IMG_0334.jpgA while ago I wrote a blog about why I loved the character of Witchy Wu, who is one of the villains in the Sabrina Summers trilogy. Today I am writing about the inspiration behind one of the other villains, Prince Donaldo. This larger-than-life character is borrowed from real life, I even pinched the name and the moustache. If you haven’t read The Uncontrollable Slingshot, stop reading now, but if you have, you won’t be surprised to know that the Summers kids’ favorite uncle, Uncle Don, is really the wicked Prince Donaldo in disguise. I took the idea of a favorite uncle who would appear and disappear from my brother-in-law, Don McConnochie whose visits from Tasmania to New Zealand were excitedly anticipated and full of fun. Don favored experiences over routine, living life to the full over being boring boring, and passed away recently in one of his many happy places. He leaves a huge hole in the lives of family and friends because unlike the fictional character the real Uncle Don was a man of integrity (with all his fingers) who celebrated the things that mattered: his children and grandchildren. Don will be missed, remembered and loved always.