Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 121)

The wrong music; botanizing with an expert; Teesdale flowers under threat; Battle of Britain and Ugandan stamps; Geoff’s first birthday; cycling on the M1; Roy Lancaster; a failed outing; ships change names; London Festival Ballet at the Gaumont; Kenneth McKellar; Mrs Griffin runs in, and Aunt Em falls.

On September 11th 1965 Gran writes:

This afternoon Dr Dony and his wife called in on their way to Milford-on-Sea, to arrange a day’s botanizing with me.  We have fixed for next Thursday.  This evening I went to see Mrs Freestone, still in Winchester Hospital.  She is still very confused, but she knew me and was glad to see me.

At the end of the next day she writes, having decided against going to Church:

I was going to Church this evening but was put off by the knowledge that the Rector is away and it was to be modern music tonight.  I do not like modern music at all and am sure I should find it offensive in Church – it is the peace and serenity that draws me there, and modern music jangles the nerves with its discordant noise.  Perhaps I am prejudiced and should have gone with an open mind but I am too old to accept such changes in my place of worship.

A cutting from the Daily Telegraph lies between the pages of the journal here, entitled “Arctic flower threatens ICI £20m scheme”.  It is about a proposal to build a reservoir at Cow Green, in Teesdale, which would destroy a considerable amount of habitat where rare Arctic-Alpine plants grow. Gran says:

Today I received an account of the threat to Teesdale if the proposed reservoir is built and an appeal for donations towards an appeal fund by the Botanical Society of the British Isles.  Needless to say, I responded – it will be a sin if this lovely and unique area is ruined.

The final paragraph of the cutting shows wonderfully the Philistine ignorance of the chairman of the Tees Valley and Cleveland Water Board, quoted as saying of the area in question, “It’s all barren land with nothing in sight.  We did not see one flower”.

Gran spends the evening quietly, “letter-writing and sticking in the latest British stamps – Battle of Britain Commemoration.  One is quite attractive, the others pretty dull”, she says.

The day out with the Donys comes – Gran no doubt enjoying herself plant hunting with one of the great botanists of his day.  Their first destination is the lake in Stoneham Park, “to see Greater Bladderwort, which the Donys particularly wanted”.  They then move on to the New Forest, where, at Beaulieu, “we searched for the object of our visit to this area – Estuarine Spike-rush, a rarity which was new to us all.  It has tiny bulbils on the roots and we were lucky to find some flowers”.

Gran has a wonderful day, showing John Dony and his wife Chris, many of the specialist New Forest flowers and, at the end of it, the Donys having brought her home by car, invite her to join them at their home in Luton next summer, “to show me some of the plants of Bedfordshire, and I hope to accept their invitation”, Gran writes enthusiastically.

She spends a few days with the family at Bushey in early October, to celebrate Geoffrey’s first birthday, on the 2nd.  “This afternoon”, Gran writes:

…there was a little party.  Mike and Sheila Harper came with Ian, age three and a half, and the twins, Sally and Richard, aged nineteen months.  Sally is a demure, very feminine little girl, and Richard, not so robust but what he lacks in stature is more than surpassed by his roguishness.  A delightful trio.  Also at the party were Granny and Grandpa Lansdown, and everybody enjoyed it immensely.

It seems that Gran is still perfectly capable of undertaking a long cycle-ride, especially when encouraged by the enthusiastic Barry.  She writes on the following day:

This afternoon Barry took me to Colney Heath, beyond Watford, to botanize.  I went on Jane Elizabeth’s bicycle, and, owing to some confusion with road repairs, diversions and such, Barry mistook the way and we found ourselves on the M1.  Fortunately we were stopped by a policeman before we had gone far – bicycles are not allowed on the M1 – and he directed us to the road we wanted.  Our destination was a rubbish dump, now overgrown with a wonderful carpet of undergrowth amongst which were some weird and marvellous plants, aliens, some of which we could not identify.

Gran returns to Hampshire on October 5th, taking a train direct to Southampton from Waterloo for the AGM of the Southampton Natural History Society, where:

Peg Eagle was elected Chairman and Hazel Bidmead, retiring Secretary, became Treasurer.  She was presented with a cheque, illuminated scroll and a bowl of Roses in recognition of all the work she has put into the Society in her years as Secretary, and was rather overcome.

Book 110

October 13th is one of Gran’s “red letter days”, when she adds about ten new species to her plant list.  She explains:

Ceres Esplan came to lunch and we had a good natter about plants.  Early this afternoon we went to Hilliers Nurseries, two at Ampfield. We went first to the one in Jermyn’s Lane, where we met Roy Lancaster, who showed us round.  I mainly wanted to see the wild plants that have established themselves… Roy Lancaster took much trouble to tell me which plants I could honestly include in my list of wild (native, introduced and established) plants.

She adds:

Roy Lancaster has promised to keep in touch with me and let me know if anything exciting turns up anywhere.  I persuaded Ceres to leave me at Potters Heron as we were later than she had hoped, and she had to get back to Sussex, and I walked home.  It had been a marvellous experience.  Now Ceres and I hope to go to the Isle of Wight next Tuesday to see Wood Calamint Calamintha sylvatica, which is known only from this one area, the whereabouts of which Ceres knows.

“This afternoon”, she writes on the 15th:

…I went down [to the docks] again, this time to deliver on the “Australis”, sailing on her Maiden Voyage.  But this ship is familiar to us for she is the former “America”, which was sold by the United States Line to a Greek one.  More cabins have been added but her general structure is the same – not an easy ship on which to deliver, owing to the little pockets of cabins on the lower decks.

October 19th begins with great hopes for Gran, only for them to be dashed because of the difficulties of communicating with the telephone-less Ridge.  This is what happens:

I left home at half past eight to go to Eastleigh to catch a train for Portsmouth Harbour, where I was to meet Ceres for a trip to the Isle of Wight to look for the rare Wood Calamint!  Arrived at Portsmouth Harbour, I waited two hours for Ceres before giving up and coming home again.

My feelings were not improved on my return to find a letter from Ceres, posted last Thursday(!) to tell me she could not come today.  It had arrived half an hour after I left this morning, having, in the meantime, been to Havant!

I spent a quiet afternoon knitting, and this evening went to play badminton where I worked off some of my frustration and ill humour…

Gran constantly has knitting on the go – always producing something for friends, (socks for Antony Harding in Canada) family adults, (pullovers for Barry and Stuart) and the grandchildren, including school pullovers for the two eldest; mine always in some sort of British Racing Green, perhaps with a gold stripe somewhere.  I have this to look forward to for Christmas 1965, as well as a book, which became very well-loved, that she finds for me on a brief shopping trip in Southampton, “…a nice book on Geology for Ricky for Christmas”, she says.

Compton Church, as always, provides peace for her, and she enjoys an autumnal service there at the end of the month:

The Service was, as always, a solace and an encouragement and the peace of Compton Church ineffable – only the beautiful voice of the Rector and, outside in the field, a cow lowing.  As I came home I saw Long-tailed Tits on the high bank of Shawford Downs, unspoilt here by the preparations for the bypass which have ruined them further along.

Her sprits are lifted by an afternoon performance by the London Festival Ballet, which she attends at the Gaumont Theatre – “a varied and fascinating programme”, she writes, and she keeps the programme within the pages of her journal.

In the months to come, Gran begins to see a great deal more of her brother Norris, than she has for a long time.  They share many drives, particularly into the New Forest.  She says on November 21st:

Brother called this morning and brought me a set of beautiful Maltese stamps.  He is coming to Ashurst to work on the electrification of the railway and will be staying in the neighbourhood so I hope to have some outings with him.

Around this time too, Gran mentions for the first time, that Norris is Barry’s Godfather, saying early in December, that “they had a good talk together… before Brother took Barry to Winchester to catch his train back to London and Bushey”.

Peg calls for Gran on November 28th and they walk along the River Itchen from Brambridge to Shawford.  They meet and speak to a keeper there:

We had noted as we came along, an observation platform on the far side which we had not seen before and now we met a keeper whom we asked about it.  It had been erected for Peter Scott and a photographer from the New Forest (Eric Ashby is my guess!) to photograph and observe otters, which frequent the area, but on this particular day they did not appear.  We found the keeper very knowledgeable and interesting to talk to.

Not one to be smitten by celebrities, Gran is nevertheless pleased to deliver a box of flowers on the Pretoria Castle to “Kenneth McKellar, the Scottish tenor and his wife, both of whom I saw”, she writes approvingly.

Letters continue to arrive, giving Gran news of the progress of her small grandchildren, and she enjoys reading this from Jane:

Katherine is now intrigued with distinguishing light colour from dark, since I sent a light blue pullover for her and a dark blue for Andrew, but she rather disgustedly announced that, “pink is only light red really!”  Andrew has discovered that he can reach forbidden things on a table or sideboard more easily if he has a weapon of some sort, so he goes into the kitchen and grabs a wooden spoon if possible!

We read for the first time here of, “… cousins Joan and Alistair McKenzie”.  Joan was related to Grampa, and Alastair, her husband, was apparently, a remarkable design engineer, involved with ships’ propellers and also fermentation vessels for the pharmaceutical industry.  On his father’s demise, he became the Laird of a considerable expanse of the Ardnamurchan Peninsula, where he designed and built his own modern, eco-friendly retirement house.  Gran writes of an evening visit to their home at Highfield in Southampton, early in December, that they:

…entertained with some beautiful slides of Scotland.  Alistair’s father runs a remote farm on the west coast fifty miles from Fort William and eight miles from the nearest village, which boasts one shop.  It is a delightful area and much would I love to search for flowers there!

Christmas comes, and the tradition of celebrating it in Chandler’s Ford, at The Ridge, appears to be over.  Gran and Gramp make their way to Bushey, where Jane Elizabeth is the main provider of meals and refreshment.  Table Tennis is the primary activity and Gran and Barry attend Church first thing on Christmas Day.  Gran is delighted to receive an album for her first-day covers and has also been pleased to receive:

…some delightful Medici notettes from Mrs Rowsell, the lady to whom I offered comfort when she was taken ill on the “Andes” in 1958.  She never fails to send to me at Christmas.

Mike Harper visits, with his son Ian, on Boxing Day and Gran records that Mike is not approved of at all by Geoffrey, his Godson, “…though he managed a wintry smile just before Mike left”.  And she writes that “Ricky is very keen on Geology and spent a long time this evening cleaning and arranging and naming his fossils – a task which he did admirably.  He has a nice collection now”.

1966

1965 draws to a close and Gran spends its last days at Bulcote with the Brenan family.  She sums up her year for Adrian, and on January 12th, the date he died in 1947 and Julian’s birthday in 1953, she remembers the period during which she corresponded with him:

Adrian 1945 – 1947 Requiescat in Pace.  Nineteen years of Remembrance.  And Julian, thirteen today – he has entered the realm of teenagers; let us hope he does not become a Beatle…

Kenneth McKellar, much more to Gran’s taste than The Beatles, receives another entry in her journal later in January.  How incongruous it is that Gran would have any interest in the Eurovision Song Contest, but today’s competition is not the same as it was then:

I spent the evening knitting, and listened, and saw on Television, Kenneth McKellar singing the five songs written and composed for the Eurovision Song Contest.  I selected “As long as the sun shines”, as the one I think should have universal appeal.  It has a good swinging tune and the lyric is attractive.

A few days later:

This evening I watched, on Television, and listened to Kenneth McKellar singing in “A song for everyone”.  He sang the first choice and the runner-up of the Song for Europe Competition, and my own choice, was the runner-up. The winner was “The man without love”, which I had thought second favourite.  I hope it wins the Eurovision Song Contest in Luxembourg in March, but somehow I do not think it will.

More local road development saddens her on a visit to Bee Richardson in Flexford Bridge early in February.  She says:

The road near her home is being widened and I was saddened to see that all the holly and hazel trees have been cut down and part of the wooded marsh cleared.  I do not think it will make the road any safer.

February’s expected baby has not made an appearance by the 24th, but Gran does not want to be taken unawares so she:

…did phone Jane Elizabeth this evening to give her Mrs Griffin’s telephone number in case our baby elects to come this weekend – whilst Hockridges are away.  I learned that all is well, Geoffrey not quite walking alone yet, and Julian had come second in an under sixteen cross-country race yesterday.  Ricky’s entrance exam result comes tomorrow so here is hoping he is through.  He did not like the maths paper.

The Griffins, it appears, are the family who replaced the Mudds, next door.  And the entrance exam I took, was to get me from the Prep School into the Main School at Haberdashers.

“A quiet afternoon, sticking in stamps, until five o’clock”, writes Gran on February 28th, “when Mrs Griffin ran in from next door to tell us that Barry had phoned to say the Baby had arrived.  I phoned him back but he had no details…”

It is not until March 2nd that she gets more information, writing, “I was amazed to hear that Jane Elizabeth went home this afternoon.  All is progressing well and Baby is to be Robert William”.  A week later, Gran and Grampa are in Bushey to make the acquaintance of Robert William, to be known as “Robin”.  Gran is shown Julian’s medals – won for cross-country, and totalling seven, “three of them gold”, she says, and “Ricky has been offered a place in Haberdashers’ Main School, so it looks as if he, Julian and Barry will all be together”, writes Gran.

She visits Haberdashers’ School, at Elstree, with Barry, and though not impressed with the relatively new school buildings, approves of Aldenham House and its grounds, where the school is based.  There she meets:

…Douglas Yeabsley, who is to be one of Robin’s Godfathers.  He is a boarding master at the school and lives in a flat there.  He is also Ricky’s Form Master and is much admired by him and Julian.

We learn at this time of another familiar ship that has had its name changed.  Gran delivers flowers on the Oranje and she says this “is the former Pretoria Castle, which has been bought by the South African Government, and renamed”.

The occasional entertaining piece of news of the Brenan children, comes in letters from Jane, including this on March 17th:

Katherine has reached the stage of asking endless questions and after long and patient explanations by Jane or Stuart always suspiciously asks, “Does it?” or “Can it?” or some such.  Andrew now talks well, and when he threw his cup on the floor and Jane asked him to pick it up and put it on the table, he said, “No, too hot, burn A-doo’s fingers!”

So speaks someone who many years later, makes a career in the key business discipline of Risk Management!

The mail brings other delights for Gran.  It is something she looks forward to every day, and on March 31st she records with pleasure:

The post this morning brought me a wonderful registered package – the full set of the beautiful and colourful bird issue of Uganda stamps, from Joan Sheppard.  I was so excited I hardly knew what I was doing and the post-woman who delivered it told me that I was the envy of Eastleigh Post Office!  Truly it is one of the loveliest sets I have ever received.

“What a day!” she writes on April 4th:

Just after ten o’clock Jean ran in with a phone message to say that Aunt Em had fallen, getting out of bed last night and had been on the floor until dawn, unable to get herself up again.  I dashed in to Bassett, noting only a wren singing at the bus stop and stayed until half-past six.  The Doctor came and arranged for her to go into Portswood Nursing Home for a few days’ rest and care to get over the shock.  I waited until the ambulance arrived.  No bones broken, so she was lucky.

But it marks the beginning of the end for Aunt Em, Greaty’s sister.

Article series

• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 1)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 2)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 3)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 4)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 5)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 6)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 7)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 8)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 9)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 10)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 11)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 12)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 13)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 14)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 15)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 16)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 17)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 18)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 19)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 20)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 21)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 22)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 23)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 24)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 25)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 26)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 27)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 28)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 29)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 30)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 31)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 32)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 33)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 34)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 35)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 36)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 37)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 38)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 39)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 40)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 41)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 42)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 43)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 44)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 45)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 46)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 47)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 48)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 49)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 50)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 51)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 52)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 53)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 54)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 55)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 56)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 57)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 58)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 59)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 60)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 61)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 62)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 63)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 64)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 65)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 66)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 67)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 68)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 69)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 70)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 71)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 72)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 73)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 74)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 75)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 76)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 77)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 78)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 79)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 80)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 81)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 82)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 83)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 84)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 85)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 86)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 87)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 88)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 89)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 90)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 91)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 92)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 93)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 94)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 95)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 96)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 97)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 98)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 99)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 100)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 101)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 102)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 103)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 104)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 105)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 106)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 107)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 108)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 109)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 110)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 111)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 112)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 113)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 113)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 114)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 115)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 116)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 117)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 118)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 119)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 120)
• Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 121)

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