GREAT EXPECTATIONS – FAMILY HISTORY

chandos arms , weston turville - pub my forefathers probably drank in

 

Was researching family history this weekend around Aylesbury , Bucks. It appears that my forefathers worked on the land as agricultural labourers, then there was a big livestock famine in the 18th century when I’m assuming they probably couldn’t get work so moved to London. The various census’ of the time after they left have them down as Horsekeepers, Dairyman and working in stables in London around Lambeth and the Elephant and Castle.

All the arable land around the area in Aylesbury was bought up by the Rothschild’s family[ they have 4 large mansions in the area], one of mansions is now the officers mess at RAF Halton, I understand they still own the land to this day. You can read more about the Rothchilds in Wikipedia. My wife suggested I go inside the pub at the top of my Great Great Grandfathers lane where he lived in the 1820’s in Weston Turville and speak to the landlord, as I went inside I was a bit apprehensive as there were a couple of young barstaff, I asked them did they know when the pub was built, they said they didn’t but would get the landlord as he may know.

A few minutes later the landlord an old gentlemen came up to me at the bar and told me the pub was built in the 1830’s, I assumed he was a local man until he asked me where I came from, I always say the ‘ Old Kent Road’ because people recognise it from the Monopoly Board game and it gives them a frame of references, ‘that’s where I’m from’ he replied, I used to sell seafood outside the Thomas A’Beckett pub and I’m a Millwall supporter, so we reminisced about that area for a good half an hour. I found it ironic that my expectation of meeting locals from my families village who could have added to my research culminated in spending more time reminiscing about the area I had just driven from.

Ah well this is life, you always expect one thing to happen and get upset when something else happens, we want certainties in a world of uncertainty.

As Dickens explained so wonderfuly – GREAT EXPECTATIONS

Faithful to the Rothchilds to the end - not a member of my family thank goodness!!!

We’ll never see these characters again

I was saddened last week to hear about the death of that great Scottish Trade Unionist, author , journalsist and campaigner Jimmy Reid – ‘the best MP Scotland never had’ is one of the epiphets ascribed to him, because he was too honest. You can get his full funeral coverage by going to Google and putting in ‘Jimmy Reid funeral STV’ where you can hear the great stories and moving tributes about his life from among many including Billy Connelly and Sir Alex Ferguson.

I liked him because he had a vision and passion in his voice, a self educated working class man who started reading about philosophy when he was 14, Alex Ferguson couldn’t understand when they grew up together how Jimmy didn’t want to play football but spend his spare time in the library. He said he allways had a spring in his step as if he knew where he was going and he was going to do something important. Obviously like other radical trade Union leaders he was vilified in the press at times but he always managed to conduct himself with dignity, I remember when he was debating on the Parkinson Show with Kenneth Williams how articulate and cogent he was, apparently in the green room before the show Kenneth Williams recited and old english poem to Jimmy and was surprised when Jimmy knew who had written it, Jimmy then recited a poem to Williams and asked him who wrote that one, Williams said ashamedly that he didn’t know, Jimmy replied ‘I wrote it!!’

Whether you agreed with his philosophy and politics or not you cannot help admiring a man who stood up for his principles and those of his fellow man , alot different to the career sanatised polticians of  today who are carachterless.

Look on the internet for some of his speeches especialy the one about the ‘rat race’, also look in you tube and put in Jimmy Reid to get tributes to him and if you don’t remember him hear him speak ,a great orator.

Finaly my favourite story was when John Lennon heard about how the shipbuilders had taken over the shipyard to have a ‘work in’ he sent a cheque for £5000, Jimmy opened the letter and because it was raining couldn’t quite see who the letter and money was from, he said we have recieved a large ammount of money from someone er it looks like Lenin, someone in the crowd said ‘that can’ e’ be, he died after the Russian Revolution !!’

I love the humour and spirit, as Billy Connelly said ‘I loved Jimmy and Jimmy loved me, he told me so’ can you imagine Gordon Brown and Tony Blair saying that to each other ,which prompted me to title this Blog ‘we’ll never see these carachters again’,

SOCIAL MEDIA AND BLOGS

Social Media and Blogs are an excellent way of getting your views across to a wider audience, as we are in a more visual age now with people rushing around and having a  less attention span making a video or showing your issue through pictures appears to be a more effective way of showing what you mean. If you are producing an annual report rather than presenting the audience with a 20 page document which very few people read show them a video of what your group or organisation has achieved , not forgetting to get the participants to say how they felt about doing the course or taking part in activities, this has far more impact.

Social media and Blogs can also be used to put your views across to the Government or Council, all public servants now have websites and can be easily contacted through emails, why not set up your own blog and post it to them on a regular basis.

Is there anything else you can think about when using new media and blogs?

me and brother couldn't afford a shirt we was so poor, when it was cold my father used to put a candle in the middle of the room, and when it was really cold he used to light it!!!!!! He was a Magician, used to saw people in half, I had a half sister and 2 half brothers!!!!!!!

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