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| Doctor Marion Collins |
Marion Collins, born in Wandsworth in 1859, Marion was born to reasonably humble surroundings. His father was an accounting clerk never able to progress past his station as he suffered from mild dyslexia. Marion’s mother was a member of the kitchen staff for the local tavern. While their earnings were honest, the home was less than opportunistic for raising a family.
At the age of 9, Marion was orphaned due to his parents both being killed during the collapse of the tavern where Marion’s mother worked. His father entered the tavern to escort his wife home, only to find that the structure gave way, burying them and a dozen other patrons.
Marion was then raised in the Wandsworth boarding house. Friends did not come easy to Marion as he was already showing signs on intellectual aptitude beyond his years. His closest relationship came in the guise of another child of the same age, Seamus Stonebridge, a fellow orphan who was accepting in nature of Marion’s disposition.
Marion continued to grow mentally, eventually becoming one of the respected leaders amongst the other children. By the time he was 15 years of age, Marion had mastered several skills most children took for granted, penmanship, reading, verbalising in ways that mimicked higher social standing individuals. Along with Seamus, when it was time for them to leave the boarding house, both young men went in separate directions, while Seamus turned his attention to manipulation, theft and the street life, Marion sought a career that put his mind to use, his desire for medicine saw him enrol as an intern for the small Wandsworth hospital, taking every opportunity to “borrow” medical journals and books that he would study for countless hours.
By the age of 22, Marion had a vast knowledge of medicine, continually applying for medical roles and doctors exams, only to always be shunned. An orphan with no financial standing would never succeed without some form of backing.
Spending every spare part of his earnings on study, Marion enrolled at University to study medicine, sacrificing his potentially comfortable living arrangements and living above a Rat Catcher’s office. Upon completing his study at the age of 27, Marion again attempted to join the medical social circles, again only to find he was now considered and educated orphan in their eyes.
Unable to crack the elitist shell of the medical world, Marion was no longer willing to reside in the small attic apartment he had secured above the local Rat Catcher business, seeking to employ his skills, he took the opening employment position as a junior with the city morgue.
His knowledge saw him rise quickly within the positions of the morgue, his medical knowledge giving him a firm understanding of what he was employed to do, his employer Dr Spencer recognising this fact. Behind the scenes however, Marion and Seamus were constantly in contact. Seamus now running in his own little world of shadows on the streets of London, ever helpful in advising Marion of any new opportunities for him to gain employment in the medical world, in return, Marion would trade the information for medicines for the less fortunate that Seamus would then deliver.
Securing a new apartment in northern Wandsworth and finding he had money to spare, Marion began frequenting the local taverns for excitement, often finding himself betting on the illegal underground bare knuckle boxing matches that could be found, introduced to him by Seamus, a constant participant in the fights themselves. Gambling not seeming to be enough, Marion also began participating in the brawls, his medical knowledge advising him of the most vital parts of the body to strike, not always successful, he never seemed to be financially better off, yet also never worse.
Marion continues his work with Dr Spencer, his constant desire to have Dr Spencer’s approval for further medical endeavours always at the front of his mind.
