in his earlier years, acquaintances believed constantine was too conscious of colour. james wrote: "many doors in england were open to him. that doors were closed to other west indians seemed more important to him." michael manley describes him as an extrovert who displayed great self-belief in everything he did. he also notes that "constantine was too long in england and perhaps too slight in test-match performance to make the impact on the caribbean that he did on england. but he enchanted england." howat writes: "cricket apart ... constantine's reputation must rest on his contribution to racial tolerance, his benevolent view of empire and commonwealth, and his personal acceptance within the british 'establishment'. in the end he was more english than trinidadian and he needed that wider platform."