One Christmas, shortly after poor old Ned had died, my nephew, Ian ,came to stay. His visit coincided with that of my mother. We always had Christmas Lunch rather than a dinner in the evening and after everything was cleared away it was our custom to walk round the district to settle the corporate stomach… Continue reading 1946-50, The Shootong Flane
1946-50, Old Ned
Staying with us in this expandable house where all were welcome was yet another member of the clan, Old Ned and he and Linda often had a running battle. He was close to or in his nineties and behaved like a child himself. He sat in the corner of the room behind the door leading… Continue reading 1946-50, Old Ned
1946-50,Alec and the Shop Part 2
York Road suffered damage in the Belfast Blitz and the Family went to Carrickfergus to stay with relatives, ultimately returning to No 18, yet another numerical address. It was there that I met Sophie, and there that we lived until we moved a few hundred yards to No 15, not three streets away. There were… Continue reading 1946-50,Alec and the Shop Part 2
1946-50, New Family Part 2,
LIZA Not only I, but anyone who had heard Liza sing in the fifties and sixties could not have failed to be certain that if she had been born thirty years later, when talent was more appreciated and there were more opportunities for talented people to succeed, she would have been a renowned opera singer.… Continue reading 1946-50, New Family Part 2,
James and the Early Troubles
The first time I ever heard any deep discussion on the Northern Ireland political theories, apart from being warned during the war not to go up the Falls in uniform, was one night when there had been some trouble or other in Belfast, long since forgotten. That night Jimmy told me of the twenties and… Continue reading James and the Early Troubles
!946 – 50, THE NEW FAMILY
Economics, the queue for housing, the fact that I was unemployed and we were now three rather than two, all conspired to ensure that we stayed with Sophie’s parents and their other limpets.. In the first instance, of course, Linda’s condition had been the overriding consideration and then, somehow we got into a rut and… Continue reading !946 – 50, THE NEW FAMILY
The Final Days
I had had companionate leave, for the birth of Linda coupled with Christmsa leave. After Christmas I had to say good-bye to them both and head back, but it was not to be for long. Within two weeks I received a telephone call to the effect that Linda was seriously ill and I was to… Continue reading The Final Days
Fear
Going up pipes, down manholes, through tunnels, into dark dank corners, beneath the sea, beneath roads and ground, deep or shallow, in compressed air or in sludge and sewage, was ever the lot of the inspection engineer, Nature has instilled in us all an instinct for self-preservation, which translates to reactions varying from being startled… Continue reading Fear
VE Day, Etc
VE DAYI cannot leave the story of Leydene without mentioning VE Day. Not because of the day itself or because of the fact we were given a holiday, but to remember the generosity of the people of Hampshire towards the Services. At every pub there was a hog’s head of beer sitting in the garden… Continue reading VE Day, Etc
The Doodle-bug
The hotel we stayed in was almost opposite Glenlea. I have a phobia, I hate having strangers in my bedroom, with the result Sophie has never forgiven me for denying her breakfast in bed throughout the honeymoon. Because the hotel was so far from London we mostly ate out either in the City of with… Continue reading The Doodle-bug