20th Century
Nostalgia Album, Orléans
In the old photo above we observe Orléans cathedral at the end of a wide cobbled street with a row of cars parked on the right hand side. Not its real name (Basilique Cathédrale Sainte-Croix [more…]
20th Century
20th Century
Liquid Thoughts on Beer
I was gratified recently to find that my uncle, John Alldridge, occasionally took time off in the 1940s from reporting World War II and its aftermath to concentrate on more important matters, as can be [more…]
20th Century
One Degree of Separation
My niece tapped on the home office door. When she was smaller I would babysit and sell her pieces of paper as her need to draw and write would keep her occupied. Yes, sell. We [more…]
20th Century
Queen Elizabeth the Great
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor, a wife, a mother, an animal lover, a mechanic, a war veteran, a head of many states and our dutiful Queen. Her majesty has so sadly departed on her journey from [more…]
20th Century
Nostalgia Album, Lourdes
Unlike my father, grandparents and daughter, I’ve never been to Lourdes. Given the proliferation of places of worship that have sprung up around the Pyrenean town since the visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to [more…]
20th Century
My Legends of Pop Music – Part Sixty – ELO
I suspect many of you will know my top legends of pop music. The fabulous ELO. They have never done a song I did not like, be them singles or albums. I often play their [more…]
20th Century
Champagne, a Plan and A Philosopher
On New Year’s Eve 1946, my uncle reviewed his first year at home since the end of the War for the Manchester Evening News. It would seem that at times he was finding it hard [more…]
20th Century
Meeting The Queen
I have a little anecdote on meeting The Queen. My late father was born in Lewisham, London and was brought up by working class parents in a council estate. After he got demobbed from the [more…]
20th Century
Nostalgia Album, Admired From Nevers to Carlisle
Admired from Nevers to Carlisle As my grandfather’s Ford 8 made its intrepid conquest of the 7,000ft high Pyrenean pass of Col de Tourmalet during the return trip from Gibraltar to Carlisle, we fell upon [more…]