Saturday April 1, 1978

Sun rises 06:37 Sun sets 19:33

Further property speculation, Jay, the snobbish proprietor of 52, Hawksworth Lane attempted to to 'gazump' Mama and Papa for a friend, who wishes to live in this lovely area. Poor Ern was offered £750 more for his house, but he and Edith stuck to their guns and told Jay to bugger off. Friendship is nice and useful at times like this.

My health is worse, I fear. My throat is hideously swollen and a bitter, foul taste lurks on every morsel of food I devour. Poor Dave must be fed up by my moronic appearance. I am doing my utmost to undertake the scheduled functions that were already in the pipeline. Take this afternoon for instance. The whole clan trudged to Morrison's (in wet, soggy conditions)at 11:45 and afterwards we supped at the Clothiers. Ernest accompanied us too, and he told us that the pub was the first he had ever been in all those years ago. The Clothiers has a lot to answer for.

This afternoon we watched the Grand National. Red Rum was nowhere to be seen and an obscure animal called Lucius won. Ernest walked away with the £2 winners prize in our own private stake, and Sue achieved second and third place.





Tonight we went to the Hare to collect Christine. She was in a foul mood & I was immediately depressed by her attitude. From here we joined the mob at the Shoulder of Mutton where Christine and I poured booze over each other and hurtled abuse. Peter's friends watched us with glassy eyes and panting breath. Christine never fails to be a sex symbol on these occasions. She inspires boys to be men with no trouble at all. Anyway, to leave Helen of Troy on one side for a minute I'll just say we joined John and Maria at Oakwood Hall which was abominable. Heat unbearable. Drinking pints of perspiration. I thought Maria was going to keel over and die. Susan wanted to leave early and so we left at 1am. Slept on the way home. Throat is chronic.




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Wednesday December 14, 1977

_Went with Mum and Dad into the depths of Leeds to see Great Aunt Annie (Kirk), my grandmother Rhodes's sister. Uncle John, at the door, wouldn't let us in, and shouted through the letter box: 'Come back nearer Christmas!' They thought we were Carol singers. She was thrilled to see us and told us tales of hilarity about her father, Charlie Henty. Henty, a jockey, married Polly Upton, my great-grandmother, some years after the birth of my grandmother. My grandmother's father is an unknown quantity, if you get my meaning. It seems that Charlie broke both ankles in a pre-1914 Grand National. How intriguing.

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Saturday April 2, 1977

Wait all day for Dave G and Glenn. Watched the Grand National on TV at 3.30. Red Rum won for the third time making history. We had a private bet on at home. Sue backed the winner.One of mine fell at the first fence and had to be destroyed.

with CB, Ruth and Dave G.

The lads arrived at about 4 o'clock. They're both in great shape. Tea of haddock flan, then down to the off licence for booze and on to the Hare. John, Maria, Lynn, Dave B, Sue, Pete, Chris R, Miss Dibb, Graham Airey, Andy, Linda, Carol Smith and boyfriend, little Jean, and later Mum and Dad, CB, Judith and Kathryn, &c. All back to Pine Tops. A real piss up. Don't remember much. Do recall wearing sunglasses and annoying people playing John's mouth organ. I almost set myself on fire trying to take a group photograph from the top of the fireplace in the lounge. Freaking out until 5am.

As far as I know only Martyn, Ruth, Judith and Kathryn, Dave G, Dave B, Glenn and I were the only ones remaining at dawn, and others, who have no grave but the sea, may well have been fighting it out until the bitter end. I found refuge in my bed. CB was unconscious on Lynn's bed and subsequently my sister was relegated to sleeping on the bedroom floor. I did the washing up and clearing around before passing out. Yes,I am made of the stuff that made England great. Christopher Columbus, Robert the Bruce, Hereward the Wake - all stout Englishmen who pioneered to achieve the greatest empire since F.W. Woolworth opened all them shops.

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Saturday April 5, 1975

Here it is again - my birthday. Excuse me if the writing is different but I'm using a strange pen. Yes, as I was saying, here it is again. Happy Birthday, Michael, Baby! My teens are done with forever. The days of youth are through and as Dave L pointed out, I'm 'a fifth of a century old'.

Wake up at about 10 and make tea for poor, darling Christine, who is sound asleep on the lounge settee. It begins to snow, and we sit about laughing and joking for about an hour. She disappears down the lane in a blizzard and I settle down to open my cards.Dave L's is the best. A bereavement card! 'Our Sorrow is with You at This Time', and words to that effect. Play about with the typewriter and entertain Gillian, who calls round with my birthday card.

Mum and Dad are in a foul mood to start with, but pull round in the afternoon. £4 from Mama, and £3 from Sue and Peter.

The Grand National today. L'Escargot won. Mum, Dad, John and I backed eight horses each. Dad had the winner and Mum the second.

To the Hare and Hounds at 7 with Mum, Dad and John. Darling Christine joins us ten minutes later, and I tell her that I'm crazy over her. She doesn't believe me. I'll have to wait to see what reaction she profers.

Everyone gathers and the coach leaves for Kikos at 8.30. A forty five minute journey and I almost burst my bladder on the way. Fantastic evening. Rum and orange all night. Involved in a slight tussle and cut my finger, but nothing horrific. Bit of an orgy really. Had a request played and carry on very nicely. Leave at 2.15 for home and have a 'Sing along' on the way with Mr Lawson and Miss Braithwaite. Cook until 5 for Jackie and Neil and crawl into bed at about 6 o'clock.

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Saturday March 31, 1973

Awoke at about 11 o'clock. Played the Diana Ross LP until nearly 2. Dad and Mum came into the lounge at 3 to watch the Grand National on the telly. Incidentally, Mum received a bunch of flowers from us four this morning as a Mother's Day gift. It cost us £2. They must obviously stick their prices up on Mother's Day. Before the race began Mum suggested that she, Dad, John and I should put a bob into a kitty, the winner of the race taking all. John declined to play, saying he was against gambling. But at about 3.10 he gave in and put a 5p bet on a horse. Our horses were:- Dad....Spanish Steps Mum.Mr Vimy John..L'escargot me.....Princess Camilla John's came third and Dad's came in fourth. However, at 3.30 when the race had been won by some outsider Dad refused to pay John, saying John had never actually agreed to the bet. At 7 when I was going out to work they were still squabbling about this. Was I glad to get out? At 4 John, Mum, Dad and I went to Yeadon shopping. Mum, Dad, and John went to Morrison's whilst I went to the record shop. We were there for about 1 and a half hours. John bought an axe for work. The bloke who sold it to him kept saying: " it'll go up 10 per cent with VAT, lad. No point in waiting for't price to go up. Buy it nah, lad." Went to work at 7. Booked up all night. Quite easy night really. Toffer brought me home after Pauline had told us her troubles and worries about her father's gambling debts and misfortunes. The Duke of Gloucester is 73 today. He hasn't been seen in public since the late 1960s. The officials always say he is suffering from a severe illness, whereby public duties are impossible, but I rather think he is a recluse. He was never a popular Royal. He always seemed too aloof. --==--