Welcome to my first blog from this brand new website – which I might say has given me a few headaches trying to build. I was told Word Press is easy… well it is… once you get the hang of it – but getting the hang can be quite painful!
It is great that you have taken the time and trouble to find me, and I hope you will enjoy your visit. There are the opening chapters of The Nile Cat here to give you a taste of the novel which will be published shortly as an ebook.
You will also be able to see how the biography of my grandfather develops – it is based on his letters from his very first letter written at the age of five, through to his death at the age of 28 during the first battle of the Aisne in September 1914. His story begins in a world of great wealth and privilege, and ends on the edge of a forest in France. The journey from one to the other has all the necessary ingredients of a great drama… adventure, tragedy, courage, and above all love.
Does anyone have any information about the gardeners who worked at Didlington Hall? I am trying to find out when Thomas Ireland worked there (wife Edith). He was head gardener at Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire (whose gardens I am researching) from about 1905 to 1914. He was definitely at Didlington from 1921 to 1924. Did he go straight to Didlington from Newstead Abbey?