Category Archives: The stuff of daily life

“Sid was a boy from the streets.” My mother recalled the conversation at her first meeting with my paternal grandmother some sixty-five years ago. My grandmother had been dismissive of my mother’s interest and had steered the conversation in another … Continue reading →

The market research survey was on expenditure in health care. A question asked how much I had spent on prescription items the previous month. It then asked what medications would still be bought if the amount had to be cut … Continue reading →

“It’s free to be kind,” says graffiti on a hoarding of a building site. The graffiti is written with a black marker, the letters are no more than six inches high. Only someone passing on foot would even notice the … Continue reading →

In the 2019 film Yesterday, Jack, the lead character, wakes up from a blackout to find the world is exactly as he remembered, except for one thing, The Beatles have disappeared from history. Jack is the only person familiar with … Continue reading →

The 1921 Census revealed the whereabouts of my late grandfather. He was living at 38 Holly Road, Chiswick in the house of Arundel Martha Rideout.  Mrs Rideout, twice widowed, had entered my grandfather’s name as “Sydney Poulton,” had put “deserted” … Continue reading →