Mr. Redmond is Charlie’s neighbor. After the death of Mr. Feehan, Mr. Redmond and his wife begin helping the Feehans in small ways, giving them food and assisting Mrs. Feehan with baby Jack. When Charlie beats the abusive Mr. Peacock with a cricket bat, he calls Mr. Redmond to the house to help, and afterwards Mr. Redmond offers to teach Charlie boxing so he can defend himself. Over the course of Mr. Redmond’s training regimen, he and Charlie grow closer, and Mr. Redmond takes on a fatherly role for Charlie. He is concerned about Charlie’s connection to Squizzy Taylor, and he suggests Charlie pursue professional racing as a way to earn money from running without interacting with criminals. When Charlie gives up boxing, Mr. Redmond offers to train him as a racer instead. He enters Charlie into the Ballarat Mile race and accompanies Charlie to Ballarat. Before the race, he gifts Charlie a new pair of running shoes to replace the old boots Charlie inherited from his father. Charlie keeps his father’s boots but wears the new running shoes for the race, mirroring how he still loves his late father but accepts Mr. Redmond’s guidance as a paternal figure.
Cecil Redmond Quotes in Runner
The Runner quotes below are all either spoken by Cecil Redmond or refer to Cecil Redmond. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 21
Quotes
I went back to that first time I’d ventured out––that time I plotted a course of four main streets to rid myself of the cold, dull ache in my bones. Tomorrow, however, I’d be running for something more. I’d be running for my father, for Ma, for Jack, for Alice, for Nostrils, and for Mr. Redmond. Tomorrow I’d be running the race of my life, and the stakes were high.
Related Characters:
Charlie Feehan (speaker), Mr. Feehan, Mrs. Feehan, Jack Feehan, Alice Cornwall, Nostrils Heath, Cecil Redmond, Squizzy Taylor
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Runner LitChart as a printable PDF.
Cecil Redmond Character Timeline in Runner
The timeline below shows where the character Cecil Redmond appears in Runner. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...the year 1919, Charlie Feehan watches storm clouds gather with his mother and their neighbor Cecil Redmond . Charlie’s mother sends Charlie to school, and as he walks through the cold, he...
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Chapter 3
...houses, while poor people have only “the piercing screams of hungry babies.” Mrs. Redmond and Mr. Redmond greet Charlie as he walks down the street, and they give him a bowl of...
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Chapter 9
...the first time as she snaps that the baby is freezing. Charlie offers to ask Mr. Redmond and Mrs. Redmond for wood, but Mrs. Feehan refuses to keep “scrounging” off the neighbors....
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...a long time, until finally he moves his arm. Mrs. Feehan sends Charlie to fetch Mr. Redmond , and only as Charlie runs out of the house does he realize the gravity...
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Chapter 10
...doesn’t trust himself to fulfill the role of “man of the house” without her support. Mr. Redmond suggests that Charlie take up boxing and offers to train him, and Charlie accepts. He...
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Chapter 14
After dinner, Charlie brings Mr. Redmond and Mrs. Redmond a trolley full of wood to thank them for their kindness. Mrs....
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...the family’s duck––who has been renamed Harry––attacks him. Charlie uses the quick thinking and footwork Mr. Redmond taught him and smacks Harry aside. Charlie goes inside, where Mrs. Feehan and Jack are...
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Chapter 15
The next morning, Charlie goes to practice racing with Mr. Redmond . Mr. Redmond sets Charlie in a sprinting contest against his rabbiting dog. He sets...
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Chapter 18
Later, Charlie returns home from a training session with Mr. Redmond to find Alice Cornwall in the living room with Mrs. Feehan. She quietly thanks him...
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Chapter 19
Charlie continues training with Mr. Redmond as the day of the race nears. During that time, the war between the gangs...
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...no longer a boy.” Later, Mrs. Redmond and Mrs. Feehan say a heartfelt goodbye to Mr. Redmond and Charlie as they leave for the race.
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Chapter 20
Mr. Redmond and Charlie go to a train station, and Charlie remembers being afraid of trains as...
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The train arrives in Ballarat, where the race will take place, and Mr. Redmond and Charlie go to their room at a lodging house. Mr. Redmond gives Charlie a...
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Chapter 21
Charlie and Mr. Redmond eat dinner with the proprietor of the lodging house, who reads Charlie’s palm and has...
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...along to be here with Charlie in a moment like this. Before the heat starts, Mr. Redmond reassures Charlie, and Charlie notes that Mr. Redmond has no idea what Charlie has planned....
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...goal is to come in third, and he succeeds. After the race, Charlie explains to Mr. Redmond that while working for Squizzy Taylor, he learned never to show his strength before a...
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Mr. Redmond doesn’t want to gamble Charlie’s money, but Charlie insists that it is “dirty money.” He...
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...the track cheering him on. Charlie runs toward them desperately, and he wins the race. Mr. Redmond is overjoyed, and Charlie tells him that he couldn’t have won the race without his...
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Chapter 22
...concedes that Charlie was right about the value of speed. Once the man sits down, Mr. Redmond asks Charlie what he plans to do with his winnings, and Charlie confesses his “secret...
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When the train arrives at Richmond, Charlie insists Mr. Redmond take the silver cup as thanks for training him and for all the Redmonds have...
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Chapter 23
...Mile, Charlie meets with a group of people outside the timber yard: Mrs. Feehan, Jack, Mr. Redmond and Mrs. Redmond, Alice, Mr. Cornwall, and Nostrils and his parents, the Heaths. Nobody other...
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After Mr. Redmond gives the guests a tour of the timber yard, the group goes to the Feehans’...
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