BlastFromPast – Page 2 – Journeys of Heart and Mind

Family upgrade from two to three

I was allowed to return after fifteen minutes to find a tired Mum and a sleeping daughter. They were able to come home a few days later. How exciting to be no longer just a married couple, but now a young family! (1975)

Blast from the past… 28

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Dec 2024 (3 months before publishing this article)

I’ve decided to add one more section here to further extend the seasonal interest – so welcome to what happened three months ago. If it becomes onerous or not interesting enough, I might drop it again. Consider it experimental.

We received designs for our enlarged bedroom window with opening panes, the very narrow existing window was too small for an openable section and in midsummer it got too hot; we’d like to let in some fresh air while we’re asleep. Work on the house improvements and repairs started this month as well. We were preparing for a heat-pump installation on 16th, but that was delayed until January 27th so we had to survive a lack of central heating for a little longer than we’d hoped.

I collected my season’s greetings cards from the printer and wrote and posted some of them, I hand delivered the rest. Donna ran a 10 km race at Westonbirt on 15th, her longest run so far (it was a gallant effort, a run/walk, as she needs more training to do that distance without breaks along the way).

We visited York on 21st and 22nd, to spend time with my daughters and our four grandchildren. It’s always good to see them, but it’s quite a long journey and we don’t get there as often as we’d like.

JHM: I posted 17 haiku on COVID-19; and a forward look on the war in Ukraine. World events: Bashar al-Assad fled Damascus after being overthrown; and the Parker Solar Probe broke the record for the closest pass of the Sun.

< No earlier 3 month items – Jan 2025 >

September 2024 (6 months before publishing)

On 7th, we drove down to St Neots where we have many friends, including Kevin. He had married Lariana who we also know, a few weeks earlier in South Africa, and it was wonderful to be there for the UK celebration and to meet Lariana’s son for the first time. What a lovely occasion!

We stayed overnight and spent the following morning at Anglesey Abbey, a National Trust house and garden that we love, but have not been able to visit for some years. The photo shows some silver birch trees growing alongside Anglesey’s Winter Walk – so beautiful. In the spring, there’s a dense cover of maroon tulips beneath these trees.

And finally we were able to spend more time with Kevin and Lariana before driving home to Cirencester.

JHM: I posted on Living in the Presence; and thoughts on How life begins. World events: Brazil blocked the social media platform X; and Jared Isaacman conducted the first commercial spacewalk.

< Aug 2024 – Oct 2024 >

March 2024 (1 year before)

I bought a refurbished Pixel 7 phone to replace my old Pixel 3. I was very pleased with it once I’d transferred all my data across and got everything arranged to my satisfaction.

I completed the task of transcribing Dad’s diaries and continued scanning old 35 mm films.

Highlights of the month for me were the sinking of another Russian ship by Ukrainian drone boats, the third flight of Starship, and a visit to The Newt and its Roman villa reconstruction (see photo above).

JHM: I asked if we were helping Ukraine enough; and considered clarity on Ukraine. World events: Sweden joined NATO; and the Artificial Intelligence Act was passed by the EU.

< Feb 2024 – Apr 2024 >

March 2023 (2 years)

This month I watched live video as NASA astronauts launched to the International Space Station on SpaceX Crew-6, Isobel’s brother Will died in Glasgow after a long illness, and Greenshop Solar sent an engineer to survey our property for solar panels. We had a day in Bristol on 18th when we visited the old docks area and enjoyed a stroll down Park Street, and we drove to Weston on 31st and stayed for a week, so more on that in the April Blast from the past.

We walked in Cirencester Park on a dry, sunny but cold day. The photo shows one of the sculptures that was on display there and on the far right, the Broad Ride leads down the hill into Cirencester. You can see the Parish Church Tower at the far end. The Park is a lovely feature of the town, and because some of the local footpaths from home lead into the park much further west, it means Broad Ride and some of the side trails are alternative ways to walk into town and back.

JHM: I posted articles on ChatGPT; and on John 14:8-14. World events: OpenAI launched GPT-4, an improved backend for ChatGPT; and the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin.

< Feb 2023 – Apr 2023 >

March 2020 (5 years)

We were helping to look after Donna’s Dad, Tony. He was suffering from Parkinson’s and the dementia that typically comes with it when it’s fairly advanced. Sometimes he worried about things that he was imagining, but playing YouTubes on the TV distracted him most wonderfully if they were on his favourite topics – wild birds, motor bikes, places he knows and so on.

COVID-19 took off in the UK in March, Donna and I were taking precautions early in the month, but by the end of March government lockdowns were under way as well. It seemed a great blessing that Tony was at home and, as carers, we could visit as part of the household. Otherwise Tony would have had to go into care as Isobel could no longer manage on her own, and then it would have become impossible to visit him. Public reaction to COVID-19 was sometimes odd, there was a run on loo rolls in the shops, for example! Many supermarket shelves became empty.

My new computer arrived, a System 76 Gazelle laptop running Ubuntu; Donna and I celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary, and by the end of the month we were beginning to discover what living with COVID-19 was going to be like.

World events: The WHO declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic; and by 24th the United Kingdom was in lockdown.

< Feb 2020 – Apr 2020 >

March 2015 (10 years)

On 14th March I drove up to Thorganby for the day and returned in the evening. It was great to see the family and share lunch with them. The photo was taken at the playing field on the southern edge of the village.

In St Neots I continued meeting with several different groups of friends. Mo had lost his job and they had not even paid him for the hours he’d done. Sue was worried about not having been tithing, but I pointed out that we’re a royal priesthood, so we should be receiving tithes and taxes, not paying them! John was understanding more and more about Jesus’ teaching on how to live life and how it’s about people, not organisations.

There was a partial solar eclipse on 20th, and I sponsored Debbie who was eating on £1/day for a week.

JHM: I wrote about watching a potter; and about pictures and music. World events: Ancient cities including Nimrud were destroyed by ISIS; and the Dawn probe orbited Ceres, the first visit to a dwarf planet.

< Feb 2015 – Apr 2015 >

March 2010 (15 years)

I retired from Unilever, my last day was on 26th when there was a leaving ‘do’ at lunchtime, the photo shows my boss, Pete, chuckling. He was probably about to make a funny remark at my expense! I’d taken a lot of photos earlier in the month for memories of the Colworth Research site, it was a grand old house with landscaped gardens and felt a bit like working on a National Trust property!

Beth, Paz and Meredith visited on 31st, perhaps on their way south from York for some time with Paz’s parents in Hastings. St Neots is about half way so it made a good place to break the journey.

JHM: I wrote about meetings at home, one on ‘the shore of Galilee‘; and one about a picture of a toddler. World events: The Kasubi Tombs in Uganda were destroyed by fire; and the naval vessel KS Cheonan sank off south Korea.

< Feb 2010 – Apr 2010 >

March 2005 (20 years)

I was working for Unilever Research, helping with web development tasks as part of the Knowledge Systems Group (KSG). The photo was taken from my desk, probably on my Nokia phone. This building would later be demolished (see Nov 2009).

World events: China passed a law to prevent Taiwan becoming independent; and the dwarf planet Makemake was discovered.

< Feb 2005 – Apr 2005 >

March 2000 (25 years)

The garden wall at the front of the house was cracked and leaning, and also narrowed the entrance making it harder to park our two cars side-by-side. So I knocked it down – goodbye wall! The car you can see is my Ford Sierra, bought at Harrison Ford in Weston-super-Mare. We always referred to him as ‘Harry’.

This month we bought tiles for our planned new kitchen, Debbie had a birthday party in Bristol, Beth was working at Axbridge Court and writing up her archaeology project, and I was at several Unilever computing meetings and a three day Java conference in London.

World events: Sony released the Playstation 2; and Vladimir Putin was elected President of Russia.

< Feb 2000 – Apr 2000 >

March 1995 (30 years)

Judy and the girls did some trips together while I was at work, the photo shows Beth on a visit to Avebury.

Although she was still very fit, Judy couldn’t really handle the pace or the stress of teaching and had given up her job. The staff at Cotham Grammar School had made a retirement collection and given the money to her, specifically to visit Paris which she had always wanted to do.

We flew out from Lulsgate and stayed in a tiny, backstreet hotel. The room had a restricted view onto an inner courtyard, but we spent very little time there and were out and about in the city a great deal. One day, we climbed up the first two stages of the Eiffel Tower and I was very impressed that Judy managed to make it all the way quite easily. The weather was perfect, three sunny, warm days. On 23rd we sent a postcard of the Arc de Triomphe to my Mum and Dad in Cirencester.

World events: The Tokyo subway sarin attack killed 14 people and injured more than 1000; and the Schengen Agreement came into effect.

< Feb 1995 – Apr 1995 >

March 1990 (35 years)

There was some serious storm damage along the sea-front in Clevedon, we went to take a look and were suitably impressed. On 16th Debbie and Beth performed at the Colston Hall with the Nailsea orchestra.

And on 25th we spent the morning in Charlton Kings with Judy’s Mum and Dad, and the afternoon with mine in Cirencester at Churnside. Cindy came too with little Sebastian.

World events: Police sealed off Brixton after poll tax protests; and Imelda Marcos went on trial.

< Feb 1990 – Apr 1990 >

March 1985 (40 years)

We were living at 22 Rectory Drive in Yatton, between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare. Debbie had her tenth birthday and Beth was approaching seven.

I was working for the Plant Science Division at Long Ashton Research Station, though to be honest the project I’d suggested was not going very well. I don’t think anyone was surprised, it was ambitious and tricky to achieve; I needed to cut frozen sections, treat them with an antibody attached to a fluorescent marker to localise the plant hormone gibberellin, and then examine them in the frozen state.

World events: The GNU Manifesto for a free computer operating system was published; and Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union..

< Feb 1985 – Apr 1985 >

March 1980 (45 years)

Beth was approaching two-years old, and Debbie was five on 12th. This shot was taken in the lounge of our house in Rectory Drive, Yatton. I’ve cropped it wide so you can see some of the girl’s toys as well as some details in the kitchen beyond. Judy was at home with the girls at this time, but considering teaching again as soon as Beth was old enough. I was working at Long Ashton Research Station.

Most of our local shopping was done in Yatton’s Precinct, a small paved square surrounded by small shops and a compact Somerfield supermarket with a small car park nearby. This was an easy walk from home and had all the essentials, we banked at NatWest on the corner there, bought bread at Pullins Bakery on the High Street, and there was a good hardware shop at the other end of the village.

World events: The Soviet Union’s first rock music festival took place; and pirate radio ship, Radio Caroline, sank.

< Feb 1980 – Apr 1980 >

March 1975 (50 years)

Debbie was born on 12th March at Bristol Maternity Hospital which was in Queen Victoria House, Redland Hill at that time, a large, red brick building. I was with Judy almost up to the birth, but she was getting exhausted and it was decided there should a surgical intervention to speed things up and I was politely told to leave.

On 28th we travelled to Lincolnshire with Judy’s Mum and Dad for her brother, Frank’s, wedding to Kathy the following day. This was Debbie’s first journey – she probably slept most of the way!

World events: Iran and Iraq settled their border dispute.; and construction began on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.

< Feb 1975 – Apr 1975 >

March 1970 (55 years)

On 17th March I was still collecting data from my final year project, but I’d already written up the results of three trials and it was too late to fully analyse the fourth trial as the project report needed to be submitted.

I was sharing ‘digs’ on Widcombe Hill with my friend Pete, we had a shared room upstairs in the home of Colonel and Mrs Boss. Pete was having treatment for a tuberculosis infection in a kidney, he’d had part of one kidney removed and was now taking tablets daily and needing regular injections as well. Fortunately Mrs Boss was a nurse and was able to administer the injections.

World events: The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty came into effect; and the complete New English Bible was published.

< Feb 1970 – Mar 1970>

March 1965 (60 years)

There were deep snow-drifts at the beginning of the month. Around 13th of March I was on a Lower Sixth day trip to London. We visited the GPO Tower and took the lift up to the rotating restaurant at the top (it was open to the public in those days).

Towards the end of the month I went on a week’s biology field course at Brantwood House overlooking Coniston Water, returning in April. We stayed in the old home of John Ruskin; it’s no longer a field centre, but is managed today by the National Trust, but back then we had the run of the place!

World events: A bombing campaign began against North Korea; and Alexei Leonov made the first spacewalk.

< Feb 1965 – Apr 1965>

March 1960 (65 years)

It may have been around this time we moved from the Beeches Estate to 37 Victoria Road (Churnside), previously my grandparents home. Parts of the house were always cold in the winter, particularly the hall and the kitchen, I remember. Dad had two paraffin heaters to help keep the place warmer, and this is the user manual for the Aladdin heater that was usually in the kitchen. In March it was only lit on particularly cold days.

World events: The Canton of Geneva, Switzerland, gave women the right to vote; and the Sharpeville massacre took place in South Africa.

< Feb 1960 – Apr 1960 >

March 1955 (70 years)

I was in my second year at Querns School. On one occasion, I don’t know when, I clearly remember being dropped off in the morning by my Grandpa’s chauffeur (Cooper). This happened sometimes, though usually Mum or Dad would take me to school; when I was older I used to ride my bike instead. Dad had given me a note and told me to give it to Mr Cooper and my six-year-old mind told me this was terribly important.

I jumped out of the car and thanked Cooper, but completely forgot the note. I burst into tears and ran back towards the car yelling, ‘Mr Cooper, Mr Cooper’. The car had already started to move, but he heard me, stopped, and I gave him the note. Later, Dad told me it wasn’t that important and I shouldn’t have got so upset about it. He told me that Cooper had mentioned that I ‘took on so’.

World events: Elvis Presley made his television debut; and Neil Armstrong first flew as a test pilot.

< Feb 1955 – Apr 1955 >

March 1950 (75 years)

On 10th March, all BBC medium wave broadcasts changed to new, internationally agreed wavelengths. This tuning diagram was printed in the Radio Times and Dad kept it as a guide to future listening.

Mum and Dad had a valve radio in a brown, wood effect, bakelite case (I still have it). Although I don’t remember it from 1950, I do remember ‘Listen with Mother’, probably from 1952 or ’53 and later. I also remember ‘Uncle Mac’ broadcasting children’s music selections. And in 1957, when I was nine, I remember hearing the ‘beeps’ from Sputnik picked up by the radio telescope at Jodrell Bank. All of this on the same little radio. But I was only twenty months when the frequencies changed.

World events: The first VW Microbus rolled off the assembly line; and Egypt demanded that Britain remove all its troops from the Suez Canal.

< Feb 1950 – Apr 1950 >

March 1945 (80 years)

The 4th, 17th and 20th are noted in Dad’s diary as busy nights with ‘much hostile activity’ in the area covered by their radar equipment. On 4th he was ‘up all night’, and on 20th a German Ju 88 was ‘knocked down’ by a British fighter.There were lots of letters to and from Lilias during this month, and also some from Dad’s friend Joe Speakman.

On 22nd Dad went down to Alford in an RAF truck and caught a morning train to Kings Cross. After lunch he caught the 2.30 from St Pancras to Bedford and changed for Cardington with some service friends. He played piano in the NAAFI and the following day had some trade tests at Cardington and was found wanting in maths. The image shows a distant view of Cardington as it might have looked when Dad was there.

Then, on 28th he was back in Cirencester on leave meeting old friends and family, driving Guv (his father) around the Jefferies’ nurseries in Siddington, Somerford Keynes and Watermoor.

* From Airship Heritage Trust retrieved 14th Feb 2025.

World events: President Roosevelt addressed Congress to report on the Yalta Conference; and Albert Speer disobeyed Hitler’s order to destroy German industry ahead of Allied advances.

< Feb 1945 – Apr 1945 >

March 1940 (85 years)

Last month (use the Feb 1940 link below) I described the ground floor of the John Jefferies shop at 2 Castle Street in 1940 (my memories are from the 1950s, but little would have changed since 1940). This time I’ll describe an office on the first floor.

A wooden staircase ran up from the ground floor, heading south, then north again with a small landing half way up. Turning right from the top of these stairs, then through the door on the left would take you into my Grandpa’s office. His full name was Edward Arthur Jefferies, know as ‘Ted’ to my Granny Norah (‘Nor’), or ‘Guv’ to her and to many other members of the family. He was the head of the business at the time, having taken over when his uncle William Jefferies retired or died.

Grandpa’s office had a window overlooking the Market Place and Cricklade Street. The window was at an angle on the corner of the building, just above the customer entrance which also came out at an angle on the corner. There was a large streetlight just outside the window, which always intrigued me. (The photo taken in 1915 shows Jefferies shop on the right, you can see the angled entrance and office window above. The pavement below was always known as ‘Jefferies Corner’).

Grandpa had a wooden desk with, I think, a leather insert and an expanse of blotting paper. He also had a set of rubber stamps hanging from a sort of roundabout, and an ink pad. He would always let me sit on his lap and use the stamps on some scrap paper. And one stamp had adjustable sections that could be turned to stamp the correct date, though I was never allowed to alter those.

More about the first floor next time…

World events: The Soviet Union and Finland signed a peace treaty; and Hitler and Mussolini met at the Brenner Pass to celebrate their pact.

< Feb 1940 – Apr 1940 >

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Blast from the past… 27

Beth was 1¾ this month, and Debbie was almost 5-years-old. We were living at 22 Rectory Drive in Yatton at that time and Debbie would have settled in at the Infants School and made a fair number of friends. (1980)

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August 2024 (6 months before publishing this article)

We were on our annual family holiday, this time at Portrush in Northern Ireland. On 5th of the month we drove to the Giant’s Causeway and spent a very interesting time looking around. Then we visited the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge. This was quite an experience as well.

On the evening of 5th, Paz cooked steak for those who wanted it, and later I strolled around the harbour. The sunset was magnificent and I took a lot of photos, including the view of birds heading home as the sun sets.

JHM: I posted part of the introduction to JDMC; and a photo of a complete Roman villa. World events: Azerbaijan captured Nagorno-Karabakh; and the Queen of Denmark abdicated.

< Jul 2024 – Sep 2024 >

February 2024 (1 year before publishing)

Gas mains were being replaced in Cirencester. A team was going around, street by street, digging up the roads and pavements and fitting large bore, yellow, plastic pipes – where possible passing them through the old metal pipework they are replacing. Disruption was considerable for a week or two until the work was done and the team moved to a another street. Each property lost gas for only a few hours. Overall the work continued for months.

Cavendish House in Cheltenham closed down in February. Shopping has moved on these days and department stores are dying. I remember going to Cavendish house with my parents as a child, with my first wife before and after we were married, and noting that it was still trading much more recently – but now, it’s gone!

And we visited ‘Nature in Art‘ at Twigworth this month, too; a lovely old house with art exhibits indoors, but also many interesting installations in the gardens.

JHM: I wrote about the war in Ukraine; and innovation by Ukraine. World events: Alexei Navalny died in a Russian prison at the age of 47; and the U.S. launched multiple air strikes in Syria and Iraq.

< Jan 2024 – Mar 2024 >

February 2023 (2 years before)

We drove up to York for a visit and to watch the Fulford School musical, ‘Beauty and the Beast’. Meredith was the beast, Verity played the part of Belle’s father, and Sara was one of the young lady ‘hangers on’ of the villain of the piece, Gaston.

It was very well done by everyone; we were highly impressed. I’d have loved to take some photos, but these days it’s not permitted.

The day after the musical we explored the city centre including All Saints Church and the Museum Gardens. The photo, taken in the Gardens, shows part of the Roman fort dated to 107-108 CE, along with a surviving tower, ‘The Multangular Tower’. The Roman masonry consists of small blocks of stone and the red strip of Roman brick. The much larger stones above are medieval. Click the photo for a clearer view of these details.

JHM: I posted about Starship’s first launch; and on some hard to see planets. World events: A derailed train in Ohio released poisonous gases; and the European Parliament banned sales of ICE vehicles from 2035.

< Jan 2023 – Mar 2023 >

February 2020 (5 years)

On 11th it was clear that there had been more than a thousand coronavirus deaths in China, and although the rate of infection had been reduced it was still around 6% per day. This all seemed rather worrying. By 19th the virus was being called COVID-19 and it seemed to me that we were on a knife-edge between containing the infection or facing a world-wide endemic disease like a very serious kind of flu.

I was pulled over by the police after missing an exit on a roundabout in Gloucester and braking hard. They were very nice about it. After checking my licence and finding it clean they wished me a nice day and sent me on my way.

My sister Cindy held a book signing event in Cirencester at a local bookshop; in the photo she is squeezed between copies of her latest book and various toys and other items. (Find a copy of Cindy’s novel.)

World events: The World Health Organization officially named the coronavirus ‘COVID-19‘; and stock markets fell on fears of its spread.

< Jan 2020 – Mar 2020 >

February 2015 (10 years)

During the month I met often with my friends Mo and Sue Urbano at their home in Eynesbury, and also with a group of friends at local coffee shops. These were useful times of growing together in following Jesus to the best of our abilities. There were other people too and there are snippets of the conversations in my journal. This was a busy period in my life.

We visited Broadstone to stay with Donna’s parents, and Paul and Vanessa came down from Weston-super-Mare as well. We walked on the beach with them at Sandbanks to get some exercise.

JHM: I wrote articles on running out of wine; and a celestial ballet. World events: A ceasefire in Ukraine was agreed and ignored; and Australia won the Cricket World Cup.

< Jan 2015 – Mar 2015 >

February 2010 (15 years)

We were living in St Neots at this time, in the old village of Eaton Ford, once in Befordshire but now incorporated into the town as part of Cambridgeshire.

Unilever Colworth’s Christian Union (CU) met every Monday lunchtime and of course the meetings were not denominational in any way since we were all from different places and denominations (or in my case from no denomination at all). This was one of the features that made it so good.

Peter Farmer visited us and stayed the night on 6th, in 2009 he had been visiting one region of Britain every month to find out how people were meeting and reaching out. Quite a project! The following day we had a great meeting at Moggerhanger House.

JHM: The USA thought free software was ‘piracy’; and we considered knowledge and wisdom. World events: Cyberattacks took aim at the Australian government; and a very severe earthquake hit Chile.

< Jan 2010 – Mar 2010 >

February 2005 (20 years)

Driving cross country, I visited Debbie and Steve in Chipping Sodbury; Debbie and I walked to the nearby Iron Age hill fort which is very well-preserved. I didn’t even know it was there! There’s a double mound and a deep ditch between them; in the photo Debbie is standing in the entrance across one of the earthworks.

I had recently bought a new Nokia 6230 phone. It seems primitive indeed as I write this in 2025, but at the time it was an impressive little device. The iPhone appeared in 2007 and changed phones forever.

World events: North Korea announced it had nuclear weapons; and YouTube was founded (but not yet operating).

< Jan 2005 – Mar 2005 >

February 2000 (25 years)

This is the kitchen, still as it was when we moved into our new home in Eaton Ford, St Neots. One of the things we’ll always remember is that the earthing on the cooker was faulty and it was sometimes possible to get a bit of a jolt from a metal pan handle. Renewing the kitchen was high on our to-do list and a few days after this photo was taken, we began taking down the old units and redecorating ready for the kitchen fitters to start work.

Towards the end of the month we travelled to Calais with the Open Door Church Small Group we were part of. Here we are walking along the coast path south-west of the town, I think. It was a good weekend break and fun to all be together. I can recommend it as a way to cement friendships, doing anything together is helpful.

World events: Microsoft launched Windows 2000; and February 29th was a rare century leap-year.

< Jan 2000 – Mar 2000 >

February 1995 (30 years)

Despite Judy’s best intentions, she had to give up working at Cotham Grammar School because of the stress and demanding hours. She was still not fully fit after some issues with chemotherapy in late 1994. Apart from her teaching job she was in really good shape and able to live perfectly normally.

For the first time in ages we were able to spend time together as a family in the evenings and weekends and that was a real joy for me and our daughters, Debbie and Beth, now 20 and 17 years old.

World events: Steve Fossett landed in Canada, the first person to fly solo across the Pacific by balloon; and Barings Bank in the UK collapsed.

< Jan 1995 – Mar 1995 >

February 1990 (35 years)

On 10th of the month Debbie took a leading role in the Larchmount Players pantomime production of Tom the Piper’s Son in Yatton Methodist Church Hall. She did really well, a great performance. There were two further performances the following Saturday.

On the 20th we visited Judy’s parents in Cheltenham during the day and mine in Cirencester in the evening before driving back home.

World events: Nelson Mandela was released from prison; and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union voted to end its monopoly of power.

< Jan 1990 – Mar 1990 >

February 1985 (40 years)

We were living at 22 Rectory Drive in Yatton, between Bristol and Weston-super-Mare. Debbie was nearly ten years old and Beth still six.

My Uncle Dick received a letter (image above) about a book published in Cirencester in 1911. Nobody seemed to want this book at the time and my Dad gave it to me in February 1985, I was working as a microscopist and the book is about microscopy. In January 2017, I asked again if the Corinium Museum would like to have it, and this time they were interested so that’s where it can be found today. If you wish, you can read the letter, the book, and the museum form online.

World events: William J. Schroeder became the first patient with an artificial heart to leave the hospital; and the Provisional IRA killed nine at Newry police barracks.

< Jan 1985 – Mar 1985 >

February 1980 (45 years)

I was considering ways to localise the plant hormone family of gibberellins in sections of plant tissue. The Pomology Division in which I worked was being closed down and the options were redundancy or a move to East Malling Research Station in Kent where pomology research was to continue.

World events: The 1980 Winter Olympics opened in Lake Placid, New York.; and Iran’s parliament was to decide the fate of the American embassy hostages.

< Jan 1980 – Mar 1980 >

February 1975 (50 years)

Judy was looking (and feeling) very pregnant by this time. But she was in good health and there were no issues. The ante-natal classes had been helpful and we’d accumulated a lot of freebies and gifts and had bought necessary items ourselves as well. There were baby clothes and blankets, little booties and sterilising kits and bottles and teats and all the other things we thought we’d need. All this stuff fitted neatly in the basketwork crib Judy had made.

My MSc thesis was with the binders at this point. It was good to have all that paperwork and typing and drawing of diagrams (see photo) and charts behind me before the baby arrived!

World events: Margaret Thatcher defeated Edward Heath as Conservative leader; and there was a major tube train crash at Moorgate station.

< Jan 1975 – Mar 1975 >

February 1970 (55 years)

I can’t be certain, but I believe this photo was taken by Judy on her way home from Aberystwyth (where she was at university) to Cheltenham, probably on a Black and White coach. That would be appropriate as the countryside looks black and white as well! I was in my final term at Bath University, and we were both working towards our finals.

World events: Tourists died in an avalanche at Val-d’Isère, France; and Richard Branson founded the Virgin Group as a discount mail-order record retailer.

< Jan 1970 – Mar 1970>

February 1965 (60 years)

Cousin Sue had her 21st birthday party on 6th of the month and Granny-in-Ireland’s 67th birthday was on 9th (she was my Mum’s mother).

School continued through February, it was my second term in the Lower Sixth, studying for A levels in Biology, Chemistry and Physics. My sister Cindy was also at the Grammar School, in the third year I think. Ruth and Rachael were still at junior school (Querns School).

World events: The Gambia became independent of the UK; and Ranger 8 crashed on the Moon after photographing possible astronaut landing sites.

< Jan 1965 – Mar 1965>

February 1960 (65 years)

One of my favourite toys at this time was Meccano; I’d had small amounts of this as birthday and Christmas presents. There were red bendy steel sheets in various sizes, green strips, dozens of nuts and bolts, wheels, axles – what fun for an eleven-year-old! But around this time I was given large quantities of second-hand Meccano parts, hand-me-downs from my cousins Tim and Jeremy. That was so exciting!

World events: The first CERN particle accelerator became operational in Geneva; and the Hollywood Walk of Fame was established.

< Jan 1960 – Mar 1960>

February 1955 (70 years)

We were living at 17 Queen Anne’s Road on Cirencester’s Beeches Estate. There were two conifers, one outside our house and another outside our next door neighbours, the Watts family.

There had been more of these trees, planted when the estate was built; but children being children the young trees had been tweaked and pulled about and most had eventually died. Mum and Mrs Watts would run out and chase the boys away, and had managed to save our two trees.

I was six-years-old and my sister Cindy was three.

World events: The Chinese Nationalist army and residents left the Tachen Islands for Taiwan; and the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was established.

< Jan 1955 – Mar 1955 >

February 1950 (75 years)

We were a little family in our own, rented council house on the Beeches estate. I had a cardboard box, open at the top, containing my toys. I remember (from later) that there was a nesting stack of bakelite pots in different colours.

You could put them inside each other (I probably watched Mum or Dad do this) or you could make a tower with them (and I’m sure I enjoyed pushing the tower over).

World events: Chiang Kai-shek was re-elected president of the Republic of China; and in New York a credit card (Diners Club) was first used.

< Jan 1950 – Mar 1950 >

February 1945 (80 years)

On 3rd February Dad travelled back to Skendleby, in Lincolnshire where he was a radar operator on a Chain Home RAF site. It was about a mile north-east of the village, but is not marked on the map, of course.

Mum and Dad continued to write often, on 17th he was troubled to learn that she was unwell and might need surgery that would result in her not being able to have children. On 24th he heard that she would not need the operation after all. He writes in his diary, expressing his extreme relief; and had she needed that op, I wouldn’t be here to write this now!

World events: An oral version of penicillin was announced; and Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin met at the Yalta Conference.

< Jan 1945 – Mar 1945 >

February 1940 (85 years)

John Jefferies & Son Ltd had a florists shop on the corner of Cirencester Market Place and Castle Street, now the Vodafone shop. In February 1940 we can assume the vegetable-seed trade was good as the wartime population would have been growing their own produce on every available scrap of land. The ‘Dig for Victory‘ campaign would have encouraged this.

Entering the front door on the corner, there was a space for customers, with a service counter on the right and a private door opposite the shop’s display windows. Through the door and turning right, was a small, almost triangular outdoor space where buckets of cut flowers were stored, and there was always a smell of cooking emanating from the kitchens of Viner’s Restaurant next door in Castle Street.

Turning left instead brought you to a wooden staircase leading to offices on the floor above. There were also steps (possibly stone) leading down to the cellar.

World events: Altmark incident – The British destroyer HMS Cossack pursued the Altmark, freeing 290 British seamen held on board; and carbon-14 was discovered at the University of California, Berkeley.

< Jan 1940 – Mar 1940 >

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Blast from the past… 25

We spent Christmas Day in Cheltenham with Judy’s Mum and Dad. We had the usual fun, a great Christmas dinner, lots of presents to unwrap, and a gas fire that kept the room as hot as a sauna! (1989)

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June 2024 (6 months before publishing this article)

I’ve decided to include an even more recent section from now on, as that will allow us to enjoy a summer photo when it’s winter, and a winter photo when it’s summer.

This is from a walk I did on 11th June, along the towpath of the Stroudwater Canal on the edge of Stonehouse. This restored section of canal has a newly built railway bridge, and the canal stretches out to include a small lake called ‘The Ocean’, home to all manner of wildlife.

I enjoy a long walk now and then, perhaps ten or twelve miles; I still find this quite easy and very relaxing as well as interesting. I’ll continue as long as I can.

JHM: I wrote about the canal walk; and about the significance of Starship. World events: Starliner carried crew for the first time; and Julian Assange was released from prison.

< No earlier 6 month items – Jul 2024 >

December 2023 (1 year before publishing)

Erin, our cat, had come to the end of her life, the tumour was very large, she was no longer responding to steroid treatment, so we took her to the vet on 1st December and buried her in the garden on 2nd.

Donna was acting as a ‘guinea pig’ for a trial her brother, Paul, was running at the University of Bath. We drove over there and I sat in the car in heavy rain reading while Donna and Paul were working away in the lab. And throughout the month I scanned and organised a fair number of old 35 mm transparencies, mostly Judy’s but some of mine too.

We visited the family in Yorkshire over New Year having had Christmas at our house with Isobel, Paul and Vanessa.

JHM: I congratulated Vladimir Putin; and posted my online seasonal greetings. World events: The COP28 climate summit agreed a transition to non fossil fuels; and the death toll in Gaza passed 20,000.

< Nov 2023 – Jan 2024 >

December 2022 (2 years before)

We listened to Handel’s Messiah in Gloucester Cathedral, two of our friends were singing in the choir and it was a great performance.

There was a memorial service at Cirencester Baptist Church for my friend Stephen and a gathering later at the Corinium Hotel. I shall always remember the long conversations he and I had, it was a privilege to have known him.

We visited the family in Yorkshire in the middle of the month and had a great time with all sorts of different things to see and do, including a visit to Fairfax House in York.

JHM: I wrote about the war in Ukraine; and posted the very first Blast from the past. World events: The G7 and Australia capped Russia’s oil price; and the Brazilian footballer Pelé died aged 82.

< Nov 2022 – Jan 2023 >

December 2019 (5 years)

Tony’s Parkinson’s was making him confused now, he’d been puzzled about there being two Donna’s.

We voted in the General Election and stayed up to watch the initial results coming in, but felt disappointed as it became clear the Conservatives had won again.

And we visited York just before Christmas, including going to an ice-hockey match in Hull with Debbie, Steve, Aidan and Sara. That was great fun, lots of action, fast and furious.

JHM: I posted a Christmas card for my readers. World events: A new Coronavirus infection was found in Wuhan, China; and impeachment articles were drafted against US President Trump.

< Nov 2019 – Jan 2020 >

December 2014 (10 years)

I’d had an ankle injury in 2013, and it was now feeling much improved, more comfortable than at any time since before I damaged it. We visited Anglesey Abbey around the middle of the month and enjoyed the garden there. Donna was struggling with too much to do; she was busy with teacher training, helping out at the Food Bank and finding church life and the small group unsatisfactory and time consuming as well.

We spent Christmas in York this year staying first with Debbie, then with Beth and Paz, the photo was taken at Debbie’s. Then after Christmas we visited Paul and Vanessa in Weston. A busy end to the year, but a very satisfactory one!

JHM: Simple Church went on sale. World events: Japan launched a sample return spacecraft to Ryugu ; and The Pakistani Taliban killed at least 145 people, mostly schoolchildren in Peshawar.

< Nov 2014 – Jan 2015 >

December 2009 (15 years)

The building in the picture was where I worked when I started my employment at Unilever in April 1998. And here it is nearly eleven years later, being demolished in December 2009! Needless to say, our department had already been moved to alternative offices on the same site. I wrote in my journal,

‘The demolition has started in earnest now, they’re breaking up the concrete cladding and exposing the reinforced columns and floors. Quite a few of the familiar interiors are visible now; it’s weird to see.’

We visited York on 20th December to see my daughters and their families, having the usual great time, this year at Beth and Paz’s home in Fulford. Meredith and Aidan enjoyed the Play Doh Factory.

JHM: I posted a video of the demolition; and notes on a meeting on small groups. World events: The UN Climate Change COP 15 meeting was held in Copenhagen; and the EU Treaty of Lisbon came into force..

< Nov 2009 – Jan 2010 >

December 2004 (20 years)

We were on holiday in Thailand from 26th November until 10th December. On 26th December a huge tsunami hit the beach where we’d been staying (Khao Lak). Possibly as many as 10 000 people died on this part of the coastline, the worst hit part of Thailand; it felt like a very narrow escape!

JHM: I wrote about Cogs and a gift. World events: The world’s tallest bridge opened in France; and there was a very large earthquake and Tsunami (see also above).

< Nov 2004 – Jan 2005 >

December 1999 (25 years)

We spent Christmas Day with Donna’s Mum and Dad in High Wycombe, then travelled west to Cirencester. And on Boxing Day we visited Cindy and Paul’s home at Bibury, a few miles east of Ciren. In the photo you can see Paz, Cindy and Beth all looking happy.

We’d also had pre-Christmas meals with Unilever colleagues earlier in the month.

Truffles (our new cat) had settled in well by this time. She was a young adult, not a kitten, and had struggled at first with a cat flap, but once she got the hang of it I think she really appreciated the freedom it gave her.

World events: Tori Murden became the first woman to row the Atlantic Ocean alone; and Boris Yeltsin resigned leaving Vladimir Putin as acting president of Russia.

< Nov 1999 – Jan 2000 >

December 1994 (30 years)

Judy’s Mum and Dad came to visit us for Christmas dinner this year. Judy was almost back to normal, having made a good recovery following an operation to remove a bowel tumour, and then further illness caused by failed chemotherapy. Despite all this she had now bounced back really well.

World events: Sony released the PlayStation in Japan; and the Netscape Navigator web browser became available.

< Nov 1994 – Jan 1995 >

December 1989 (35 years)

This December we spent Christmas Day in Cheltenham with Judy’s Mum and Dad. We had the usual fun, a great Christmas dinner, lots of presents to unwrap, and a gas fire that kept the room as hot as a sauna!

We might have visited Cirencester later in the day to see my Mum and Dad before heading back home to Yatton.

World events: Mikhail Gorbachev pledged greater religious freedom for citizens of the Soviet Union.; and growing numbers of Communist European states collapsed and were replaced by democracies.

< Nov 1989 – Jan 1990 >

December 1984 (40 years)

At this time I was still working in my spare time on educational Sinclair Spectrum games for the Clever Clogs series from Computer Tutor, while employed at Long Ashton Research Station in their Plant Science Division.

World events: The Bhopal disaster in India killed 23 000+ people and injured over half a million; and the networking company Cisco Systems was formed.

< Nov 1984 – Jan 1985 >

December 1979 (45 years)

At this time I was still studying pollen tube development in apple and pear cultivars at Long Ashton Research Station. Judy was at home working hard at managing the house and looking after the chilren; Debbie was four-years-old and Beth was just seven months.

World events: The first Star Trek movie premiered; and the first European Ariane rocket was launched.

< Nov 1979 – Jan 1980 >

December 1974 (50 years)

I was working for Ken Stott at Long Ashton Research Station, partly on willow and poplar growth rates, but also helping Ray Williams in the Pomology Group doing interesting studies on apple pollination. Judy was working on human erythrocyte membrane proteins in the Biochemistry Lab in Woodland Road, Bristol.

Judy and I were living in a rented flat in Belmont Road, still saving for a deposit for a house but now in the knowledge we’d secured a mortgage. We began considering where we might find a house we could afford.

World events: Cyclone Tracy caused severe damage to Darwin, Australia; and Malta became a republic.

< Nov 1974 – Jan 1975 >

December 1969 (55 years)

Judy and I were both in our final year at University, in Judy’s case at Aberystwyth where she celebrated an early Christmas party with friends (from left – Little Mary, Maggs, Big Mary, Jan, and two faces I know but can’t put names to. Judy isn’t in the picture as she took the photo).

This was the final Christmas before we were married, and 1970 would also be our graduation year.

World events: The Boeing 747 jumbo jet made its first passenger flight; and oil was discovered in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.

< Nov 1969 – Jan 1970>

December 1964 (60 years)

I was lucky enough to be able to go on a School Cruise on an old troopship, the ‘Dunera’. We travelled by coach to London, then train to Dover, ferry to Calais, and train all the way to Venice where we boarded the ship. The route took us past Corfu and we visited Athens, Rhodes, and Istanbul. The photo shows the party looking at Lindos from above before boarding the coach again to walk through the village streets and make our way up the Acropolis.

World events: Martin Luther King Jr. was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize; and the US F-111 supersonic attack aircraft made its first flight.

< Nov 1964 – Jan 1965>

December 1959 (65 years)

My first term at Cirencester Grammar School came to an end and we enjoyed our Christmas holidays. I think I felt settled in by this time, and knew most of the other children in my class well enough.

World events: The Antarctic Treaty was signed by 12 countries; and Makarios III became the first president of Cyprus.

< Nov 1959 – Jan 1960>

December 1954 (70 years)

I was in my second year at Querns School, and the end of the first term was approaching. We were still living on the Beeches Estate in Cirencester – Daddy, Mummy, me and little Cindy who was just three-years-old.

World events: The first Burger King opened (in Miami); and the world’s first successful kidney transplant took place (Boston, USA).

< Nov 1954 – Jan 1955>

December 1949 (75 years)

Mummy, Daddy and I moved house! We had been lodging with my grandparents in Victoria Road, Cirencester. But on 5th December we were able to move into a newly built council house on the Beeches Estate just the other side of the river. I had a change of address on my identity card (see whole card).

I don’t remember any of this, though, I was less than a year and a half old!

World events: The government of China moved to Taiwan; and UHF TV was broadcast daily for the first time.

< Nov 1949 – Jan 1950>

December 1944 (80 years)

Dad said goodbye to his friend Joe at the railway station on 4th of December; Joe was posted elsewhere. Mum and Dad were both annoyed by Dad’s CO lecturing him about their relationship.

On 9th, Dad travelled to Belfast by bus, then train to Larne, and boat to Stranraer reaching Carlisle at 01:15 on 10th. He was posted to Skendleby in Lincolnshire, another radar station, finally arriving there on 11th December. Mum and Dad began writing frequent letters to one another and Dad spent Christmas and New Year at Skendleby.

World events: The Soviet Union changed Turkish place names in Crimea to Russian; and Glenn Miller‘s plane was lost over the Channel en route to Paris.

< Nov 1944 – Jan 1945>

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Forward look – Ukraine… – INDEX

(See indexes on other topics)

This is an index page, from here you can browse around all the articles in this series, or find a particular one you’d like to read.

Useful? Interesting?

Blast from the past… 24

Judy’s Dad turned 70-years-old on the tenth and she made him a cake decorated with emblems representing his life so far. We met at their house in Charlton Kings, Cheltenham, with her brother Frank and his family. (1994)

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Notes from bygone years – November (Remember, remember).
Hint: Click images to enlarge them.

November 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

We drove to Bristol to take Donna’s saxophone in for a service at Headwind and then spent the rest of the day in the city. We visited the museum and spent some time in the art gallery there. The main lobby still has the Bristol Boxkite hanging from the ceiling, reminding visitors of Bristol’s long and continuing contribution to the aerospace industry. We also walked down Park Street in the rain, investigated Bristol Guild, ate at a student cafe, and looked around the cathedral briefly. A good day out!

Erin (our cat) responded very well to steroid treatment and was fit and happy for the first half of the month, but towards the end of November she was becoming very unwell again and there was nothing more that the vet could do to help her.

JHM: I posted an article about Chuck Pfarrer and his maps of the Ukraine war; and another about Yara who lives in Kyiv. World events: An AI safety summit was held in the UK; and global average temperatures exceeded 2° C above pre-industrial times.

< Oct 2023 – Dec 2023 >

November 2022 (2 years before publishing)

The Christmas cactus was in great form in November, and a couple of Streptocarpus as well.

We had a visit from two friends from the St Neots area, Jim and Kevin. Jim’s wife, Pam, couldn’t make it this time, and Kevin is living on his own. I took them down to Cirencester and we visited the Corinium Museum. Jim was suitably impressed by the tesselated pavements, and Kevin (a fitter by trade) was intrigued by Roman lock mechanisms and the workmanship of these items.

JHM: I wrote an article about truth; and another about Clifford’s Tower in York. World events: The cryptocurrency exchange FTX went bankrupt; and OpenAI released ChatGPT.

< Oct 2022 – Dec 2022 >

November 2019 (5 years before)

We were meeting at the Baptist Church in Bibury for a while to help encourage them with some changes and fresh ideas. I was involved in other meetings as well, and we were helping Donna’s Mum and Dad with decorating and getting about (though that was becoming harder).

I went to the election hustings where our local MP, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown was booed and heckled a lot. I certainly wasn’t inclined to support him.

There was quite a lot of rain this month, and a dusting of snow as well. As a result there was some flooding. There’s a concrete bear (a garden ornament) on a wooden platform on the edge of Riverside Walk in Cirencester, and the bear is our water level gauge. As we walk past we see him sitting with his fishing rod on a dry platform (usually). But the photo shows him during the flooding, still clutching his rod and line.

World events: 11 000 scientists warned of a climate emergency; and there was a transit of the planet Mercury.

< Oct 2019 – Dec 2019 >

November 2014 (10 years)

Donna was training as a teacher but was having some second thoughts because of unruly and difficult kids, she also wanted to spend less time running the Open Door Small Group since the teaching work gave her much less available time. Meanwhile I put in a claim for my state pension and we helped some friends move house.

John, one of the guys I’d met at Caffe Nero, was grasping spiritual truths really quickly. He was asking a lot of questions and understanding everything quite deeply. I found this very exciting and immensely encouraging.

I was meeting frequently with different people, there was the Open Door small group once a week, coffee shop meetings with some friends in town, and meetings with my friends Jim, Sean and Kevin rotating around our three homes. It was all good and seemed useful, but three such different groups! Another friend, Chris, was working through Revelation and we met for coffee to discuss this too.

I took my coffee shop friends Matt and Kev to the Newforms Gathering at Kidderminster at the end of the month (photo).

JHM: I wrote about a book I’d contributed to; and about the seal of Paul’s apostolic gift. World events: The IPCC warned of ‘severe, pervasive and irreversible damage from global emissions of CO₂; and the Rosetta spacecraft‘s Philae probe landed on Comet 67P.

< Oct 2014 – Dec 2014 >

November 2009 (15 years)

I wrote a short note on the old family dining table we’d been using. It came originally from one of my Dad’s relatives and we’d used it when Judy and I lived in Yatton in the 1980s and 90s. Now we no longer needed it as we required something a good deal larger; we decided it should go to one of my daughters (assuming one of them wanted it).

We had new next door neighbours, Annette and Jerry moved into number 126. And there were major changes taking place in Unilever’s IT organisation that would affect us at Colworth where I was working.

JHM: I wrote about a video of the Space Shuttle; and about a meeting at Great Doddington. World events: The Belgian Prime Minister became the first permanent President of the European Council; and NASA found water in a crater on the Moon.

< Oct 2009 – Dec 2009 >

November 2004 (20 years)

Mum and Dad booked two adjacent holiday villas at Ross-on-Wye and the whole family spent the weekend together. It was a lovely time, a great way to keep in touch, typical of Mum and Dad to organise something like this. They were both closer to the end of their lives than any of us could have imagined, so it’s a special memory for all of us.

Mum had no idea there was an alien spacecraft hovering above her head! Click the photo for a better view.

JHM: I posted meeting notes titled Butterfly and bird; and Water and stars . World events: George W. Bush was re-elected President of the USA; and the Orange Revolution began in Ukraine.

< Oct 2004 – Dec 2004 >

November 1999 (25 years)

We had a new gas heating system installed in our home – boiler, radiators, hot tank – everything. The preexisting system was old, decrepit and very inefficient, so high time to replace it.

On 4th November I flew to Schipol for Unilever business at Rotterdam.

And we had a new permanent house guest, Truffles the cat. She was a gift from friends who had more than enough cats, and Truffles preferred being a bit of a loner (though very affectionate with humans).

JHM: View the predecessor website at this time. World events: Australia decided to keep the Queen as head of state; and Kuwait revoked a 1985 law that granted women’s suffrage.

< Oct 1999 – Dec 1999 >

November 1994 (30 years)

Judy was getting stronger after the problems with the attempted chemotherapy. She was out of danger and out of hospital too during November. She had lost her hair and was wearing a hospital wig, but new hair was already starting to grow and the wig would be only a temporary measure.

World events: George Foreman became the world’s oldest world heavyweight champion; and the first ever internet audio webcast was made.

< Oct 1994 – Dec 1994 >

November 1989 (35 years)

In November I bought a new video camera to replace the one stolen in August while were on holiday. This time I bought one of the new, higher resolution Hi-8 cameras. The photo of Beth was made from a VHS copy of a Hi-8 original.

Debbie was probably playing clarinet around this time, but I don’t recall if they ever attempted a piano/clarinet duet!

World events: Dial-up internet was introduced in the USA; while the East German communist government resigned and the Berlin Wall came down.

< Oct 1989 – Dec 1989 >

November 1984 (40 years)

Do they know it’s Christmas?
(Wikimedia)

I developed a DECO database for the Plant Science Division at Long Ashton Research Station to improve the processing and storage of bibliographic information.

World events: The first Hackers Conference was held; and Band Aid (assembled by Bob Geldof) recorded Do They Know It’s Christmas?.

< Oct 1984 – Dec 1984 >

November 1979 (45 years)

At this time I was still studying pollen tube development in apple and pear cultivars at Long Ashton Research Station.

World events: The Iran hostage crisis began; and Provisional IRA member Thomas McMahon was sentenced to life for assassinating Lord Mountbatten of Burma.

< Oct 1979 – Dec 1979 >

November 1974 (50 years)

This month we had a bit of a breakthrough. My boss at Long Ashton, Ken Stott, put us in touch with a friend of his who was a bank manager; we were then offered good terms on a mortgage.

During the interview we had to hide the fact that Judy was pregnant, as her income had been taken into account.

John Jefferies and Son Ltd published their Christmas bulb offer (see the full details, but don’t place an order – they’ve sold out!)

World events: The Arecibo Radio Telecope sent an interstellar radio message; and the International Energy Agency was founded.

< Oct 1974 – Dec 1974 >

November 1969 (55 years)

My Granny (Nor) celebrated her 80th birthday and the family gathered for photos and a short celebration at Uncle John’s house, 4 Tower Street, Cirencester.

In the photo – Back row: Cousin Tim, me, Uncles Bob, John and Dick, cousin Jeremy, and my Dad. Middle row: Judy, Aunty Betty (Bob’s wife), Pippa (Jeremy’s wife), My Mum, and Deirdre (Tim’s wife). Front row Aunty Jo (John’s wife), Nor, and Aunt Millicent (Dick’s wife).

World events: Sesame Street premiered on US TV; and NASA launched Apollo 12, the second crewed mission to the Moon.

< Oct 1969 – Dec 1969>

November 1964 (60 years)

Bonfire Night on 5th November was always an important calendar date when I was a child, and indeed right up until recently. It’s gradually been replaced by Halloween over the last ten or twenty years.

This triple Roman candle was the prize firework item in my parent’s back garden in 1964. I took a time exposure on a tripod while this one ran its course, and the photo came out remarkably well. I was 16-years-old and in the Lower Sixth at Cirencester Grammar School.

World events: NASA launched Mariner 4 to Mars; and France tested an atomic bomb underground in Algeria.

< Oct 1964 – Dec 1964>

November 1959 (65 years)

I was still in my first term at Cirencester Grammar School. My classroom was in the southernmost of the three Prefab Classrooms; the first year forms 1A, 1B and 1X had these three rooms, perhaps because they were a little way away from the classrooms for the older pupils.

It was an easy walk to the playground where the tuckshop was (it’s important to get important details sorted out as early as possible).

World events: The first section of the M1 Motorway opened; and the MOSFET transistor was invented in the USA.

< Oct 1959 – Dec 1959>

November 1954 (70 years)

I was in my second year at Querns School, and half way through the first term. I think that we had Miss Hourihane as our teacher for this second year as well as my first year, although I can’t be sure about that.

I joined the Trex Club, Mummy helped and I remember being a bit puzzled by the whole process, frankly! If you’d like to join, here are the full details.

World events: The first Godzilla film premiered in Tokyo; and a four-kilogram piece of the Hodges Meteorite crashed through a roof injuring a woman.

< Oct 1954 – Dec 1954>

November 1949 (75 years)

There’s little to say about this month, as in October I was 1¼-years-old, life went on, and we were still living in my grandparents house in Victoria Road, Cirencester. Dad continued working on the nurseries, part of the old family business.

World events: Oil was discovered beneath the Caspian Sea; and Winston Churchill supported the idea of a European Union.

< Oct 1949 – Dec 1949>

November 1944 (80 years)

Mum and Dad briefly talked about the idea of one day being married, and Dad bought a postcard of Cirencester Parish Church in the village shop in Coagh! They visited Uncle Samuel and Aunt Annie in Belfast on 23rd. On the 29th, Dad heard he was soon to be posted away from Northern Ireland, they were both very sad at this unwelcome news.

World events: The German battleship Tirpitz was sunk by British Lancaster bombers in Norway; and nearly 4,000 tonnes of ordnance exploded at an RAF storage site in Staffordshire.

< Oct 1944 – Dec 1944>

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Blast from the past… 23

We were living in our flat at 20 Belmont Road, and I already had a Scottish Widows life assurance policy as a first step towards securing a mortgage.

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Notes from bygone years – October (Noctober after dark?).
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.

October 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

An exciting scientific paper published in the journal Nature described how X-ray data and clever data manipulation had made it possible to recover small scraps of text from scrolls lost when Vesuvius erupted in October 79 CE. Hope was expressed that it might become possible to recover much larger sections of text, or even whole scrolls.

Our cat, Erin, was not feeling well; due to a tumour she was not eating very well and often threw up afterwards. She was losing weight quickly as a result. The vet suggested a steroid injection to see if it would help her cope better, but it would clearly be only temporary relief. It seemed well worth a try and during the second half of the month she seemed very much her old self again.

We visited Westonbirt Arboretum on 23rd October to enjoy the autumn colours, and Donna’s Uncle Ken died on 26th after a long illness.

JHM: I published Blast from the past… 11; and an index on posts about church as a network. World events: Mike Johnson was elected as Speaker of the US House of Representatives; and the Cricket World Cup was held in India.

< Sep 2023 – Nov 2023 >

October 2022 (2 years before publishing)

I began intermittent fasting, only eating between 11:00 and 21:00, as part of a Zoe trial. I’ve changed the timing slightly, but I’m still following the principle two years later.

There was a Roman Army historical display in the old amphitheatre on 2nd October, it was great fun to watch the events going on and look at the Roman equipment. They fired a melon from a ballista and it sailed right out of the arena. Seeing a crowd at the amphitheatre gave me a sense of scale and made the place look much larger. The crowd in the photo is using about a third of the seating space.

On Mondays I enjoyed meeting my friend Stephen for a walk, a coffee, and a chat.

JHM: I decided to make a fresh start. World events: Ukraine attacked the Kerch Strait Bridge; and Liz Truss announced her resignation.

< Sep 2022 – Nov 2022 >

October 2019 (5 years before)

I spent some time working out the route of the old canal through the built-up parts of Cirencester, it was an interesting exercise, poring over old maps.

We were also helping Donna’s Mum and Dad quite a lot, I get on well with Tony; we’ve always enjoyed chatting and he seems to trust me. He was mostly wheelchair-bound at this time as his Parkinson’s progressed, but on a good day he could still do quite a lot for himself.

On 19th I joined the People’s Vote march in London, quite an experience!

JHM: I wrote an article on climate change; and another about Cirencester Wharf. World events: There was a Turkish incursion into Syria; and tourists visited the summit of Uluru (Ayers Rock) for the last time.

< Sep 2019 – Nov 2019 >

October 2014 (10 years)

My friends Jim and Pam ran a church Mums and Tots group (Puddles) in St Neots. Jim ask me to take a set of photos of each mum with their child for official use by the group, here’s a more general shot that I included for them.

I was meeting frequently with different people, there was the Open Door small group once a week, coffee shop meetings with some friends in town, meetings with my friends Jim, Sean and Kevin rotating around our three homes. It was all good and seemed useful, but three such different groups!

JHM: I wrote about the ‘seal’ of an apostle; and about simplifying my blog. World events: Pope Paul VI was made a saint; and Alan Eustace set a world record highest and longest free fall jump.

< Sep 2014 – Nov 2014 >

October 2009 (15 years)

Donna’s Mum and Dad came to stay for a weekend in the middle of the month and we drove over to Olney for a walk and then to Stoke Bruerne to look at the canal and the ladder of locks. There were some great autumn colours on the day. The photo shows Isobel, Tony and Donna on a bridge.

JHM: I posted about a home meeting; and an article on Google Wave. World events: WikiLeaks published the membership list of the BNP; and Microsoft released Windows 7.

< Sep 2009 – Nov 2009 >

October 2004 (20 years)

At the end of the month we visited Cirencester to visit my Mum and Dad, and while we were there we popped over to Westonbirt Arboretum to look at the autumn colours. There’s always a wonderful display there, and the trees were more or less at their best.

JHM: I wrote an article about moles and what they can teach us; and about walking in the light. World events: Explorers reached the bottom of the world’s deepest cave; and the first European constitution was signed.

< Sep 2004 – Nov 2004 >

October 1999 (25 years)

These are the web development servers in the open plan office where I worked as part of the Web Team. Today these would all be virtual servers hosted at a data centre elsewhere in the company. It was very useful to have multiple copies of each website, one for the developers to work on, another for testing purposes, and a third for the live service.

World events: NASA lost a Mars orbiter due to a mix-up over measurement units; and there was a serious rail crash in London.

< Sep 1999 – Nov 1999 >

October 1994 (30 years)

Things seemed to go from bad to worse with Judy’s colon cancer. In October (I think) she began the first of three courses of chemotherapy (5-fluorouracil) to shrink the metastases and slow them down. This was expected to give her at least a couple of extra years of healthy life. But after starting the first course she became quite unwell and the doctors discovered that she lacked an enzyme that normally enables the body to dispose of the drug. She had to spend some weeks in hospital, quite dangerously ill for some of them.

World events: Tim Berners-Lee founded the World Wide Web Consortium; and Iraq withdrew its forces from the Kuwaiti border.

< Sep 1994 – Nov 1994 >

October 1989 (35 years)

I had been working in Long Ashton’s Electron Microscopy Lab, helping to manage the instruments and operating the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) for staff unable to do the work themselves. But with a further reshuffle at work I’d been moved to the Computing Section and was now working on MS-DOS and developing the environment that became the LARS System.

World events: The Dalai Lama won the Nobel Peace Prize; and the Loma Prieta earthquake hit the San Francisco Bay Area.

< Sep 1989 – Nov 1989 >

October 1984 (40 years)

I was the Computing Representative for Long Ashton Research Station’s Plant Science Division.

The photo of Lilias (my Mum) and my nephew, Tom, is a still from my Dad’s cine collection in October 1984.

World events: The Provisional IRA attempted to assassinate the UK PM and Cabinet ; and The Terminator premiered.

< Sep 1984 – Nov 1984 >

October 1979 (45 years)

The Good News Crusade came to Portishead and a number of us from Yatton and Claverham were involved. There were several days of the Crusade itself, and then we (and others) arranged some post-Crusade meetings as well.

Mum and Dad had a late touring holiday along the Devon and Cornwall coast. Dad took several 35 mm transparency films of that holiday.

World events: A National March for gay rights was held in Washington DC; and the eradication of the smallpox virus was announced.

< Sep 1979 – Nov 1979 >

October 1974 (50 years)

We were living in our flat at 20 Belmont Road, and I already had a Scottish Widows life assurance policy as a first step towards securing a mortgage. We were still not well-placed despite having quite a lot of available reserves in our joint bank savings account.

World events: Harold Wilson’s Labour government won a general election; and five bombs were detonated in Manhatten.

< Sep 1974 – Nov 1974 >

October 1969 (55 years)

I was back in Bath University and the fourth year was underway with the final exams looming after Easter. Judy’s position was similar, back at Aber (Aberystwyth) for her third and final year. She took the photo from a ground floor window in Alexandra Hall on the Aber seafront as the sun was setting.

World events: Hundreds of thousands demonstrated against the Vietnam War across the United States; and the first ARPANET message was sent between two computers (the start of the internet).

< Sep 1969 – Nov 1969>

October 1964 (60 years)

The autumn term meant the start of my time in the Lower Sixth at Cirencester Grammar School. During half-term a friend and I dug a hole in the Lower Garden just east of the footpath behind Churnside (37 Victoria Road). We found some Roman stonework, small pieces of burnt clay, pieces of a broken amphora rim, and a small piece of Samian ware with a failed repair, also a piece of tegula (roof tile). We had no idea this was a bad thing to do!

World events: The world’s first high-speed rail system opened between Tokyo and Osaka; and Martin Luther King Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize.

< Sep 1964 – Nov 1964>

October 1959 (65 years)

I was in my first term at Cirencester Grammar School. Amongst other subjects I had to learn some Latin, it wasn’t my favourite subject at the time. The image shows a Latin exercise in which I managed to get seven correct answers out of nine. I think my favourite subjects were maths, geography and chemistry.

World events: Luna 3 returned the first images of the far side of the Moon; and Astérix the Gaul first appeared in a French comic.

< Sep 1959 – Nov 1959>

October 1954 (70 years)

Cindy turned three and I was in my second year at Querns School; we were living on the Beeches Estate in Cirencester. 17 Queen Anne’s Road was a three-bedroom semi so I had my own room. Mum and Dad’s room had a special feature, a wall-mounted electric fire with two switches. I never saw this heater in use, but there was also a two bar plug-in electric fire that was used downstairs on very cold days in the winter.

World events: Texas Instruments announced the first commercial transistor radio; and the Paris Agreement was signed.

< Sep 1954 – Nov 1954>

October 1949 (75 years)

I was 1¼-years-old, and life went on well enough as far as I’m aware. We were living in my grandparents house in Victoria Road, Cirencester and Dad was busy working on the nurseries, part of the old family business founded in 1795.

World events: The People’s Republic of China was founded; and the cornerstone was laid for the United Nations HQ in New York.

< Sep 1949 – Nov 1949>

October 1944 (80 years)

As October passed and Mum and Dad spent more time together, they became what today we would call ‘an item’. His brother Bob, an army officer and 15 years older than Dad, was married to Betty from the town of Dungannon 13 miles south of Coagh. Dad visited them from time to time, but spent much of his off-duty time with Lilias and her family.

World events: The first German Me 262 jet fighter was shot down; and Warsaw was destroyed by the occupying German forces.

< Sep 1944 – Nov 1944>

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Blast from the past… 22

At this time we were busy with faith meetings of various kinds. Our band, Fountain, played and Judy spoke at Pill Baptist Church.

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Notes from bygone years – September after September after September.
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.

September 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

From time to time we visit Donna’s brother Paul and his wife Ness in Weston-super-Mare, and their two Labradors (pictured). They are sisters, but they have different temperaments, just like people. On this visit, Paul and Ness were heading off for a holiday so Donna and I looked after the dogs for the week.

One of our favourite walks is to take the dogs to the beach for exercise and then to Stones Cafe, a seafront place where we like the breakfasts, so we get a treat before walking home. If we just take Maizi, she gets a dog sausage as well, but fatty foods are a problem for Marple.

JHM: I wrote articles on ‘Dad’s diaries‘; and on ‘Detail or big picture?‘. World events: A large earthquake struck western Morocco; and the world’s oldest wooden structure (¾ million years old) was discovered in Zambia.

< Aug 2023 – Oct 2023 >

September 2022 (2 years before publishing)

Donna, Paul and Isobel at Pembroke city wall

We finished our family holiday in the Pennines, and drove home on 2nd September. And the very next day we set out again to drive to the village of Llantisilio in Pembrokeshire for a week with Paul, Ness, Isobel and the dogs.

It was during our stay that we heard about the death of the Queen and the accession of Charles III.

One day we drove to Tenby to look around and visit the indoor market, and we unexpectedly bumped into some friends that we’d made a few years ago in Cirencester, who have since moved to Yorkshire. And here they were in Tenby!

World events: The G7 Imposed a price cap on Russian oil exports; and Liz Truss was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

< Aug 2022 – Oct 2022 >

September 2019 (5 years before)

The fencing around our back garden was finished, and we were very pleased with it.

I was working on some decorating in Tony and Isobel’s new house, next door but one to ours; having them living close would make it far easier for Donna to help her Mum cope as Tony deteriorated (he had Parkinson’s). A local builder made some alterations for them, including bricking up an unwanted door.

JHM: I wrote an index for articles on my family’s old business. World events: In the UK, Thomas Cook went bankrupt; and in the USA an impeachment inquiry began against President Donald Trump

< Aug 2019 – Oct 2019 >

September 2014 (10 years)

Donna started her teacher training at the college in Stewartby; and at a Small Group meeting in St Neots she read out Ezekiel 47 and asked, ‘How deep are we prepared to go?’ This led to some good discussion. She was also helping with the Food Bank at this time.

I was meeting with my friends Matt, Kev, John, and Mo, we’d been reading the Bible together and trying to follow Jesus better. Meanwhile, the BBC reported the grim news that Islamic State had beheaded a British aid worker in Iraq.

We visited York to see Debbie, Beth and their families, Sara was six this month.

World events: ISIS attacked the border town of Kobani; and Scotland voted against independence.

< Aug 2014 – Oct 2014 >

September 2009 (15 years)

I flew to the USA for the House2House Conference in Dallas over the weekend of 2nd-6th. From there I flew to West Palm Beach to stay with Steph and Earl, then on to Boston on 14th to join up with Donna for a holiday, returning home via Gatwick on 26th.

World events: WikiLeaks exposed internal banking documents in the Icelandic Financial Crisis; and powerful earthquakes struck Samoa and Sumatra.

< Aug 2009 – Oct 2009 >

September 2004 (20 years)

We drove down to the RHS Garden at Wisley and spent a good part of the day there exploring. There’s a lot to see! Donna managed to get this picture of me while we were there.

We’d been invited to a party in St Neots in the evening, but we still had enough time to look around quite thoroughly before driving home and getting ready for the evening event.

JHM: I posted meeting notes on Touch and seasons. World events: Chechen rebels took 1,128 people hostage; and West Sulawesi became the 33rd province of Indonesia.

< Aug 2004 – Oct 2004 >

September 1999 (25 years)

We had a house-warming barbecue on 12th at our new home in St Neots, with a mix of guests from Unilever, Open Door Church and some neighbours.

On 17th we set off for a holiday in Sorrento. The photo shows the remains of a bakery in Pompeii, the grey devices are flour mills and you can see a brick-built oven in the background. Pompeii and Herculaneum were both amazing to see.

World events: An earthquake left 50 000 homeless in Athens; and Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga joined the United Nations.

< Aug 1999 – Oct 1999 >

September 1994 (30 years)

Arthur Griffith, Sinn Féin founder (Mediawiki)

During surgery to remove Judy’s colon tumour, metastases were found in her liver. She was offered a course of chemotherapy (5-fluorouracil) but although this was likely to give her a few more years, it would not be a cure.

This was a shock to the whole family, I have few photos, documents, or notes for the year following Judy’s surgery.

World events: Britain lifted the Northern Irish broadcasting ban on Sinn Féin and paramilitaries; and the Taliban movement was founded in Kandahar, Afghanistan..

< Aug 1994 – Oct 1994 >

September 1989 (35 years)

Due to lack of rainfall and a hot summer, the water levels in Chew Valley Lake fell to the lowest we could remember. The photo shows a road crossing the River Chew over a stone-built bridge, all of which would normally be under water.

World events: An IRA bomb exploded at the Royal Marine School of Music in Deal, killing 11 people; and Hurricane Hugo devastated the Caribbean and the southeastern USA.

< Aug 1989 – Oct 1989 >

September 1984 (40 years)

It’s always fun to do something unusual. Here are Debbie and Beth eating outside in the sunshine, it was lunchtime judging by the direction of the shadows.

There are fully grown apples on the tree beyond the table, but unpicked so presumably not quite ripe at the time of the photo.

World events: Space Shuttle Discovery landed after its maiden voyage ; and Joe Kittinger became the first person to cross the Atlantic solo, in a hot air balloon.

< Aug 1984 – Oct 1984 >

September 1979 (45 years)

Debbie was 4½ and Beth just over 16 months.

At this time we were busy with faith meetings of various kinds. Our band, Fountain, played and Judy spoke at Pill Baptist Church around 16th, and on 21st Colin Urquhart spoke at Portishead URC where I recorded his address in support of the coming Good News Crusade.

World events: Pioneer 11 became the first spacecraft to fly past Saturn ; and Two families escaped from East Germany by balloon.

< Aug 1979 – Oct 1979 >

September 1974 (50 years)

We visited Blenheim Palace, possibly with Judy’s Mum and Dad. It was a fine, early autumn day with a blue sky and strong sunshine.

Judy was pregnant at the time, we had no way of knowing whether to expect a boy or a girl (no ultrasound scans in those days), but in the event it would turn out to be Debbie. A highly satisfactory outcome!

World events: A bomb exploded on TWA Flight 841 killing 88; and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia was deposed.

< Aug 1974 – Oct 1974 >

September 1969 (55 years)

Judy’s 21st birthday was 10th September and we were all invited to Cheltenham for her party. I think this was at 18 Hales Close, and Judy’s brother Frank must have taken the photo. We were both about to head back to University for our final year, me to Bath and Judy to Aberystwyth.

World events: Colonel Muammar Gaddafi seized power in Libya; and China carried out an underground nuclear bomb test.

< Aug 1969 – Oct 1969>

September 1964 (60 years)

Our Irish holiday continued into the beginning of September. This is the River Bann at Toome Bridge just north of Lough Neagh. Granda was a water bailiff on the Lough, protecting the eel fishery from poaching. The boat he took us out in is the one in the bottom-right corner.

World events: The Forth Road Bridge opened in Scotland; and the Beatles refused to play to a segregated audience in Florida.

< Aug 1964 – Oct 1964>

September 1959 (65 years)

After my Grandpa’s death and the funeral, Granny (Nor) went to Kent for a holiday in the area where she grew up, and visited places she remembered and was fond of. Perhaps she had friends or family to visit as well, I don’t know. What I do know is that this card had a long strip of conceretina-folded photos with other views that you could pull out. However, this has not survived.

World events: Luna 2 became the first human-made object to crash on the Moon; and the Xerox 914, the first plain paper copier was introduced.

< Aug 1959 – Oct 1959>

September 1954 (70 years)

We were on holiday at Muddiford, near Christchurch 0n the south coast of Hampshire. I was six at this time and Cindy was three, and Dad decided to send a postcard to Ireland on our behalf. His message on the back seems a bit cheeky, though, recommending Muddiford over Portrush! I wonder what Granny-in-Ireland thought about that? (view the card)

World events: The magnitude 6.7 Chlef earthquake struck northern Algeria; and the novel Lord of the Flies was published.

< Aug 1954 – Sep 1954>

September 1949 (75 years)

It was Mum and Dad’s second wedding anniversary at the end of September, and I was 14 months old. I was likely becoming more confident at both walking and talking. Possibly I’d have been doing unhelpful things as well, like trying to climb the stairs! Keeping a young child safe gets harder as they try new things.

World events: The Federal Republic of Germany was founded; and the pound sterling was devalued from $4.03 to $2.80.

< Aug 1949 – Oct 1949>

September 1944 (80 years)

Dad’s Uncle Herbert died (he’d been ill for some time). Dad continued working with radar at the Ballinderry RAF site, and visiting Coagh to spend time with his new friend Lilias. And on 6th September Dad reported hearing ‘awe inspiring drumming’ in Coagh.

By the end of the month Lilias was feeling she was falling in love with Dad, but in his diary he wrote that this was ‘a pity’. I’m glad he changed his mind later!

World events: II: In Operation Market Garden airborne landings began in the Netherlands and Germany; and the first V-2 rocket was used to attack London.

< Aug 1944 – Oct 1944>

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Blast from the past… 21

We found a toad in our garden, trapped it in a plastic bucket, and took it to a nearby field to release it.

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Notes from bygone years – Some of the most august months of August
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.

August 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

For our family holiday this year we had decided to book a big house in Scotland (there were ten of us, me and Donna, my two daughters and their husbands, and four grandchildren) so we needed a lot of space! We did many interesting trips and walks, and some of us decided to attempt the summit of Cairn Gorm. We saw a herd of reindeer on the way up, and the summit was in the clouds. If it had been clear, we might have gone further south-west for the views, but we really enjoyed our walk, even so.

JHM: I published a blog post on an earlier trip to Scotland. World events: A Pacific hurricane caused record flooding in Mexico and California; and Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash in Russia.

< Jul 2023 – Sep 2023 >

August 2022 (2 years before publishing)

This year’s family holiday was at Shap in the Pennines. In the photo, part of the family was out for a walk in the lovely countryside around the holiday house.

As usual, there was a lot to see and do, the Lake District is not far from here and the Pennines are full of interest too.

Some of us walked from Keswick to the top of Skiddaw one day. There were good local walks from our house in Shap, too. Donna and I spent a day exploring Haweswater Reservoir and other parts of the Lake District. We usually do a jigsaw while on holiday – this time it was a picture of Cirencester Market Place.

JHM: The conservative government seemed to be sinking. – World events: The James Webb Space Telescope‘s first operational image was released; and severe heatwaves began in Europe.

< Jul 2022 – Sep 2022 >

August 2019 (5 years before)

This year’s family holiday was in the Dordogne; in the photo, some of us are crossing the drawbridge of the lovely medieval castle, ‘Château de Beynac‘. Visiting this place was a fairy tale experience, we have nothing of this age and completeness in England apart from Dover Castle, perhaps. The château was just one of many interesting visits, and the holiday home was perfect for us, with a pool for the children and room for us all to spread out.

World events: 11 billion tons of Greenland ice melted in a single day; in Iceland, a funeral was held for the lost Okjökull glacier.

< Jul 2019 – Sep 2019 >

August 2014 (10 years)

We returned from our family holiday in Lyme Regis on 1st August, and visited Donna’s Mum and Dad in Broadstone on our way home. Two of our friends were ill, one was in hospital after heart surgery and was recovering slowly and getting out of danger, the other had hepatitis and had been in and out of hospital. Both were improving. On the fun side, we watched dragon boat racing on the river in St Neots (photo).

World events: 4,000 Yazidis in Iraq’s Sinjar District were massacred; and the US military intervened in Iraq to curb ISIL.

< Jul 2014 – Sep 2014 >

August 2009 (15 years)

August is certainly the month for holidays in the UK. In 2009 we rented a large house in Aldeburgh and of course, the beach was high on everyone’s list of things to do. The photo shows Sara and her Dad, Steve, on Hunstanton Beach.

I imagine the conversation going something like this… Sara: ‘Come on Daddy, sitting in the water is great!’ Steve: ‘Hmm.. Nah, I’d rather not, thanks.’

JHM: I posted on Better Place, a good idea that failed. – World events: A major typhoon hit Taiwan; and there was government corruption in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

< Jul 2009 – Sep 2009 >

August 2004 (20 years)

We made a day trip to walk on Kinder Scout with Beth and Paz from their home in Disley, and met up with friends from St Neots that we knew through Open Door Church.

It was a great walk on a fine, sunny day, heading up Grinds Brook from Edale, then over the top to Kinder Downfall, back along some of the edges and down Jacob’s Ladder.

World events: NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft was launched to visit Mercury; and the Summer Olympics were held in Athens.

< Jul 2004 – Sep 2004 >

August 1999 (25 years)

We moved house on 20th August, from Tilbrook to St Neots, from a two-bedroom cottage to a four-bedroom detached house. Our furniture looked very sparse in the new, larger space!

We’d enjoyed living in a village, but looked forward to walking to the shops and only needing the car for longer trips.

World events: There was a total solar eclipse in Europe; and East Timor regained independence from Indonesia.

< Jul 1999 – Sep 1999 >

August 1994 (30 years)

August was a difficult month. We went to the Bristol Balloon Fiesta on 6th, great fun as always! The photo shows Beth and Judy at the event. Judy was diagnosed with bowel cancer, though it seemed likely surgery would successfully remove it.

Judy, Beth and I had a holiday at Janzé in Normandy and the surgery was to be performed on our return, probably early in September but it might have been late August.

World events: IBM launched the world’s first smartphone; and the Russian Army left Estonia and Latvia.

< Jul 1994 – Sep 1994 >

August 1989 (35 years)

This year’s holiday was on the northern coast of the Lake District at Silloth, we were able to visit Hadrian’s Wall, Wordsworth’s house, Edinburgh, Carlisle and more.

In this photo taken by Judy you can see part of the Roman Wall fortress of Housesteads, with Debbie and me just beyond the building.

World events: The Singing Revolution in the Baltic States demanded independence from the Soviet Union; and NASA’s Voyager 2 captured images and data at Neptune.

< Jul 1989 – Sep 1989 >

August 1984 (40 years)

Soon after our holiday, we found a toad in our garden, trapped it in a plastic bucket, and took it to a nearby field to release it. In the photo, Beth has the toad moving onto her hand with help from Debbie, and soon afterwards it was free, hopefully in a toad friendly environment.

It wasn’t unusual in Yatton to find wildlife in the house or garden – a field mouse, a bird, a frog or whatever.

World events: A Soviet submarine dives to a record depth of just over a kilometre; and Space Shuttle Discovery flies for the first time.

< Jul 1984 – Sep 1984 >

August 1979 (45 years)

There’s remarkably little to say about this month, I’ve failed to locate any photos, cine film, documents or other physical evidence.

We were living at 22 Rectory Drive, in Yatton; Judy was being a full time Mum with Debbie aged four and Beth just one and a quarter. I was working on fruit tree pollination at Long Ashton Research Station.

World events: The first gothic rock recording was released by Bauhaus; and Michael Jackson released his album Off the Wall.

< Jul 1979 – Sep 1979 >

August 1974 (50 years)

By this time Judy would have been four months pregnant and we were well aware of it. We were living in an unfurnished flat in Belmont Road, Bristol, and trying to buy a house. Judy was aware of the years ticking by and wanted to start a family, while I was hoping we could sort the house while on two salaries.

The still from Dad’s cine camera shows Cindy’s husband Peter boating on Loch Nell near Oban. Mum and Dad had driven up to visit them, and Pete’s Mum and twin brother were there as well.

World events: President Nixon resigned; and Turkey invaded Cyprus for the second time.

< Jul 1974 – Sep 1974 >

August 1969 (55 years)

The summer of 1969 saw Judy’s friend Big Mary marry her PhD fiance Malcolm. They were both Welsh speakers, as many of the Aberystwyth students were. The photo shows Maggs (Judy’s closest friend at Aber), Judy, Little Mary, Big Mary and Jan (I think) in red. The other two I recognise but can’t put names to.

I took the photo after the Welsh chapel ceremony, but before the reception. It was a valleys wedding, I think in Cwmbran.

World events: Mariner 7 made a close fly-by past Mars; and British troops were deployed in Northern Ireland.

< Jul 1969 – Sep 1969>

August 1964 (60 years)

We were on holiday in Coagh, Northern Ireland and visited the Black Saturday parade in nearby Cookstown. Here we are at the Assembly Field after the parade.

In the photo you can see Rachael, Lilias, Ruth, Jane (my great-aunt), Selina (my grandmother) and Mike. We always knew our Irish grandmother as ‘Granny-in-Ireland’ to distinguish her from our English grandmother, Nor.

World events: The last executions took place in the UK; Mary Poppins had its world premiere in Los Angeles.

< Jul 1964 – Sep 1964>

August 1959 (65 years)

The 11+ exam results came in, I think while we were on holiday at Burnham-on-Sea, I had passed and would start at Cirencester Grammar School in September. During the same holiday, we heard that my Grandpa had died on 22nd and Dad had to drive home for a couple of days leaving Mum, me and Cindy in the holiday caravan.

Also in August, I passed my Leaping Wolf badge before moving from Cubs to Scouts.

World events: NASA’s Explorer 6 satellite returned the first images of Earth from space; and the Mini car went on sale in the UK.

< Jul 1959 – Sep 1959>

August 1954 (70 years)

I had just turned six-years-old and I remember playing with my electric train set that I was given, either for my birthday or perhaps the previous Christmas.

It was similar to the set on the left of the photo. I well remember the picture on the box lid.

World events: A Lockheed Hercules military transport plane flew for the first time; and the French army was defeated in Indo-China.

< Jul 1954 – Sep 1954>

August 1949 (75 years)

Now starting my second year of life (my first birthday was in late July), we were still living with my grandparents, I think.

I might have started saying one or two words at this stage, I was probably able to stand with perhaps a wobble or two and a sudden sit-down now and then. And maybe I could walk short distances by this time too. I remember a blue harness with three or four silver bells on the front and this was used when we walked outside on the pavement, but that memory almost certainly comes from the age of two or three.

World events: NATO was created; and the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb.

< Jul 1949 – Sep 1949>

August 1944 (80 years)

Dad took his final radar exam on 14th and found out on 15th that he’d passed and was being posted to Inverness. He was also troubled that his girlfriend at the time, Libby, was not as interested in him as he’d assumed.

After leave in Cirencester from 16th he left for Inverness on 22nd via Paddington, Kings Cross, and overnight to Edinburgh, then via Perth to Inverness on 23rd. He was then told he was being posted to Northern Ireland instead! On 25th it was another rail journey via Perth and Glasgow to Dumfries and on 26th to Stranraer for the boat to Larne and then Belfast. With his friends Joe and Tony he caught a ‘funny’ train to Cookstown and then RAF transport to Ballinderry radar station. The photo shows part of a Chain Home radar site, similar to Ballinderry.

On the 31st Dad went to the village shop in Coagh and wrote in his diary ‘talked to girl for long time’. That girl, four years later, became my Mum!

World events: The Warsaw uprising began; and the world’s first undersea oil pipeline was laid between England and France (to supply fuel to the advancing allied forces).

< Jul 1944 – Sep 1944>

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Blast from the past… 20

We saw her through check-in and then waited with her on the tarmac, waving goodbye as she walked out to board the plane.

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Notes from bygone years – Julys duly described
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.

July 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

We decided to take the plunge and install solar panels on our roof. We had a long wait as demand was high, but the installers arrived in July and after a few days work we were delighted to have the system reducing our electricity bills to almost nothing. Of course, we knew it would be different in the winter months, but with a 10 kWh battery included, we found we could get right through the night on our own stored energy in the summer.

I was also experimenting with a reduced eating window, having breakfast around 11:00. I’ve tried restricted eating before, but this time I’m following evidence-based suggestions from Zoe (see also the Zoe website) .

JHM: I posted the first article on our North Coast 500 trip; and an early version of Blast from the past. – World events: New Zealand signed a free trade agreement with the EU; and the films Barbie and Oppenheimer opened.

< Jun 2023 – Aug 2023 >

July 2022 (2 years before publishing)

*JJ Band* in the Abbey Grounds, Cirencester

I was doing Monday walks most weeks with my friend Stephen. We met at one of CBC’s Small Groups here in Stratton, and we got on really well together. Among other interests, Stephen played saxophone in the ‘JJ Band’. We shared similar views on many things and both had backgrounds in computing.

Stephen lived in the town so I’d usually walk down to meet him, we’d enjoy a walk in the park, and often buy coffees from the van or sometimes in town. I always looked forward to my Monday walks.

JHM: The conservative government seemed to be sinking. – World events: The James Webb Space Telescope‘s first operational image was released; and severe heatwaves began in Europe.

< Jun 2022 – Aug 2022 >

July 2019 (5 years before)

This was a busy month, I walked several sections of the old Thames and Severn Canal (something I’ve been doing again in 2024), we were regularly arranging the chairs at CBC on Fridays, and two people I knew died, Bob Morris and then Michael Sleggs.

Donna’s Dad was getting weaker and his Parkinson’s symptoms were worsening, so her Mum was needing more help than before and we travelled to Poole to help out more often.

World events: Japan resumed commercial whaling; and Boris Johnson became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

< Jun 2019 – Aug 2019 >

July 2014 (10 years)

We were living in St Neots, this is a view of the River Great Ouse flowing through the town centre, an easy walk from our house in Eaton Ford. Donna was looking for a school placement for her teaching, I was meeting with a group of friends in coffee shops, hanging out, doing Bible study here and there, hopefully helping people grow and thrive. I was also meeting at home with friends from various local churches.

World events: Israel attacked the Gaza Strip; and a Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down over Ukraine by a missile.

< Jun 2014 – Aug 2014 >

July 2009 (15 years)

I went to a house church conference and was astonished to bump into my friend Jim Russell there. He’d always thought my views on church were not right, yet here he was! We had some great conversation and he took my photo while I took his. I had no idea that this would be the last time I’d see him.

JHM: I posted on how church has been unfaithful. – World events: There was a memorial service for Michael Jackson; and Iceland’s parliament decided to attempt to join he EU.

< Jun 2009 – Aug 2009 >

July 2004 (20 years)

Donna took part in the Bedford Race for Life organised by Cancer Research UK, along with her friends Gayna and Claire, pictured here wearing their medals. There was a big turn out, along with large numbers of pink-themed balloons and so forth.

World events: Cassini–Huygens arrived at Saturn; and Russia stopped accepting Soviet passports for ID.

< Jun 2004 – Aug 2004 >

July 1999 (25 years)

We were living in Donna’s cottage near Kimbolton and had decided it was much too small for us both. We’d been looking for somewhere larger and the image shows a survey document for the house in St Neots that we eventually bought.

World events: Europol became fully occupational; and NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory was launched.

< Jun 1999 – Aug 1999 >

July 1994 (30 years)

We visited Mum and Dad in Cirencester on my birthday. As usual we enjoyed spending time with my parents. The photo shows my nephew Tom, my Mum, Beth and Judy chatting together in the back garden. Rachael, Dan, Rosie and Tom were here the same day so it was good to see them too.

World events: Jeff Bezos founded Amazon; and fragments of Comet Shoemaker–Levy collided with Jupiter.

< Jun 1994 – Aug 1994 >

July 1989 (35 years)

Debbie flew to Bordeaux on her French exchange trip (her exchange partner, Anne, had come to stay with us in March). We saw her through check-in and then waited with her on the tarmac, waving goodbye as she walked out to board the plane.

It seemed very strange to drive back home again without her.

World events: The world’s first high definition TV broadcasts began in Japan; the Tiananmen Square protests took place in Beijing; and the wreck of the Bismarck was found 600 miles from the French coast.

< Jun 1989 – Aug 1989 >

July 1984 (40 years)

We had a summer holiday travelling through Wales from south to north, staying at bed and breakfast places (gwely a brecwast). A few days before we set out, there was a fairly large earthquake, and in Bethesda our landlady was anxious as aftershocks were still continuing. The photo shows Debbie and Beth at the top of Snowdon with a train waiting at the summit station.

World events: Cirque du Soleil was founded in Canada; and Virgin Atlantic made its inaugural flight.

< Jun 1984 – Aug 1984 >

July 1979 (45 years)

This was a short note on a combined staining method for plum reproductive tissues, to aid microscopical studies of the fertilisation process. It wasn’t published as a scientific paper as far as I recall, but was part of a poster presentation at a conference. I hoped other people would try it on different kinds of plant material so that together we could get a much broader view of its usefulness. I don’t think anything came of it in the end, but it’s important to try – that’s part of how science works.

World events: The Sony Walkman first went on sale in Japan; and NASA’s Skylab space station re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere.

< Jun 1979 – Aug 1979 >

July 1974 (50 years)

Judy must have become pregnant about this time, but we didn’t know that until a little later, of course.

The Severn Bridge was only eight-years-old, and it still seemed amazing that we could drive to Wales instead of queuing for the old Aust Ferry or driving all the way to Gloucester. And there was no thought of a second crossing, of course! I took this photo, but forgot to adjust the focus (no auto-focus in those days).

World events: Turkey invaded Cyprus; and Australia changed all road signs from miles to km and from mph to kph.

< Jun 1974 – Aug 1974 >

July 1969 (55 years)

I was lodging at Archgrove House in Long Ashton along with other students working at the Research Station that summer. Judy sent me the postcard from York (pictured) where she was on holiday with her parents and brother Frank. You won’t believe what her Dad said about York Minster!

World events: John Fairfax was the first person to row solo across an ocean (the Atlantic); and Neil Armstrong was the first to walk on the Moon (we watched this live at Archgrove House).

< Jun 1969 – Aug 1969>

July 1964 (60 years)

Dad drove out to the gravel pits near South Cerney. Some of these were still being used to extract gravel, but some had been worked out and were used by anglers, for swimming, and for water-skiing which we’d never seen before. I took two cameras with me, my old Kodak Starmite loaded with 127 colour transparency film, and my new Kodak Retinette loaded with 35 mm black and white. This photo shows Dad using his camera and my sisters Rachael, Ruth and Cindy.

World events: Malawi became independent of the UK; and NASA’s Ranger 7 send back the first close-up images of the Moon.

< Jun 1964 – Aug 1964>

July 1959 (65 years)

I thought you might like to see this birthday letter from my Grandpa. He had emphysema, and died on 22nd August, my 11+ results came in before that and he knew that I had passed. Granny had decided that a sleeping bag would be a useful present as I was off to Cub Camp soon after my birthday and would then move up to the Scouts.

World events: A 49th star (for Alaska) was briefly added to the US flag; and the first Australopithecus skull was discovered in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania.

< Jun 1959 – Aug 1959>

July 1954 (70 years)

This is a postcard from my Mum to her family back in Northern Ireland. She writes about Cindy and me suffering from chicken pox. I had it before Cindy, so it’s likely I gave it to her (sorry, Cindy). Read the card.

World events: Food rationing ended in the UK; and Tolkien’s ‘The Fellowship of the Ring‘ was published.

< Jun 1954 – Aug 1954>

July 1949 (75 years)

My very first birthday came at the end of the month, a special day, no doubt, with doting parents and grandparents. I must have had other birthday cards, but this one from Watermoor Church is the only survivor. That’s interesting in itself; Mum would have kept them all for a while, but this one seemed more important, perhaps because of Mum and Dad’s strong faith.

On the back of the card is written, ‘Christopher James Jefferies, 37 Victoria Road, baptised October 24^th 1948′.

World events: The UK’s NHS began working; and the 1948 Summer Olympics started in London.

< Jun 1949 – Aug 1949>

July 1944 (80 years)

Dad, along with his friend Joe, travelled by lorry, train and bus to Yatesbury where radar training began for them and many others. Dad liked this posting, writing, ‘Radar people seem a good lot’. He was able to hitch home in two or three hours to see the family in Cirencester, sometimes Joe came along too. By the end of the month Dad and others were using radar equipment to plot movements of real aircraft (‘pukka kites’). The photo shows an old aircraft hanger at Yatesbury in 2014.

< Jun 1944 – Aug 1944>

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Useful? Interesting?

Blast from the past… 19

The field was a lovely thing to have, we and all our neighbours shared it and it became a place to relax, a sort of unofficial reserve at the end of the garden.

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Notes from bygone years – Sing along to some crazy Junes
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.

June 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)

Donna and I had a Scottish holiday; we flew to Inverness Airport and took a hire car anticlockwise around the North Coast 500. It was an amazing journey! The photo is of Dunrobin Castle in Sutherland early on the road trip. We saw many interesting features in the towns and villages, the countryside, geology, and coastline. Definitely a holiday to remember.

JHM: I began writing up the trip and may complete this series one day; and I introduced Yara and Konstantin to my readers. – World events: Russia caused massive flooding in Ukraine; and the submersible, Titan, imploded at depth.

< May 2023 – July 2023 >

June 2022 (2 years before publishing)

We walked a section of the Cotswold Way with Donna’s brother Paul and his wife Vanessa.

This view is from a point near the old ‘Air Balloon‘ pub, now demolished to make way for road improvements. The view is north-west towards Gloucester; Crickley Hill is on the right and peeping up beyond it is Churchdown Hill. Coopers Hill rises from the horizon on the left of the image. Hazy in the far distance are the Malverns and Wales beyond.

World events: There was a G7 summit in Germany to discuss events in Ukraine; and a NATO summit was held in Madrid.

< May 2022 – Jul 2022 >

June 2019 (5 years before)

Vanessa was running in an event from Sharpness to Gloucester along the old ship canal. Paul, Donna and I made the same trip by car, stopping to watch her pass at several points along the way. After completing her run she joined us in the old docks area, now being redeveloped and including the Gloucester Quays shopping centre.

World events: US President Trump made a state visit to the UK; and Hong Kong suspended an extradition law during protests.

< May 2019 – Jul 2019 >

June 2014 (10 years)

It was Aidan’s eighth birthday in June and he had an animal themed birthday with everyone able to hold and interact with many different creatures. The photo shows Meredith getting all wound up about a snake! Ten years ago all our grandchildren enjoyed themed birthday parties; and my word, didn’t we have some amazing themes!

JHM: I wrote about faith, hope and love in prayer. – World events: Islamic State declared itself to be a caliphate; and Felipe VI became King of Spain.

< May 2014 – Jul 2014 >

June 2009 (15 years)

We met our newest grandchild for the first time (that’s the one on the right in the photo). Verity was only a few days old, and it was lovely to see her already holding a philosophical conversation with her Dad. But seriously – new life is such a precious and wonderful gift.

JHM: I wrote about FriendFeed, later sadly bought and killed by Facebook; and protests in the streets in Tehran. – World events: Analog TV closed down in the USA; and Michael Jackson died.

< May 2009 – Jul 2009 >

June 2004 (20 years)

We travelled to Cornwall with Mum and Dad and spent a lovely week staying in Mevagissey. Here we are inside the Mediterranean dome at the Eden Project. We also enjoyed the Lost Gardens of Heligan; Barbara Hepworth’s house and garden; and, not least, the lovely fishing village of Mevagissey itself.

World events: There was a transit of Venus; and SpaceShipOne became the first privately funded spacecraft to carry crew into space.

< May 2004 – Jul 2004 >

June 1999 (25 years)

I bought my first electronic camera with 640 x 480 resolution, ie 0.3 megapixels! We had a week’s holiday in Scotland with our friends Rob and Jean, staying in a log cabin between Fort William and Loch Ness. The photo (taken on my new camera) shows Rob, Jean and Donna in Leakey’s, an Inverness second-hand bookshop.

World events: Napster was created to share music online; NATO stopped air strikes when Slobodan Milošević agreed to remove his forces from Kosovo.

< May 1999 – Jul 1999 >

June 1994 (30 years)

Beth had bought a small kite when we went to the Bristol Kite Festival in Ashton Park, and here she’s flying it on a windy day in the field at the bottom of our garden in Stowey Road, Yatton. The field was a lovely thing to have, we and all our neighbours shared it and it became a place to relax, a sort of unofficial reserve at the end of the garden.

World events: The film, ‘The Lion King‘ was released by Disney; the last Russian troops left Germany; and MS-DOS was no longer supported by Microsoft.

< May 1994 – Jul 1994 >

June 1989 (35 years)

Dad sold us his old car, a Volkswagon, and we drove to Cirencester in Jumbo to collect it. Here, Judy is about to travel home in Jumbo, and I followed shortly afterwards in the VW with Debbie and Beth. A little later we sold our old Marina for not very much; it had served us well, but was now near the end of its life.

< May 1989 – Jul 1989 >

June 1984 (40 years)

It was about this time that we waved goodbye to Computer Tutor and the Clever Clogs range of software. I wrote some simple educational games for the Sinclair Spectrum, just for my daughters to use; and brother-in-law, Peter, developed the concept as a viable business and extended the range considerably. By this time Peter had sold the business to Argus Press Software, and none of us remained involved.

World events: Cirque du Soleil was founded in Canada; and Virgin Atlantic made its inaugural flight.

< May 1984 – Jul 1984 >

June 1979 (45 years)

I was working on fruit pollination full time by now, having transferred to the Pomology and Plant Breeding Section at Long Ashton Research Station. I had a particular interest in temperature effects on pollen tube growth. By June I would be starting to study the samples I’d collected earlier in the season. The squiggly, yellow lines in the picture are pollen tubes.

World events: A black-led government took over from Ian Smith in ‘Zimbabwe Rhodesia‘, now Zimbabwe; and the first direct elections to the European Parliament took place.

< May 1979 – Jul 1979 >

June 1974 (50 years)

Judy’s parents and her brother, Frank, had a chance to visit the Falconry Centre at Newent in Gloucestershire. She took my camera with her and grabbed this lovely portrait during the trip. I needed to be at work that day so couldn’t join them. Work? Day out? No brainer, really, but it just wasn’t going to happen, sadly.

World events: A bomb exploded in Westminster Hall; and Isabel Perón was sworn in as the first female President of Argentina.

< May 1974 – Jul 1974 >

June 1969 (55 years)

I was working on the final sandwich section of my Bath University Horticulture course. I’d been assigned to Long Ashton Research Station (LARS) near Bristol and worked for Eddie Catlow and Martin on the experimental farm team. This placement had the advantage that Judy and I were be able to meet up at weekends.

World events: There was a serious collision between an Australian aircraft carrier and a US destroyer; and Judy Garland died in her London home.

< May 1969 – Jul 1969>

June 1964 (60 years)

I was taking my O-level exams at Cirencester Grammar School. The photo shows a page from one of my exercise books (not related to an exam). ‘The happiest days of your life’, people told me. But I found exams a real trial, suffering with intense hay fever made far worse by everyone wanting the windows wide open because of hot weather.

World events: Greece rejected direct talks with Turkey over Cyprus; and Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment in South Africa.

< May 1964 – Jul 1964>

June 1959 (65 years)

This month brought Rachael’s 2nd birthday, Ruth’s 3rd, Dad’s 33rd and Grandpa’s 80th, I was still 10 in June, nearly 11. We were living at Queen Anne’s Road in Cirencester, the photo shows me, Rachael, Cindy and Ruth playing in and around the blow up paddling pool in the back garden. Summers seemed to go on forever in those days!

World events: The USS George Washington was launched as the first submarine to carry ballistic missiles; and Queen Elizabeth II and President Eisenhower opened the Saint Lawrence Seaway.

< May 1959 – Jul 1959>

June 1954 (70 years)

In June I was enjoying the start of the long summer school holiday. I was still five-years-old (nearly six) so this was my first school summer holiday. I probably felt very grown up to think that when I went back in September I would be in the second year. Meanwhile I had time to play inside or out in the garden.

The image is a slate sculpture of Alan Turing at Bletchley Park.

World events: Alan Turing committed suicide (he was 41); and UEFA was formed in Switzerland.

< May 1954 – Jul 1954>

June 1949 (75 years)

Dad had his 23rd birthday in June, but of course I was not yet storing long term memories so I don’t remember it. But at nearly eleven months I’m sure I joined in the fun and certainly would have appreciated cake if there was one! It’s likely I was able to stand if I had something to hold on to, and I might have been able to say a few words, but any notes Mum and Dad might have made have been lost.

World events: A rhesus monkey, Albert II, was the first primate in space but died on return due to parachute failure; and the first TV Western, Hopalong Cassidy, aired in the USA.

< May 1949 – Jun 1949>

June 1944 (80 years)

Dad noted in his diary on his birthday (4th June) that the city of Rome had been taken. And on the 6th he wrote:

‘D. Day!! At last the second front has started. Was transferred to C. shed. Was on guard at 2 Site all night and spent pleasant evening in guard room. Listened to Montgomery and King on radio. Wrote to Phillip and Ronald. Letter from Nor.’

(Nor was his mother, and later my Granny).

At the end of the month he heard unofficially that he was to be posted to Yatesbury (a centre dedicated to radar training).

< May 1944 – Jul 1944>

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