Heroes, idols and favourites.

While my sister, Lesley, was swooning over Paul McCartney and The Beatles, I was really hooked on The Monkees! I loved their music and later their TV show. My primary school headmaster would have been horrified if he’d known that the bookmark I used in my English Hymnal at morning assembly was a mini pin up photo of Peter Tork.

My brother, Robin, was and is to this day, a die-hard Chelsea fan. He would play football as goalie in the back garden with his friends and everytime he would make a miraculous save we would hear him shout “Peter Bonetti!” We were close in age so I took a competitive interest and chose to support Manchester United- I think George Best was a good enough reason-I think I had a pin up of him too!

My whole family loved tennis and we were always glued to Wimbledon every year. When I was at secondary school, I, along with my sister or some friends, would go to the tournament after school to pick up tickets from people who were leaving, so we could watch some evening matches. One memorable year we got front row seats on No.1 court in this way and saw our heroes, John Newcombe and Tony Roach playing doubles!

My childhood book memories will be with me forever. I grew up with C. S. Lewis and the Narnia series- especially The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. I also have special place in my heart for The Good Master by Kate Seredy which I read with my mother and every detail of which I can still remember. I was also a great fan of Girl Annuals- Bunty, June, etc. which came out in time for Christmas which made present buying for me pretty easy.

My favourite TV shows included Juke Box Jury, Crossroads and Blue Peter- I even earned a badge once for a story I sent in. The era I recall best featured Christopher Tracey, Valerie Singleton and John Noakes. I also loved the man from U.N.C.L.E- David McCallum was another in my pin-up collection-and as a member of his fanclub, this one was autographed!

Photos courtesy of:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=the+monkees

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=george+Best

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0363771/

http://www.shepherdpress.com/images/Good-Master.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Peter_badge

News Events

Three major news events of significance come to mind when I think back on my childhood.

One of our neighbours, Janet Simpson was a runner who had qualified for the 1964 Olympics. I remember getting up at the crack of dawn to watch live coverage of the events from Tokyo and we were thrilled to receive a postcard from Janet who came seventh in the final and won a bronze medal in the relay.




Nearer home, I also recall the death of Winston Churchill in 1965. I remember hearing the news early in the morning and lying next to my mother in my parents’ bed as the story unfolded on the radio. Although because of his young age my father had a relatively minor involvement in the second world war, his brother was killed in the conflict and the war years played a major part in my parents lives. Their sadness at the death of Churchill made me realize how important a national figure he had been.




Finally I remember my whole family sitting in the lounge gripped to coverage of Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon in 1969. As momentous as that moment was, I think I actually remember the event for something much more humdrum: just as mankind’s giant steps were being taken, our golden retriever swished his tale and spilt my mum’s cup of coffee over a chess board that my brother had just finished making for a school project!




Photos courtesy of:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/24/newsid_2506000/2506493.stm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_landing

Early Days

I was born in Northwood, Middlesex. Although there were no complications at my birth, my mother spent two weeks in a maternity hospital, which was standard practice at the time.

(When I had my children in the 80s, it was considered normal to leave hospital within 24 hours. I was thinking about mum and her luxury when I returned home from hospital after my third child, finding my two toddlers with chicken pox!).

Whether it has to do with my birthday or not, October has always been my favorite time of year, wherever I have been living: I love the colours, the cooler weather, and the idea of harvest. My mother told me that when she returned home after my birth, my 4 year old sister, recently aware of the change in the seasons, told her that "God's painted the trees since you've been away." This idea always comes to mind as the leaves begin to change.

We lived, at the time, in the suburbs of London in a home that had been under construction since my parents' move from Edinburgh. My father and mother both completed their university degrees in Scotland and in 1953 my father took up a position in London and made the big decision to "emigrate" to England.

All his working life was spent in the city of London as a banking consultant. My mother was a speech therapist and lecturer. After my sister was born, she stopped working to become a full-time mother. My younger brother was born 13 months after me, so she was kept very busy!

Although most of my mother's family remained in Scotland, we were in regular contact during my childhood with my father's side of the family: his mother, his sister and her family. We would visit them a few times a year, particularly at Christmas, and as children we would spend every Easter in Cornwall with my grandmother.

A distinct memory of my childhood is taking the train from London unaccompanied except for my brother and sister when I was about 6 or 7. The journey to Cornwall took about 7 hours, a scenario which as an adult is hard to imagine being possible today.

We kept in touch with our Scottish side of the family with regular visits to a hotel in Scotland. We would book the same accomodation from year to year and meet up with friends and relatives for a couple of weeks of sports, dancing and fun. I would say my oldest friend is a girl that I met on one of these holidays. We have known each other now for 42 years and when we meet up, which is on very rare occasions, it is like we met yesterday.

Picture:1: Me as a baby, with my older sister Lesley.

Picture 2: My sister and I admiring baby brother, Robin.

Picture 3: Me aged 4