Allen Lowrie's three volume set was first released individually in 1987, 1989, and 1998. Here are two mint hard backed copies of volume three, which are signed by Allen (see the image). There's a story here.
I knew Allen since around 1991 and we corresponded and talked many times over the years. I was struck with his forthright attitude and say it like it is persona, something he was famous for, and we seemed to hit it off well. I was at Chelsea in 2011, setting up on the Sunday afternoon and minding my own business, when a gruff Australian accent spoke out from about six inches from my ear. 'That's a load of shit,' it said. Pausing, thinking, I thought straight away that I knew that voice, and turned to see Allen's grinning face. He was there helping Rob Cantley from Sri Lanka (Borneo Exotics), and it's fair to say we enjoyed a fantastic, and rather amusing week with Allen and his wife Pauline (as in Utricularia paulineae). Knowing a friend was driving up to the show that week, I got him to bring all of my copies of Allen's books, and on a particularly entertaining evening (pictured), he signed them all for me. Allen died in 2021.
