Charlotte Mary Yonge? Who is she?
She is the woman represented by the new statue of a seated figure in the approach to Eastleigh Railway Station. Yes, but who is she?
Charlotte Mary Yonge is hardly known these days but she was a notable novelist in her time. [Read more…] about Charlotte Mary Yonge in Eastleigh
L A Hally, a local architect, gave an informative talk about some of her work in Chandler’s Ford Today two weeks ago.
She specialises in designing extensions, rebuilds and redesign of houses in Chandler’s Ford. [Read more…] about What Do Architects Do?
I went to Hiltingbury Recreation Ground at 3pm yesterday with my son, and local writer Allison Symes.
The Hiltingbury Extrav 2015 was in full swing. The event took place from 12.00 noon till 5.00pm.
We were first attracted by some classic cars. We spotted Chandler’s Ford Today writer Mike Sedgwick there admiring the vehicles (and checking the engine stuff). [Read more…] about The Hiltingbury Extrav 2015
This post reviews Station Walks by Dr. Clare Diaper. I discovered this book thanks to an earlier Chandler’s Ford Today post and am glad to say it is a delight to read and a greater joy to use.
The book is supported by the Three Rivers Community Rail Partnership, My Journey and Transition Southampton. Their details are given at the front of the book. [Read more…] about Review: Station Walks Book
We have a friend, let’s call her Betty, who is fit but cannot use her legs so she lives her life in a wheelchair. Many people treat her in a “does she take sugar?” fashion. She can answer for herself, she has a PhD, but she has to put up with being treated as an idiot. [Read more…] about Life in a Wheelchair
Parenthood changes your outlook in many ways. One way is when it comes to secondary school education and beyond, with exams in the offing, you can be guaranteed every August without fail your blood will boil. You will be annoyed. Why?
Because, without fail, somebody will claim, as the national exam results are much improved, the exams must be getting easier. That same old tired mantra comes out every August. Your blood boils every August. QED. [Read more…] about Always Annoyed in August (Are Exams Easier?)
This post continues from yesterday’s article where Gill James shared some of her thoughts on life as a creative writing lecturer and author.
Gill gave me my first publishing credit via Alternative Renditions, a Bridge House anthology, and I have since had other work published online and in Limerick Nation and The Shamblelurklers Return. I’m currently working on a short story collection. [Read more…] about Gill James: Top Tips to Writers’ Networking
On one of those lovely summer days when the sky was clear blue and the air gentle and warm my wife took me to Highcliffe Castle. She showed me where she used to swim as a girl and walked me along the cliff top path through the trees with glimpses of the sparkling azure Solent lying between us and the Needles. [Read more…] about Déjà vu
We have had many reminiscences about WWII. Here is one about the end of it all. The newspaper is dated 1945. At the time I was with my family, on holiday in Filey, Yorks. Picnics and games were organised for us children on some waste ground at the rear of our lodgings. [Read more…] about VJ Day
Doug Clews lived in Chandler’s Ford between 1938 and 1966. Now living in Perth, Western Australia, Doug shares his fascinating childhood memories of Chandler’s Ford with us.
Part 6 (Final)
I remember that, due to the shortage of diesel (distillate) and petrol, the buses were powered by gas, generated by a converter of some description, which was located on a little trailer towed behind the bus (very dirty and smelly).
[Read more…] about My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 (Part 6)
Some of you may recall an Antiques Roadshow of 1987. An elderly couple brought in a picture of a night scene in the desert with horses, palm trees and a group of travellers around a camp fire. [Read more…] about Genius, Madness and Serendipity
What is the best thing about fiction for you? The plot? The characters?
For me, the characters are everything. The best plot in the world will fail unless it has the characters to “run” with it.
Do you prefer stand alone novels or a series? [Read more…] about My Top 10 Terry Pratchett Characters
For three seasons of the year we have a stream running through the garden. It is dry in summer so it is really a bourne. The water authority have upgraded it to the status of ‘river’. This gives them control over what we do with it in case we want to dam it, change its course or make a culvert. [Read more…] about A Bridge in the Garden
I have loved books, especially fiction, since I was very young.
My mother taught me how to read but was told off for it by teachers when I started school because she hadn’t done it in the correct way. I think these days she’d probably be given a medal. Mind, with all the issues in the news recently, I sometimes wonder how any of us of a certain age ever made it through the 1970s! [Read more…] about Top 10 Reasons to Love Books
That most certainly was entertainment. A gala of dance at Thornden Hall on Sunday evening 26th July. [Read more…] about That’s Entertainment – Parkewood School of Dance
Doug Clews lived in Chandler’s Ford between 1938 and 1966. Now living in Perth, Western Australia, Doug shares his fascinating childhood memories of Chandler’s Ford with us.
Today I’m going to share an eye-witness’ account of what happened in WWII in Winchester, recalled and written by David J. Ward, at that time a student at Peter Symonds’ School, Winchester. [Read more…] about My Memories of ‘The War Years’ in Chandler’s Ford: 1939 – 1945 (Part 5)
The Big Freeze in 1963 was followed by the ‘Chandler’s Ford Floods’!
As the snow melted, the resulting melt water had to go somewhere – and the river systems were unsuited for the rush!
Monks Brook and its tributaries were much narrower then and the bridges formed obstructions to the passing waters which rushed through. [Read more…] about Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: Breaking Free from North End School (Part 8)
When I was very young, my father gave me The Reader’s Digest of Fairy Tales. These were in two hardback volumes and contained the original versions of the classic stories.
I still have these books, which are bound up with tape to stop them falling apart, as I couldn’t tell you how often I read them. There are also wonderful illustrations of the characters. [Read more…] about My Favourite Fairytales
Doug Clews lived in Chandler’s Ford between 1938 and 1966. Now living in Perth, Western Australia, Doug shares his fascinating childhood memories of Chandler’s Ford with us.
Extracts from The Doug Clews Story, or As I remember it, 81 years on.
[Read more…] about My Memories of ‘The War Years’ in Chandler’s Ford: 1939 – 1945 (Part 4)
In the winter of 1963 we suffered the worst winter weather for many years.
Snow started falling on Boxing Day 1962, and snow covered the ground for over two months or more.
I was 15 when the coldest winter occurred.
We still rode to school on our bikes, on icy roads and still carried out duties as paperboys, delivering the newspapers. [Read more…] about Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s: The Big Freeze in 1963 (Part 7)
