview today reveals some dark moments in that time after Jim's death that must have been so desperate.

Indeed, I can probably imagine the conversation that Jim had with his wife during those times when she felt that there was nothing to live for without him.

Tonight's ITV programme and a second next Thursday pay tribute to Jim Cronin and the legacy his years as a primate expert have left.

But the future of Monkey World is in the hands of Alison and her team and I'm sure Jim would have appreciated knowing that they are hands that look irrefutably safe.

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