Eugenia Tadolini
Peter Wintersgill gives brief details on the life of Eugenia Tadolini who appeared in the premieres of two Donizetti operas.
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Peter Wintersgill gives brief details on the life of Eugenia Tadolini who appeared in the premieres of two Donizetti operas.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Guiseppe Taddei who made his opera debut in Rome.
...Some men and most boys just can’t help themselves. When they are attracted to danger and adventure, personal cost becomes irrelevant. Girls are cautious and too imaginative about the consequences to themselves, to risk doing something like that...
Mary Pearl suggests that if nature cannot be changed it can at least be tweaked a bit.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Fanny Tacchinardi Persiani who created the role of Donizetti' s Lucia di Lammermoor
...The midwife asked me if I wanted to cut the cord. Although I was not keen to start with, I reasoned it was now or never, so taking my courage in both hands, I severed the link from mother to child and physically and symbolically set Theadora free. Or is she?...
Mary Pilfold-Allan thinks we are putting our children and ourselves into modern-day shackles by smothering our lives in fear and dread.
...A carton of orange juice, a couple of tiramisu, two slices of gala pie, a beetroot salad, a tube of toothpaste, a Daily Telegraph, a pack of toilet rolls, a bottle of tomato ketchup.
This was his life.
Pathetic...
But if you're lucky you find something far more important than groceries in your local supermarket, as Brian Lockett's deliciously satisfying tale reveals.
...Eden turned his smile on in his seventh week (three days according to his daddy) and he hasn’t stopped since. Actually I would call it more of a grin than a smile. And Eden is not selective about the recipients of his benevolence; old, young, beautiful, ugly, everyone and everything in his line of sight gets a big dose. My theory about that radiant grin is that he is expanding his approval to the world around him...
Mary Pearl conveys the unmatchable joy of being a grandmother.
…Some people I know can get so absorbed in dinner party conversation that they can forget for minutes at a time that they’re holding a fork laden down with bits of lamb and roast potato. Not me. I’m not capable of keeping up an impersonal relationship with lamb and roast potatoes. Especially if there’s gravy involved…
Mary Pearl wrestles, to our reading delight, with her over-eager appetite.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Set Svanholm, regarded in his day as the leading Wagner tenor.
A holiday in the Lake District and North Yorkshire inspired Eileen Perrin to write poetryl.
...Billy watched enchanted, mesmerized, caught in the magic of the sight before his eyes.. The thought came to him again that she looked like an angel, a wood nymph, a fairy, a ballerina all the beautiful beings in his sisters’ books combined together, unearthly but perfect...
Miriam McAtee tells a mysterious and magical story.
...Because a two and a half kilo morsel has brought my mortality home to me in a way that arthritic kneecaps and failing eyesight has failed to. I’ve learned to adjust to my slowly disintegrating body, by ignoring it. The secret to feeling twenty-one when you are fifty-something is to ignore Newton’s law of gravity, and the mirror. Now I find myself checking out sagging chins and crows’ feet. It’s all downhill and across the New South Wales border from here on in...
Despite becoming aware of the aging process Mary Pearl was delighted to become a long-distance grandmother.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Susan Sunderland, Yorkshire's Queen of Song.
William James Symons tells a Christmas tale to warm the hearts of readers at any time of year.
...soldiers carried the coffin into church on their shoulders and the family followed in deep grief. He was just nineteen years old. His life had barely begun.
The scene in our village has been repeated in towns and villages throughout the nation. We are not used to it. Since World War II ended there have been other wars but in the last few years the evidence of the latest conflicts has been coming home in body bags. ..
As another British victim of warfare returns home in a coffin, Mary Pilfold-Allan calls on politicians to search their consciences and speak the truth about our reasons for being at war.
Continue reading "Every One Is A Mother’s Son Or Daughter" »
Margaret Dunn recalls her sudden and dramatic decision in 1967 to leave Edinburgh and live in Zambia.
"Even a zany idea can have the germ of something great,'' says Val Yule, continuing her persuasive demand that thinkers should be encouraged rather than being laughed at.
...Miss said, Now, first of all, put up your hands, all the girls who do ballet, because I shall choose some of you for a Dance of Spring. Straight away some of the boys made a rude noise but Miss gave them a look. Some of the girls put up their hands and I put up my hand. Susan Jones saw me. Her eyes went like a fish, like the eyes in the whiting that Mum gets for our cat to eat. Susan whispered, You don't do ballet. I said that I did. You don't, you're a liar...
In this brilliant and compellingly readable slice of autobiography Jacqueline Finesilver takes herself back to her childhood and teen years.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the professional life of singer Giuseppina Strepponi who married Verdi.
Peter Wintersgill tells of a singer whom Handel invited to sing in his operas.
...Finished ceramics were awaiting delivery to the tourist flesh pot. At least I would be spared that job later in the week. Only a couple of miles but a nightmare journey on our uneven track. I had always been unnerved by this pottery room. I had never liked the atmosphere; my dog refused to venture down this end of the yard. Thankfully I closed the door for the last time.
All was quiet in the yard. No sign of Keri. Since I’d told her about my new job she had been frosty...
Jean Cowgill's atmospheric tale concerns the relationship of two people in charge of a youth hostel in remote Lakeland.
John Kilburn's story tells of the the ghastliest of all honeymoons.
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to singer Julius Stockhausen who gave the public premiere of Schubert's Die Schone Mullerin in 1856.
Yvonne Lumb brings further news of the greatest natural disaster of our times.
Yvonne works for the United Nations in Haiti.
This article by Dmytro Drozdovskyi's article appeared recently in the Ukranian literary journal 'Svesvit'.
Last summer Dmytro stayed for three days in Shropshire with his friend John Waddington-Feather who has contributed many thousands of outstanding words to Open Writing. John has also contributed to 'Svesit'.
Yvonne Lumb brings a first-hand account of the Haiti earthquake.
Yvonne works for the United Nations in Haiti.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the musical life of Eleanor Steber who made her New York Met debut 1940 as Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier.
...When he got home the door was locked. Mum was out. He sat on the back step, his back to the wall and his hands in his pockets. He waited miserably. The porch kept most of the rain off. After ages, his mum came home with Paul. The fire was alight, and she had got some fish fingers. After tea he went down to the shops. He got some chewing gum and some pretend cigarettes. He went over to the field where the kids play football, but there were some big 'uns there and a police car. So he went home after a bit. Uncle Tom was sitting on the settee with mum...
John Kilburn's unforgettable story tells more about the sad, hopeless lives of some British children than a dozen lengthy Governmental reports.
Here is a new hymn written by Shirley Stow.
Peter Wintersgill lists significant dates in the career of Hans Sotin, who has sung in the world's greatest opera houses.
John Brian Leaver recalls a bleak seaside holiday in the hungry wartime years.
...When we went in, the specialist called him Michael. That's always a problem. Of course Michael is his name but he only gets called that when he's in trouble. I agonised for a bit but thought I'd better mention it. The specialist nodded when I explained, but carried on calling him Michael. Mike hung his head...
John Kilburn’s 39-year-old son Mike is a Down’s syndrome man. John is now wondering whether medical specialists are sometimes ascribing symptoms which are indicative of something curable to Down's syndrome.
“Because of my own experience I have begun to be vigilant,’’ he says.
...at my retirement party it was affectionately said they would always remember me as the one who would always help a one-legged Afghan over a stile...
Eileen Perrin and her husband Les both retired in the same year, 1986.
Eileen continues her account of her life and times.
“It’s time everyone was issued with a pair of trainers along with their pension book,’’ urges Mary Pilfold-Allan in this passionately-argued column which emphasises that older citizens should not be air-brushed out of society.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Henriette Sontag who created the title role in Weber's Euryanthe
...My workroom was at the back of the garage, buses requiring adverts were often parked out at the front. So, I'd often be seen flying along, with flapping lengths of new pasted posters draped across me, getting them from A to B, up and on, before the paste dried out....
Jacqueline Finesilver, relating chapters of her father’s life story, tells of the time Sid was fixing adverts to buses.
Rhonda Hall of Indianapolis, Indiana, sends us a selection of puns.
Anne Steward brings a story to match the mood of this special day.
John Kilburn’s seasonal story reminds us that the fraught business of buying Christmas gifts started long, long ago.
...Anyone who knows about the old trolleybuses will know about the ‘de-wirements’, those times when, at a junction or going over a breaker, one of the trolleybus booms would detach itself from its power cable. Once free it would wave about like Toscanini. There was a certain sharp corner near Hammersmith Broadway which was a kind of miniature Cape Horn. I remember a small furniture store on that corner which used to get its window smashed by the wildly flailing boom of a number 630...
Sid picks up a "guzzler'' and goes into action as a trolleybus cleaner.
Jacqueline Finesilver brings us another wonderfully entertaining episode of her father's life story.
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Oda Slobodskaya, one of the leading interpreters of Russian songs of her time.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Leo Slezak who was engaged by Mahler for the Vienna Opera.
gifted sister, and her increasing bitterness and envy caused her to do a terrible thing one afternoon. Emma and Sarah were in the sitting room, Emma was playing the piano. The only other people in the house were Mrs Dean and my grandmother. The music coming from the sitting room stopped suddenly and in it's place came a terrible scream...
Tim Mcaffrey tells a story which you will never forget.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Giulietta Simionato, winner of the Bel Canto competition in Florence.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Margarethe Siems who made her operatic debut in Prague.
...Unless you are fortunate enough to have the capacity of a camel, the one thing that everyone needs when they are out is a WC, toilet or loo, call it what you will...
Mary Pilfold-Allan raises a subject that is rarely talked about but is a matter requiring prompt legislation.
To read more of Mary's telling articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Amy Shuard who made her operatic debut in Johannesburg.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Senesino who sang with Handel's company in London in the 1720s.
...“I bet you never get any trouble from them, do you?” he said. “The Chinese revere their teachers, as they do their elders. They see teachers as the font of all knowledge and knowledge is everything.”...
Mary Pilfold-Allan is compelled by a Chinese visitor's profound remark to appreciate the paramount importance of education.
Joyce Worsfold’s poem focuses on people in dire need – and things WE can do to help them.
Peter Wintersgill presents an outline of the career of Renata Scoto, who made her opera debut in Milan in 1953.
Tim McCaffry tells of cruelty and compassion in an Irish classroom long ago.
Peter Wintersill presents an outline of the career of opera singer Graziella Sciutti.
Great’ma, now spending most of her time in bed, derives amusement and pleasure from her storehouse of memories.
Jackie Mallinson continues her novel of family relationships and secrets.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the musical career of Elizabeth Schumann, one of the best-loved singers of her day.
Owen Clement tells an intriguing tale about an old grandfather clock.
Amazing, the thoughts which occurred to those ancient Egyptians, as Ron Pataky’s poem reveals.
Do visit Ron’s fun-filled Web site http://worlds-premiere-ransom-note-factory.us/
Peter Wintersgill presents an outline of the career of Elizabeth Schwarzkopf, a lyric soprano who made her operatic debut in Berlin.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Austrian born Ernestine Schumann Heink who spent a large part of her career singing in the USA.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the singing career of Robert Radford, a founder member of British National Opera.
Monica Howard's tale concerns the secret revealed by the bequest of a painting of the walled garden at Hampton Court Palace.
Marjorie Upson is haunted by peculiar dreams.
Do look for Marjorie's wonderful photographs in the Open Writing Gallery.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Wilhelmine Schroder Devrient who made her 0pera debut in Vienna 1821 as Pamima in Die Zauberflote.
Owen Clement tells a story of a chance meeting that brought enlightenment.
Ken Holmes was serving as an Ord/Telegraphist on H.M.S.Warwick in 1944. Here he he brings a vivid account of what happened when the Warwick was attacked on Sunday, the 20th of February in that year.
William Burkholder brings us a brilliantly funny story about what happened when two young men went to bury old man Pike who had been kept in the well shed for some months because the ground was frozen too hard for a grave to be dug.
Bill's tale will leave you longing for more "Lonnie and I'' stories - and the good news is that he promises there will be more.
Do read Bill's poetry in Open Writing http://www.openwriting.com/archives/north_american_dreaming/
...So enthusiastic was public response to the Hammersmith Palais that soon similar establishments were glowing and vibrating all over the country. The new ballrooms were the places to show off your clothes and your dancing, to listen to feel-good music, perhaps to meet the partner of your dreams...
Jacqueline Finesilver recalls the glamour, pleasure and out-of-the-ordinary experience of Palais de Danse days.
To read more of Jacqueline’s highly-entertaining articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=jacqueline+finesilver
Cyril never expected this to happen when he went in search of a marriage partner.
Brian Lockett brings his 14-part tale to a shocking end.
To read earlier episodes, and other stories by Brian, please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
Muriel discovers that in Cyril's life controlling file the section marked The Future is empty. She decides to make her own plans.
The fourteenth and concluding part of Brian Lockett's story will appear in tomorrow's Open Writing.
...I have been hanging on to a story for more than twenty years, waiting for just the right platform to launch it upon the world. It has been difficult to resist the urge to reveal all, especially when tempted by words like ‘it would make a good film’ but resist I have. Then I discovered close to the deadline that there was an award for the best unpublished biography and I pulled out all the stops. The midnight oil was well and truly burnt...
But Mary Pilfold-Allan was downcast when her biography did not make the shortlist.
However wise words from a former colleague revived her optimism, and she is now tackling the tale she has to tell from a different angle.
To read more of Mary's invariably entertaining words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Muriel and Cyril kiss for the first time - a brief kiss.
Another episode of Brian Lockett's intriguing story will appear in Open Writing tomorrow. To read earlier chapters click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
Liza Peiffer wishes all Open Writing readers to be aware that the United Nations has chosen the first Monday in October to be World Habitat Day - a day to stand up and let it be known that affordable, adequate housing should be a priority everywhere.
Liza, on behalf of Habitat for Humanity http://www.habitat.org wishes to raise awareness of the desperate world-wide shortage of adequate housing.
"Raising awareness about this global problem is the first step in making sure that everyone everywhere has a safe and decent place to call home.''
...Mrs Snaps would be a full-time, traditional housewife. She would cook, clean and generally cater for her husband’s needs. In return her husband would provide her with a very generous sum of money every month. She would follow closely the routine worked out over many years and now set out in detail in the folders....
Muriel finds out what life would be like with Cyril.
Brian Lockett's serialised story will continue in Open Writing tomorrow.
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the Hungarian singer Friedrich Schorr.
Muriel hears that she will have her own bedroom.
Brian Lockett continues his tale of an unconventional courtship.
To read earlier episodes click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
A further episode will appear in tomorrow's Open Writing.
...I am suited up in the dark blue, lead-heavy body armour and a huge helmet with a full visor. It’s hard to breathe and sweat is seriously trickling...
Anne Veronica Steward brings an unforgettable account of mine clearing operations in a Cambodian village.
A picture of Anne wearing the heavy body armour is displayed in the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds, England.
To read earlier articles about her experiences as a VSO worker in Cambodia please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2009/08/bangkok_and_bey.php
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2009/08/colourful_cambo.php
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2009/08/_up_country_whe_1.php
And here is a powerful poem prompted by that minefield visit
..."Do you mind if we have some background music?”
With a straight face Muriel said “That would be lovely. What do you usually have on Sundays? Mozart?”
“How perceptive you are, Muriel.” He seemed childishly delighted...
Muriel sees the orderliness in Cyril's home.
Brian Lockett continues his story of an unconventional courtship.
Another episode of the tale will appear in tomorrow's Open Writing.
...So she had joined Executive Match, which had now thrown up Cyril Snaps. An odd-ball if ever there was one. A kind man, as far as she could judge, who may have left his search for a life partner a little late. Perhaps he spent all his time making money and had suddenly realised that there was (or should be) more to life than that...
Muriel is on her way to see Cyril's house.
Another episode of Brian Lockett's tale will appear in tomorrow's Open Writing.
Cyril invites Muriel to Sunday lunch.
A further installment of Brian Lockett's story about an unusual courtship will appear tomorrow.
Cyril Snaps surprises his colleagues with mention of a fiancée.
Brian Lockett's serialised story of an unsual courtship will be continued tomorrow.
Muriel cannot make up her mind about Cyril Snaps.
The next episode of Brian Lockett's story in installments will appear tomorrow.
...He looked relieved, she thought, as she took him in. Fifty-something, perhaps even sixty. Dorky glasses which no-one had ever bothered to tell him about, she suspected. A slightly musty smell about him. A ridiculous moustache. Probably not used to or comfortable with women. She had met similar before. The important thing was: why wasn’t he used to women?...
It's not exactly love at first sight when Muriel sees Cyril.
Brian Lockett's story continues tomorrow.
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Paul Schoffler who created a number of Twentieth Century operatic roles.
Cyril, desperate to find a wife, arranges to meet Miss Muriel Embling, a nurse.
Brian Lockett continues his story concerning a man who must marry to further his career.
The way to the top for Cyril Snaps is barred becuase he is not married. Is he prepared to do something about that?
Brian Lockett continues his intriguing story.
Brian Lockett introduces a most orderly busineesman, Cyril Snaps. But there is one thing holding back Cyril's career advancement.
Brian's well-told tale will appear in daily episodes over the next two weeks. You are in for an entertaining ride, and a stunningly unexpected conclusion.
...Whilst chickens can never be taught to ‘speak’ on command like a dog or watch motionless from the gatepost for the return of their owner, like a cat, hens do have personality. I refuse to believe they are birdbrain or without feelings. Oust one from a picnic spread or barbecue table and make no mistake, that hen will display a real flash of temper....
Mary Pilfold-Allan points out that keeping chickens is now officially chic.
To read more of Mary’s ever-interesting columns please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Dan the Man sells more than ice cream. Some of his clientele as for special 'pick me ups'. But what will he do when he finds an old mate's wallet?
Jean Cowgill tells a tale from the real world.
...The track led us over a real wood slatted suspension bridge that swung high over the swift flowing river as the motorbikes trundled across. The spirit of ‘Indiana Jones’ was with us. I think it was Kay who uttered a little whimper as we realised that we really were going across, but it could have been me...
Anne Veronica Steward continues her vivid and engaging account of working as a VSO volunteer in Cambodia.
To read two earlier articles by Anne about her time in Cambodia please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2009/08/bangkok_and_bey.php
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2009/08/colourful_cambo.php
Continue reading " Up Country: Where French Provincial Meets Buddha." »
Paul Smith writes about one of the great mysteries of modern times.
Paul runs a vdery lively Web sitepacked with good reading. Please visit kiwiboomers.com
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Tito Schipa, a superb lyrical tenor with impeccable phrasing.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Charles Santly who was knighted for his services to music.
... Our ride back to Phnom Penh was another adventure over the cratered roads and through bustling small towns. We saw pigs trussed up in wicker baskets on the backs of motorbikes, pink bottoms getting pinker in the hot sun. Our gentle feelings were soothed when it was explained that they have an idyllic piggy life rooting about and under the stilted houses and in the family lotus pond. On market day, they are given a whopping dose of the local ‘herbal remedy’ so they go out on a ‘high’. It certainly beats factory farming, bottoms up!...
Anne Veronica Steward paints a vivid word picture of life in Cambodia where she served as a voluntary teaching advisor.
Valerie Yule hopes the thousands of visitors to Open Writing will read the following books - then tell her what they think of them.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of singer Giovanni Rubini who was a sensational success in Paris.
Anne Veronica Steward, who served as a voluntary teaching advisor, shares her first vivid impressions of colourfful Cambodia.
...The playground was officially opened a few days ago. It has, of course, been unofficially open throughout the entire works project. Every evening, once the workmen had gone, boys scaled the high metal fencing or squirmed under it, or they climbed on top of the equipment store and took a flying leap. Then they larked about. On one occasion they got the cement mixer going and made a play of man-handling each other into its mouth...
The new playground compels Sid to delve back in memory to the 1920s, when he and his mates were enjoying themselves on the Brick Heaps, their self-created play area.
To read more of Jacqueline Finesilver’s wonderful articles about Sid and his memories please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=jacqueline+finesilver
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the singer Anthony Rolfe Johnson.
Winning the lottery may not bring the joy you anricipate, as Graeme McLeod's brilliant short story reveals.
Patrick Hopton tells the hilarious tale of an urn bearing ashes that was left behind in the Avalon Hotel.
Peter Wilkinson provides information onopera singer Anastasia Robinson who created several Handel roles in the early Eighteenth Century.
David Marsh presents an enthusiastic review of a performance of “Hello Dolly’’ by the amateur music-making group GLOC Musical Theatre, formerly Greenford Light Opera Company.
David, himself a musician, is a maker of ani8mated cartoons. To see some of the click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/david_marsh_cartoons/
...Through salt and pepper, dead mouse and badger’s behind to pewter bordering on galvanised zinc bungalow bath...
Resilient Mary Pilfold-Allan is determined to continue to resist the changes that Nature, and the passing years, wish to make to her hair.
To read more of Mary’s entertaining columns please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Peter Wintersgill provides some details of the life of Russian bass Mark Reyzen.
Margie Clough's delicious tale tells of sweet revenge in a retirement home.
Elizabeth Harper tells of an escape attempt which failed.
An annual charity art ehibition is held in Holmfirth - the small Yorkshire town at the centre of BBC TV's longest running commedy show The Last Of The Summer Wine.
Julz organised a fringe art show The Balls Are Back In Town! The works of 45 artists were exhibited.
The following photos and videos bring the flavour of a very special event,
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Elizabeth Rethberg, a singer with a pure style and beautiful tone.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Regina Resnik who made her operatic debut as Lady Macbeth.
Elizabeth Harper tells a brief and memorable ghost story.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Polish singer Rosa Raisa who made her operatic debut in Verdi's Oberto.
“It cannot be denied that huskies are the Ferraris or supermodels of the dog world and Zac certainly attracts a great deal of attention wherever he goes,’’ says Sandy James, introducing us to a most lovable dog.
...In an age when there is a tendency to think new is always better than old and genes are something you wear not inherit, Cambridge continues to maintain an air of respect for knowledge and those who act as reservoirs for it...
Mary Pilfold-Allan says that one of the world’s leading cities of learning has been at the centre of her life for almost four decades.
To read more of Mary’s brilliant columns please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
In this imaginative and original story/play Jacqueline Finesilver tells what went into the first London production of perhaps the greatest of all operettas, The Merry Widow.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the singing career of Robert Radford, a founder member of British National Opera.
…They were fey these two and inseparable. They were philosophers who studied the red, crackling embers of the burning wood in the fire place, their thoughts taking them away from the small room away into the world beyond. Bridget sat on his knee and listened to the engine room of his heart, his stories of the voyages he had made in the first big war and she would question him until his ears could take no more of her….
Four-and-a-half-year-old Bridgid’s grandfather takes her on a proper voyage on which she will be Queen of the pirates.
But will they see mermaids? And is there a disaster waiting to happen out there on the waves?
Anni Leppin tells a vivid remember-for-ever tale set in Ireland.
Settle down do, and enjoy a long, luxurious read.
....As many of the farms were getting cut-off with snow, myself and another telegraphist were taken by helicopter to set up a temporary communications base at Wick, further north. We had walkie-talkies and could communicate with the helicopters that would take supplies to farms. It was an interesting time, but I can remember it being very very cold as we were housed on a small disused airfield where there was very little heating....
Bob Boyd was posted to a Navy Air Station in Scotland.
This is the concluding episode of Bob's account of his service in the Royal Navy. To read earlier episodes please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=bob+boyd
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Margaret Price who made her operatic debut in Cherubino.
In this brilliant article Jean Cowgill chooses a time of day as a focus point from which to consider harsh realities in bleak times.
Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of American singer Leontyne Price.
Ellie Braun-Haley has sound advice for those with elderly relatives who are beginning to lose their faculties.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of French singer Lily Pons, who made her opera debut as Delibes' Lakme.
Miriam McAttee was filled with wonder and sadness when she found a small egg under a tree.
...Whoever claims the credit or discredit for our meteorological obsession has vanished into the mists of time. Maybe it was the Romans, trudging up the Great North Road and stopping off to dry out their sandals around the campfire at night...
Put two Britons strangers together, and inevitably the conversation will turn to the weather.
Mary Pilfold-Allan muses in her customary fine style about the Great British Obessession.
To read more of Mary's column please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
…Another story is that one of her gang spread the story that someone was poisoning possums in the mountains. This was highly illegal and the police went to investigate. While they were gone from town, Jessie and a few of her gang rode in and stole the cattle from the police holding yard. With such impudent exploits, it is little wonder that the local people of that area gave her the title of 'The Lady Bushranger' and she is still known by that name there today…
Di Moore tells of the turbulent and fascinating life of her bushranger grandmother.
Continue reading "Elizabeth Jessie Hickman - My Bushranger Grandmother" »
Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Manchester-born Anna Pollak, formerly principal mezzo soprano at Sadlers Wells.
...The past began to capture her again, taking her back to before Judith and Albert had married.
"Mother and Father so against her; she had seemed to me so strong because of the way she stood up to them. I took hold of her hand and she smiled at me. Mother ordered me from the room.''...
Jackie Wearing's novel concerns a family which harbours secrets. At the centre of the story is Great'ma, and her fund of memories.
To read earlier chapters of Great'ma please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=great%27ma
Ellie Braun-Haley tells of the day the hamburger meat fought back.
Dominic Ryland-Jones introduces us to a new cartoon character, Spud.
We hope to see more of Spud in future editions of Open Writing.
...Jenny would tell people that her husband had killed her at regular intervals for thirty years. Playing many roles, ranging from beggar to duchess, she was murdered countless times, always taking a bow afterwards....
Jacqueline Finesilver tells of the Newcastle-born actor Tod Slaughter, famous for his interpretation of the Demon Barber Sweeny Todd - and of his actress wife Jenny Lynn.
To read more of Jacqueline’s words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=jacqueline+finesilver
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Peter Pears for whom Benjamin Britten wrote a number of operatic roles.
,,,An Ofsted Inspector, while satisfied with what she saw of David's educational provision, asked the Head why he was in this school? Surely he would be better off in a Special School? The gist of the answer was, 'His mother wants him to be here. He's happy here. We are happy to have him.' In fact, his mother had not found a suitable 'special school' within reach of their home. And she was worried about what would happen when the time came for him to go to secondary school. In the meantime everyone did their best within the limitations.,,,
Jacqueline Finesilver concludes her inspirational account of the education of a very special boy.
To reads the first part of this story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=jacqueline+finesilver
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Adelina Patti who made her singing debut in New York in 1850 and was recognised as the leading soprano of her day.
...In The Hut we could play music, dance, spread ourselves around and 'work big'. Dance – there was tap, flamenco, Latin American, Irish... whatever David was currently taken up with. But mainly there was ballet. David was already a classical ballet buff. Not me. Until I met him I didn't care for it. But I just had to buckle down to my homework so that I could partner him in his greatest roles: Romeo, the Prince in Swan Lake, and various other princes, heroes and show-offs. I was happier as the bumbling Ginger Rogers to his Fred Astaire....
Jacqueline Finesilver tells of the education of a very special boy.
This story will be continued next Friday.
In this story based on an hisorical event, Mary Clemons tells of the discovery of the most famous of all Paleolithic cave paintings.
To read more of Mary's words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+clemons
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of singer Giuditta Pasta who created roles of Amina in Bellini's La Somnambula.
John Brian Leaver tells of the saga of a missing teacake, a saga that has echoed down the decades of his life.
To read more of Brian's words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=john+brian+leaver
...Rats really liked our warehouse and the warehouse manager had various ways of trying to deal with them. He set traps, some home made from lengths of cardboard spread thickly with glue and baited with cheese. He also encouraged his men and lads to turn bounty-hunters and stalk vermin in their lunch break...
When he was 14 Sid went to work for Derry and Toms’, the big Kensington department store.
To read earlier vivid accounts of Sid’s life by Jacqueline Finesilver please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=jacqueline+finesilver
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Nellie Melba, a singer valued for her beautiful tone and perfect technique.
...There is no disputing that girls and boys learn in different ways and at different paces. Putting them all together within one environment surely leads to a levelling on all fronts? Can that be right?...
Mary Pilfold-Allan wonders whether we are not dumbing down our childrens’ education by officially insisting that boys and girls should be educated together.
Continue reading "Single-Sex Education – The On-Going Dilema?" »
...George wasn't too well so one Tuesday morning when he had given us both a very restless night I phoned for the doctor to come. About 11:50 am he cleared his throat and said “Oh Lucy”. Then he collapsed. His life was over....
Lucy Oates tells of the day she lost her beloved husband.
To read earlier chapters of Lucy's life story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
Continue reading "Family Life: Eleven- A Date I Can Never Forget" »
...Vancouver feels to me like a sister city to San Francisco. Good natured and shining. The sea is a constant, framing gleaming buildings with fingers of land interlinking and interweaving, the light a fusion of blue and silver. But Vancouver has the jagged icing sugared mountains as a backdrop...
Anne Steward is enthralled by Vancouver, one of the world’s most spectacular cities.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Richard Mayr who sang at the Vienna Opera for 30 years.
...Two nights later the baby woke and needed attention. I sat with him in the dark of the living room nursing him and then burping and rocking him. So exhausted I felt tears burn my eyes, I sat in the middle of my own personal pity party, aching for some kind of help and knowing there was none...
But there was help at hand from a surprise quarter for Ellie Braun-Haley, as she reveals in this heart-warming story.
....The next four days across the Baltic Sea in the overcrowded ship were not pleasant. With no hygienic facilities whatsoever and still under almost constant enemy attack from air and submarines, every moment was lived in terror. One night I went on deck to get fresh air when the alarm sounded and I witnessed two ships in our convoy being torpedoed and sunk in the icy waters with all on board, underlining our perilous state more than ever.
Finally we docked in Copenhagen, exhausted, filthy and lice-infested...
After almost five decades Ruth Kriszanowsky returns to Kaliningrad, formerly known as Königsberg, the city from which she fled in terror.
In this wonderful story Judith Jacks tells of a concert given by the most famous singer of her age, Clara Butt, in aid of the war wounded.
Judith brilliantly evokes time, place and setting. Here's a story you wont't forget.
Lucy Oates marries and then raises a family.
To read earlier episodes of Lucy's engaging life story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
Marsh Kaminsky presents a primer on life insurance for women.
To read more of Marsh's well-informed words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=marsh+kaminsky
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Victor Maurel, the author of four books on singing.
Author and motivational speaker Ellie Braun-Haley tells of the day she risked arousing the scorn and hostility of her school friends.
Tresor Kabeya brings us a slice of South African life.
Lucy Oates tells of a family tragedy.
To read earlier episodes of Lucy's life story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
Continue reading "Family Life: Nine – As Plain As a Pint Pot Handle" »
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Maria Malibran who made her Paris opera debut 1828 in Rossini's Semiramide.
...My friends and I were a bunch of amphibians; we liked to be in, on or along the river whenever possible....
In this marvelously evocative article Jacqueline Finesilver tells how Sid and seven other river lads hired a boat to compete in the Thames Head of the River race.
Tresor Kabeya brings us a story from South Africa about a wicked which is determined to have a chicken dinner.
Mary Clemons tells of a turning point in life.
...When we’d finished the painting, the owner took us for a stroll down his large garden and pointed out where he thought of having a swimming pool. Then George put on quite a performance. He paced out the area, narrowed his eyes, surveyed the lie of the land, puffed on his skinny roll-up and nodded sagely, just as if he knew what he was about...
Are George and Sid about to get involved in something beyond their competence?
Jacqueline Fines recounts another true tale.
Women were called up to work in factories, as Lucy Oaters reveals as she continues her life story.
To read earlier chapter's of Lucy's autobiography please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
…He watched a raptor circling high overhead. After hovering the bird swooped in pursuit of prey. Rob took out his binoculars but failed to discover the site of carnage. In a desultory manner he continued a sweep of the upper part of the river. A snatch of colour on a ledge half way up the higher waterfall caught his eye. His skin crawled. With trembling hands he refocused and trained the binoculars on an area where the uniform lichen gave way to a tangerine coloured ‘T’ shirt. ..
Rob is out walking on the Isle of Arran when he spots a damsel in distress.
Jean Cowgill tells a story with a surprise in its tail.
A book of short stories reminds John Brian Leaver of a calm crossing of the Irish Sea.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of singer Benjamin Luxon, who created the role of Britten's Owen Wingrave.
...I found the writing gave me peace and the intellectual activity of trying to refine my work kept me wanting to do more....
Anne Steward's words will encourage others to write.
Lucy Oates recalls a time of gas masks and ration books.
To read earlier episodes of Lucy's story please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
...It is exceptional quiet where we live. Our house is opposite a small wood that engulfs an area of former clunch workings. Well away from the main road through the village, any noise after dark echoes in an eerie way, hence the first time I heard the inhuman ‘cough’ it was unnerving. Night after night the same ‘coughing’ broke the stillness and eventually I sought wise counsel of the village elders. My enquiry was an experience I do not wish to repeat. They enjoyed the opportunity of baiting a townie...
Ah, but who or what was doing the coughing? Mary Pilfold-Allan brings us another intriguing and entertaining column.
To read more of Mary’s words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of singer Robert Lloyd who made his Covent Garden debut in 1972.
Lucy Oates, continuing her life story, recalls family ills at the outset of World War Two.
To read earlier episodes of her story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Edward Lloyd who was the first to sing the leading roles in two of Elgar's greatest works.
...For those uninitiated in the ways of Irish livestock fairs in the fifties and early sixties I should explain that with so many people in town for the monthly fair there was one moneymaking enterprise in which some of the villagers indulged. This was the setting up of what became known as “eating-houses.” Simply put it meant that anyone with a reasonably sized front room could enter into the restaurant business for the day and serve meals to all and sundry...
Alan McConnell wonderfully reawakens memories of life in rural Ireland half a century ago.
This is the third and concluding part of a series. To read the first two parts, and other articles by Alan, please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=alan+mcconnell
Continue reading "Salmon Poaching And Cattle Markets - Part Three" »
...I was just about old enough to run errands and had been sent by my mother to fetch a pennyworth of pickles for my father's tea. On my way back from the shop, eyes glued to the saucer, nose twitching at the sharp smell, full of anticipation of being offered a little taste for myself, I fell down a hole...
Jacqueline Fines serves up a tasty plateful of gustatory memories.
Lucy Oates recalls her father's gardening achievments.
To read earlier chapters of her life story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=lucy+oates
Continue reading "Family Life: Five - Green Tomato Chutney" »
Bob Boyd continues his account of his Royal Navy service. To read earlier episodes of his story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=bob+boyd
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Jenny Lind, known as the Swedish nightingale.
Stanley Solomons brings this chuckle-filled account of how his long career in journalism went to the dogs from day one.
To read more of Stan's articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=stanley+solomons
...While my father was a devotee of the buttermilk I made it my business to steer clear of that particular beverage. It is very definitely an acquired taste. The only time I willingly came in close proximity to the brew was on an occasion when my Great Aunt Mary told me that it was just the thing for removing freckles...
Alan McConnell’s words conjure up life in rural Ireland in a quieter age. Watch out for the concluding part of Salmon Poachers And Cattle Markets next Sunday.
Continue reading "Salmon Poaching And Cattle Markets – Part Two" »
Lucy Oates tells of a time when Whit Monday was the highlight of the year.
...The next incident, perhaps I should call it disaster, was the state of the ground. Snow and rain had reduced a normally green and pleasant land to quagmire. I watched my charges slip and slid (with glee) through ankle deep mud. By the time we arrived at the duck pond I would seriously have liked to have dunked them in and wash them down....
Mary Pilfold-Allan records her mud-spattered day as an unwilling conscript in the roll of child-minder.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Manchester-born Richard Lewis, who sang in the first performances of major Twentieth Century musical works.
…‘They’ll not get you, son. I’ll take your life and then my own before their wicked boots come through that door.’..
Judith Jacks bases her dramatic story on the shelling of a North Eastern town by German battleships at the start of World War One.
An abundance of knowledge between hard covers is not necessarily a good thing, as reading enthusiast Brian Lockett reveals.
...Artie, now settled in my father’s chair over by the fire said, “Troth and didn’t I hear that the two river watchers got into a right handlin’ last night over by the mouth of the river.”
I pricked up my ears upon hearing this and paused by the pantry door to hear more. I knew that there was a deal of salmon poaching going on and that Ben Byrne and Rob Diver were watching the river at night on behalf of the owners of the fishing rights. Their official title was that of Water Bailiffs but around our part of the country they were known as “river watchers.”...
Artie the postman brings news when he calls at the farm to deliver a letter.
Alan McConnell brings another slice of life in the rural Ireland of yesteryear. Watch out for more from Alan next weeks.
To read more of his richly evocative articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=alan+mcconnell
Continue reading "Salmon Poaching And Cattle Markets - Part 1" »
Wendy Ogbourne voices an impassioned (tongue-in-cheek?) plea for the return of the golden days when the pen truly was mightier than the sword.
Continue reading ""There's Less In This Than Meets The Eye''" »
The old man has left his house to his granddaughter – a bequest that comes as a shocking surprise to his daughter. But has granded left an even bigger surprise?
Judith Jacks tells a splendidly atmospheric tale.
...I had a very bad cold then which turned into laryngitis and for three month's I could only whisper, and looking back, the funny thing was, every one whispered back to me...
Lucy Oates, who grew up in the small Yorkshire town of Holmfirth, continues her life story.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Lotte Lehmann, one of the leading sopranos of her time.
A writer's mind is never at rest, even in the bustling cheeseburger environs of Luton Airport. But should this writer really have been devoting his time to Flaubert's Parrot?
Brian Lockett presents a delicious travel log.
Judith Jacks tells of a young lady called Lily who liked hats.
Do keep a lookout for more of Judith’s engaging words in future editions of Open Writing.
Judith Wallis tells the most satisfying story of Orlando, a teenager going to the bad, who is saved by blond curls, a dimpled smile and an unexpected offer.
...Like Alice, I had Scarlet Fever when I was eight and spent six weeks in the Isolation Hospital at Meltham. Visitors were allowed on Saturday afternoons, but they could only speak to us through the windows, and any sweets or toys had to be left at the office for us and we got the sweets two at a time after lunch...
Lucy Oates, who grew up in the Yorkshire township of Homfirth, a place made famous in the BBC's longest-running comedy TV programme The Last Of The Summer Wine, records her early life in fascinating detail.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Magda Laszlo who created the role of Cressida in Walton’s Troilus and Cressida.
Linda McLean tells of a wonderful New Year’s Eve and Day experienced on a quiet Scottish isle.
Marsh Kaminsky brings a hugely inspirational account of how he taught his young son to read and spell.
Imagine a world in which every parent followed Marsh's lead!
Few people owned cars in the 1930s. Now the street is bumper to bumper with parked cars. Are their owners any better off than the folk who struggled to survive seventy and more years ago? John Brian Leaver thinks not.
Lucy Oates was born and raised in Holmfirth, the tiny Yorkshire mill town made famous world-wide as the setting of BBC Television's longest-running comedy programme Last Of The Summer Wine.
Here Mrs Oates tells what life was like when she was a girl. This is the first of twelve articles telling her story. Further episodes will follow on succeeding Saturdays.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Lilli Lehmann who sang at the first Bayreuth festival in 1876.
A hug can save a life, as Ellie Braun-Haley reveals.
...Little boys have a teapot and little girls have a teacup” was her way of getting out of giving me a lesson in anatomy and the birds and the bees before I had hit my fourth birthday...
Mary Pilfold-Allan muses upon that magical ingredient which makes the world go round – love.
For more of Mary’s varied and always entertaining columns please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of singer Luigi Lablache, who made his debut in Milan in 1817 as Dandini in Rossini’s La Cenerentola.
...One day I got the chance to take a trip in one of our own submarines. Most carried two Telegraphists. If one was off sick or on leave a volunteer was requested from the surface ships. I had to sign a notice saying I was volunteering at my own risk, This was because I had not taken the deep sea underwater escape test all submariners had to go through...
Bob Boyd continues his story of serving as a Royal Navy telegraphist on HMS Woodbridge Haven.
To read the earlier articles in this series please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=bob+boyd
"This essay is about what it takes to create the most highly intelligent and capable children....''
Marsh Kaminsky is eager to launch an educational experiment that would revolutionise the world by hugely increasing the nunber of people of high intelligence.
David Hammond recalls the day of days - a time of special celebration.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of singer Otakar5 Kraus who created the role of Tarquinius in Britten’s Rape of Lucretia.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Maria Jeritza. the Bohemian-born opera singer.
William Ruleman, whose excellent poems appear regularly in Open Writing, had a telephone conversation with Harold Bloom, the American author, intellectual and renowned literary critic. Here is a record of what was said.
To read William's poems please click on www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=william+ruleman
David Hammond tells of a chap who was not amused when he saw his trousers fluttering atop the flag pole at a Boys’ Brigade camp.
...I have walked across Westminster Bridge at least a hundred times and she never fails to take my breath away. I have seen her glow with dark majesty in the sunshine and found her an inspiration when it’s raining and the world seems a dreary place. But she is at her most impressive when a November fog engulfs her or Old Father Thames gives off a soft summer mist at the start of a warm day...
To find out the identity of this redheaded lady you really must read this inspirational column by Mary Pilfold-Allan.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of New Zealand singer Joan Hammond.
David Hammond enjoys the ascent of Great Gable.
Bob Boyd contindues his account of his service in the Royal Navy. To read the opening chapter of his story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=bob+boyd
Frank Healy remembers the magical fun of cinema=going during his boyhood days.
To read more articles by Frank please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=frank+healy
Peter Wintersgill sketches the career of Gaetano Guadagni, an 18th Century Italian singer.
All young Mary wanted for her birthday was a new name.
Brian Lockett tells a story with a happy chuckle in its tail.
Journalist David Hammond recalls a World War one battle in which many young men from the Yorkshire town of Huddersfield lost their lives.
David Hammond tells of an artist who was invited to paint a portrait of Prince Charles.
Ellie Braun-Haley tells of the healing powers of forgiveness.
John Powell finds that volunteering to be a Christmas Day helper can be a heart-warming experience.
Ellie Braun-Haley has some sound advice for those who may be feeling lonely this Christmas.
Peter Wintersgill presents the career details of Beniamino Gigli, one of the greatest singers of all time.
A writer with the pen name Pitter-Patter tells of two highly significant porcelain, then charts the course of recent human history.
Journalist David Hammond recalls in rich detail his National Service days in the Royal Air Force.
Ellie Braun-Haley tells of help from beyond the grave.
...There is a funny sort of reasoning among the young that if it comes pre-packed and jointed so that they cannot recognise it as an animal, then its OK to eat it. Likewise, even vegetarians may avoid meat like the plague but still take to wearing leather shoes or a suede jacket.
I was brought up with a very different philosophy altogether. If you eat it, that’s fine. If you waste it, then it’s not. Consequently, my children grew up to eat almost anything put before them and it is only in later years that ‘fads’ set in...
Mary Pilfold Allan, who savoured the delights of growing up in rural surroundings, introduces us to tasty treats such as Perkers and rabbit brawn.
To read more of Mary's engaging words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
Peter Wintersgill tells of singer Mary Garden who created the role of Debussy’s Melisande.
So what did Stanley Porter say to delight Her Majesty?
Brian Lockett tells the best tale of the year.
David Hammond recalls the days when trams trundled along the streets of a Yorkshire industrial town.
Frank Healy recalls how he flooded a big department store with a bedlam of musical sounds.
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Manuel Del Populo who founded a singing school to establish Italian Opera in New York.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Marya Freund, one of the first to sing 12-note works.
Frank Healy reflects on hair styles down the centuries.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Olive Fremstad, a singer who specialised in Wagnerian roles.
...“Special delivery,” repeated Mohammed to his son. “They do that to make sure it arrives safely. It could be an armed guard, you know, security boxes, code names, all that sort of thing. It must be very valuable indeed.”...
Mohammed, a trader living in a Persian village, has won the lottery. Will the prize change his life?
Brian Lockett presents a modern fable.
To read more of Brian's first-class stories please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
John Brian Leaver tells a deliciously disturbing tale of boyhood enterprise.
Mary Pilfold-Allan has particular reasons to value the five senses, especially the gift of being able to hear.
Frank Healy recalls the days when the centrepiece of many a Yorkshire home was the kitchen range.
Peter Wintersgill brings a pen-portrait of the Norwegian singer Kirsten Flagstad, a famed soprano soloist in Wagner operas.
Frank Healy recalls the days of oilcloth, linoleum and rag rugs.
...Wanting fame leads me on nicely to the cult of the celebrity. I don't know whether to be amused or amazed by this (perhaps a bit of both, with disgust somewhere in the mix). Take one gobby little no-nothing, stick her on the telly, et voila! The latest sensation. No looks, no talent and only half a wit – but hey! She's famous!
Cult-of-celebrity magazines foster this strange desire. (I sometimes flick through them when at the doctor's.) Hello, OK and the rest. Full of stick insects with topknots, falling off their designer shoes as they lurch, three-quarters-cut, out of some nightclub or other. Very odd. I could think of some more suitable names for these daft publications – NitWit, Dingbat Monthly, Greed!...
The wonderful Jill Grant takes a horrified look at the Philistine horrors of modern-day Britain. Read this splendid column and be informed of life’s true values.
Do visit Jill's Web site www.grantidge.com
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau who has a repertory of over 1000 songs.
Peter Wintersgill tells of the famous opera star Kathleen Ferrier, who began her working life as a switchboard operator.
A message from Peter Hinchliffe, Open Writing Editor.
My wife, Joyce Hinchliffe, died suddenly last week at the age of 68.
Joyce worked alongside me, helping to put out Open Writing every day.
She attended her weekly Spanish class in the Yorkshire town nearest our home, At lunchtime she walked back to her car in a multi-storey car park with Sheila, an 84-year-old friend. She was happily chattering away.
When they were in the car she asked Sheila if she had fastened her seat belt. She then started the engine. Half-turning, she said “Sheila I feel...’’
She collapsed, dying in the instant of a massive brain haemorrhage.
Today Joyce, who was born and raised in Texas, is being buried in a small churchyard in the Yorkshire hill village where we live.
Joyce was a loyal Christian. She tried every day to help others.
Part of my therapy in coping with an almost unbearable loss will be to try to ensure that Open Writing continues.
The following is an unsolicited article by that thoughtful and compassionate columnist John Merchant, who writes regularly from the USA.
Journalist and art critic David Hammond tells of the birth of one of the Twentieth Century’s most famous songs.
Continue reading "A 5 Shilling Bet That Helped To Win The War" »
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the singer Geraldine Farrar who appeared in many films.
Joseph Meakin tells of his convoluted sex education.
A service was being held today in the parish church of the Shropshire village of Annscroft to celebrate the ministry of John Waddington-Feather.
John is a regular contributor to Open Writing web magazine. We are serialising his trilogy of novels, Illingworth House, concerning the complicated lives of a Yorkshire mill-owning dynasty. There is also a weekly short story or article by John appearing under the title Feather’s Miscellany.
We hope that John has a very happy and memorable day.
Here is the sermon he delivered at the celebratory service.
Violet Wagner was born in South Africa in 1944, and started her working life as a teacher there. In 1970 she moved to the United Kingdom and has lived there since in various parts of England. Currently she lives in Essex.
Her last job was a chief executive post in a National Health Service organisation. It was the culmination of a career which spanned 19 job changes. In preparation for retirement she trained as a genealogist, with additional courses in oral history and history methods.
Since 2004 she has spent up to six months a year in South Africa, researching and spending time with her brothers and sisters who live there.
"Getting back into life in South Africa has been a roller coaster experience fueling many stories,'' says Violet.
And here is one of them.
Ellie Braun-Haley could never have guessed where she would end up when she started down that Canadian ski slope.
...The afternoon was wonderfully autumnal, with a mild southerly wind chasing the first fall of leaves around my feet. Despite the financial gloom in The City, just a mile or so down the road, the world felt calm and full of endless possibilities....
Mary Pilfold-Allan goes hiking through history in the great city of London.
Carmen Fitzgerald describes the ceremony which admitted a young man to the ancient order of Melchisidech.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Carlo Farinelli who sang at the royal court in Madrid in the eighteenth century.
Steph Spiers brings inspirational news for all writers, everywhere. If you want to get into print, or see your words on the Net, JOIN A WRITING GROUP!
Continue reading "How An Over 50s Writers’ Group Became A Publisher" »
...Five orders of tripe, she reads as she leafs through the pages, followed by rhubarb and apple custard...
What is happening in Ruby’s gourmet restaurant?
Carmel Fitzgerald tells a tasty tale.
Peter Wintersgill details the life of opera singer Geraint Evans, the son of a Welsh coalminer.
A visit to a ruined mansion in Scotland fills Linda McLean with sad thoughts of decline and decay.
To read other articles by Linda please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=linda+mclean
When a family Christening sends Mary Pilfold-Allan back to the exploration of her family tree she finds herself in the age of the first Tudor monarch.
...Once the crew were on board, usually two pair of oars and a skipper on the tiller, the orders would be given; "cast off bow and stern", "fend off bow", "backwater starboard" then "give way together". At first it would be anything but "together" as the bow oar would clash with the stroke oar and "crabs" would be caught when, with an enthusiastic pull on the oar the water would be missed completely, the hapless oarsman ending up on his back on the bilge boards...
Glyn Lloyd Evans recalls happy days in the Sea Scouts.
Peter Wintersgill provides an outline of Willi Domgraf, at one time the principal baritone at Berlin State Opera.
…When the war started, I was a wide-eyed, wondering child. By the time it ended I was a teenager, altered by the experiences of living in fear, and of “getting by” without the toys, books, clothes, vacations and the other treats of the childhood I might have had. My adult life has been characterized by those experiences, mostly for the good…
John Merchant concludes his account of his wartime experiences.
To read the first four parts of this absorbing series please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=john+merchant
Linda McLean concludes her four-part account of going on holiday in France with two friends in wheelchairs, a holiday fraught with unexpected problems.
To read the first three sections of this account please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=linda+mclean
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of Mattiwilda Dobbs, the first black singer to appear at La Scala, Milan.
…It was the likes of Bernard Miles, and other radio comedians such as Gillie Potter, with his weekly monologue, “The News From Hogsnorton, Spoken in English”; Rob Wilton, with his opening line, “The day war broke out, my Missus said to me ‘What are you going to do about it?’; and Tommy Handley with his fast talking weekly radio show, that brightened our lives in the darkest of times. I was such a Tommy Handley fan that I would sneak out of bed to sit on the stairs, even on freezing nights, to listen to his broadcasts. The very satire of their performances made the serious reality of the war seem ridiculous…
John Merchant recalls radio comedians who helped to boost British morale during World War Two.
This is the fourth in a series of five articles.
Linda McLean and two friends are heading for the ferry terminal after a holiday in France when they are forced to an unwelcomed halt.
To read earlier chapters of Linda’s story, along with more of her articles, please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=linda+mclean
Peter Wintsersgill summarises the life of Czech singer Emmy Destinn.
So who were those Brits the American tourists met on the train? And who were those Americans?
Brian Lockett tells an intriguing tale.
To read more of Brian's stories please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
Barbara Tregonning's poem suggest Women's Lib was launched by a lady on a bike.
…My prize find was a bazooka with its anti-tank missile in place. Much to my chagrin, the conductor wouldn’t let me on the bus with it, and it was too far to walk home…
The war years provided boys with exciting opportunities for new games, as John Merchant reveals.
This is the third in a series of five articles presenting John’s vivid memories of growing up in wartime.
Linda McLean continues her inspiring account of going on a camping holiday in France with two friends in wheelchairs.
To read more of Linda’s words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=linda+mclean
...The table being cleared of the card playing accessories was soon laid and in no time at all a little mountain of Margaret Mary’s treacle scones, generously slathered with butter and complemented by a similar stack of plain scones hiding beneath an overlay of both butter and jam, began to disappear accompanied by appreciative remarks directed to their hostess...
Ah but you’ll wish your were right there with the boyos, eating a treacle scone, joining in the craic, as you read Alan McConnell’s tale.
To read more of Alan’s amiable words from rural Ireland please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Alan+McConnell
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Jean De Reske, one of the greatest operatic tenors.
“When my son moved into his own cottage 24 years ago, he told me it was supposed to be haunted,’’ says Marjorie Upson, “I was attending a U3A writing class at the time and thought I would write a story about the supposed haunting. Using some tenuous links to my own family here it is.’’
To read more articles by Marjorie please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=marjorie+upson
And do take a look at her excellent pictures in our Open Writing Gallery.
Sonia Noble tells of a monumental effort to save one small feathered life.
…We lived about eight miles from the center, but the blaze created by incendiary bombs was clearly visible from our bedroom windows. My grandfather looked out over the burning city and immediately collapsed with a heart attack. All public transportation was destroyed or disrupted, so the following day my father attempted to walk to his office at the gas company. When he returned that night he collapsed, his hunched body wracked by sobs. The sights he had seen that day led to him having a nervous breakdown…
In the second of his five-part series recounting his wartime experiences John Merchant tells how German bombing raids devastated the city of Sheffield.
Linda McLean begins an account of a holiday in the Dordogne with two companions in wheelchairs.
Peter Wintersgill introduces counter tenor Alfred Dellar, founder of the Stour Music Festival.
Brian Lockett's delicious tale proves that being alone can be fun - if you have a telephone.
To read more of Brian's words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
While abhorring the brutal regime of Robert Mugabe, Stan Solomons points out that Zimbabwe was run as a virtual dictatorship when whites were in charge.
…Early in the war, the air raid sirens that warned of approaching enemy aircraft seemed to wail almost every night, but more often than not they were false alarms. Either the raiders were heading for some other target, or the alert was simply a mistake. Real or not, we still had to get out of bed and wait under the table until the “All Clear” siren had sounded. But on nights when Sheffield was the target, the experience turned into a scary adventure for us kids, but a terrifying experience for the adults…
John Merchant was six years old when World War II began. Those years of austerity, excitement and terror were to have a major influence on the rest of his life.
This is the first of a five-part series presenting John’s vivid memories of that time. Watch out for his second article next Saturday.
Peter Wintersgill outlines the career of Joan Cross, principal soprano at Sadlers Wells for 15 years.
An elderly man's musings on life and death are dramatically interrupted in Brian Lockett's short story.
To read more of Brian's stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=Brian+Lockett
Despite trials and tribulations in Paris, Linda McLean and Shand return to their home in Scotland with a real sense of having achieved something special.
The unwrapping of sweets, whispered conversations, the slurping of drinks, the checking of text messages and the occasional ring of a mobile phone...
Mary Pilfold-Allan is disturbed by the noises off that have become part of theatre- and opera-going.
To read more of Mary's columns please click on http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=mary+pilfold-allan
...I was the one feeling a bit handicapped. I approached a colleague at the college where I was teaching and suggested I sign up for classes to learn more about disabilities.
His response was both revealing and surprising "No, I wouldn't do that if I were you!” He said, "If you come to my classes I am going to tell you all the things these individuals can not do. But if you go forward and attempt to teach them what you know, in your own area of expertise, with an expectation for them to do it, many of them will succeed. "...
The inspirational Ellie Braun-Haley tells of teaching dance to people with developmental disabilities.
Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Susannah Cibber who sang in the first performance of Handel's Messiah.
Linda McLean and Shand enjoy a holiday in France, but all too soon it’s time for the journey home...
This story will be concluded next Monday.
...Labradors can be such blatant hussies when it comes to the mating game....
In this gloriously funny column Mary Pilfold-Allan tells of the frustrated desires of certain four-legged females.
Ellie Braun-Haley tells of a Niagra Falls sing-song.
Peter Wintersgill presents a biographical sketch of Fyodor Chaliapin, regarded as the greatest singing actor of his day.
...Great'ma just laughed... “Are you ready for some rather difficult news? Well difficult for me to tell you."...
Jackie Wearing continues her intriguing tale concerning a family with secrets. At the centre of the story is an old, frail lady in a wheelchair - Great'ma.
To read earlier chapters of this intriguing novel please type the author’s name in the search box on this page.
Linda McLean and Shand find their holiday journey to France is not easy.
Look out for the continuation of this story in next Monday’s Open Writing.
Sherillanne, though believed by her friend to be dead,emerged from her hiding place to tell how she had been systematically stealing from her partner Skip’s drug trafficking proceeds. Skip has been sent to jail for drug offences.
Sherillanne seeks refuge in Mexico, there to open and run a successful bar.
Eight years pass by. Then she hears that Skip is free, and looking for her…
John Merchant brings his three-part tale to an unexpected conclusion.
(If you are coming to this story for the first time, you should first read the earlier episodes.
Part One
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2008/07/sherillanne_1.php
Part Two
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2008/08/sherillanne_the_1.php)
Ellie Braun-Haley tells of being forced to start stripping off by surprise attackers.
Open Writing will bring you reports from the Beijing Olympics, which get under way within the hour.
Journalist Tony Bugby is in the Chinese capital, there to report on the world's greatest sporting feast.
Tony is covering his fifth Olympics. "I still find the Olympics as spell-binding as I did in 1992 when making my debut in Barcelona.''
Here is his first report from Beijing.
Continue reading "The Olympics - A Report From Our Man At The Games" »
Peter Wintersgill outlines the life of one of the greatest singers of all time, Enrico Caruso.
Linda McLean and Shand set off for a holiday in France - electric wheelchair, battery charger and all.
Linda begins a a three-part account of a very special holiday.
...If you are a mother dealing with BPI, take heart. As Rowan has become more independent, my worries and false guilt have lessened to some degree. I must accept that I cannot be in control of every movement she makes, and I cannot use every playtime as a way to sneak in therapy exercises. I have to let her be a normal kid in spite of her injury and hope that other children will accept her as she is....
In this deeply moving and hugely encouraging article Julie Blaine Morris tells of the progress of her daughter Rowan, born with nerve damage - Erb's palsy.
In the previous episode of John Merchant’s story http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2008/07/sherillanne_1.php Sherillanne had disappeared under sinister circumstances after giving her friend Trisha a sealed letter to be handed to the police in the event of her death. Skip Bowman, the man Sherillanne had been living with was seen driving away from his empty apartment, alone.
Jean Cowgill’s story tells of an unwelcomed journey.
For more of Jean's stories please click on:
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2008/02/ats_and_a_sinki_1.php
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/2007/08/the_watford_gap_1.php
JJJ
Marjorie Upson recalls the day the drummer came to stay.
Peter Wintersgill summarises the life of Maria Callas, La Divina, the singer who changed the face of post-war opera
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to the singer Clara Butt who spent most of her career on the concert platform.
Linda McLean tells of a man in dire circumstances who still had many a laugh in him.
…The bar where she worked was mainly patronized by crews from the lobster and clam boats, and sport fishermen who were well practiced in the art of luring their prey. Sooner or later one of them would wear her down like they played the fish; giving her scope then reeling her in, until she succumbed, ready to believe that this time it was “true love.”…
Will Sherillanne ever find the right guy?
John Merchant tells a real-life tale.
Linda McLean tells of a remarkable and unforgettable woman minister whose faith inspired a congregation and helped the needy.
You don't need lots of words to tell a good tale, as Melissik proves admirably with this story from South Africa.
...The Spanish still do what we once did so well in this country, cook from the heart and soul. They use what comes from around them, wasting nothing; everything has a value, if only to make stock...
Following the news that the average British household throws out £420 worth of perfectly good food every year, Mary Pilfold-Allan recommends that we should make the most of home-grown food.
Continue reading "Second Helping Of Lord Wooton's Pie Anyone?" »
Peter Wintersgill brings details of Marie Brema, an opera star who mainly sang Wagner roles.
Linda McLean concludes her account of a trip made by a group of Scottish people to Assisi in Italy, there to perform a canticle written by their parish priest.
To read earlier episodes of Linda’s excellent account of the journey please type her name in the search box on this page.
Peter Wintersgill introduces the singer Inge Borkh, renowned for her dramatic Strauss roles.
Ninety Scottish folk are in Assisi there to perform a canticle written by their parish priest.
And Linda McLean, who made the arrangements for their journey to Italy, finds herself worried to distraction.
To read earlier episodes of Linda’s account of the musical adventure please type her name in the search box on this page.
...Shortly after this we drew back from the table and the women folk fell to clearing up. While they were engaged in this worthy task, my grandfather addressed me, “Well, caddie, it’s milking time. We’ll have a wee dander as far as the back meadow and bring Daisy in. The exercise will help to sack down some of that grub you’ve been putting away.” So saying, he lifted the scoured milking pail from its resting place beneath the little back table and we set forth...
Alan McConnell continues his engaging account of what life was like in rural Ireland decades ago.
Continue reading "An Outing with Great Aunt Mary - 6 – Teatime Conversation" »
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Hildegard Behrens, who studied law before becoming a professional singer.
...With optimism running high in my blood I made a momentous decision a few months back and took the matrimonial plunge again on 11 June. With six grown-up children and more than a dozen grandchildren between us, my future husband and I wondered what the reaction would be when we announced our intentions. On a scale of one to ten I would say about seven and a half for enthusiasm. Shock factor among the offspring, much higher. I suspect one or two would have liked to have uttered the words ‘aren’t you getting on a bit for that?”...
But Mary Pilfold-Allan (formerly Basham) had difficulty in finding a suitable outfit for the big day.
She invites Open Writing readers who may have experienced similar problems to share their experiences.
Linda McLean tells of the fraught day when a teenager lost his way after being given the key to “freedom’’.
....Of more interest to me was the plump apple pie sitting in the middle of the table, flanked by two bread plates, one holding my grandmother’s home baked plain soda and the other current soda, my favourite.
Those bread plates still live in my memory today. They had a fretwork pattern around the edges and seem to have gone quite out of fashion nowadays....
Alan McConnell continues his delightful account of life in rural Ireland in bygone days, introducing us to a taste sensation – the two-eyed steak.
Continue reading "An Outing with Great Aunt Mary - 5 – The Two-eyed Steak" »
Peter Wintersgill introduces us to Josephine Barstow, whose operatic appearances ranged from Mozart to works by Tippett.
Critics of British newspapers say that journalists are now merely churnalists - processors of "news" delivered to them by press officers. But Claire emphasises that press officers can supply information which is for the greater good.
Linda McLean continues her story of the trials and tribulations she faced when organising the visit of a Scottish choir of adults and children to Italy to perform a canticle written by their parish priest.
To read earlier episodes of Linda's account please type her name in the menu on this page.
…It was in this barn that I found a small brass telescope, the origins of which I never discovered. In my youthful day I derived much pleasure from its use and I must have been the only boy in the area with such an instrument. I still have it in my possession. It was my delight to stand at my grandparents’ door and focus on the clock in the church tower situated on a hill about three quarters of a mile away…
Alan McConnell recalls with delight visits to the home of his grandparents.
Continue reading "An Outing With Great Aunt Mary - 4. Time In Our Grandparents’ House" »
Peter Wintersgill tells of John Braham, a singer admired by George IV.
...Three eagles glide overhead daily and we observe one another with fascination...
Ellie Braun-Haley relishes life in a quiet valley in southern Mexico.
Julie Drew, on her first day as a visiting professor in the English Department at a Beijing University, anticipates and relishes the comedy of conversation.
...Picking up a newspaper or listening to the local news these days seems to consist of a catalogue of crime: murder, rape, knifings, beatings, muggings and sheer antisocial behaviour. The ages of those carrying out the crimes gets lower by the day. Successive governments have attempted to curb the rising number of incidents involving young people, to find a solution to juvenile crime and to force parents to control their children. So far a lot of money has been thrown at the problem with little or no effect....
Mary Basham suggests that good behaviour begins in the home.
To read more of Mary's columns please type her name in the search box on this page.
Continue reading "Bullying - From Small Acorns Large Oak Trees Grow" »
At last the Scottish party who are to perform a canticle written by their local priest reach their destination – Assisi, Italy.
But organiser Linda McLean’s problems are far from over.
...Kit stood up, walked over and gently held her hands. "Janey Grant, you're not going anywhere just yet. I feel as if I've known you all my life. We grew up together. It isn't only the house that brought me back; you were part of my dream too. You can't walk out of my life again, I won't let you."...
Betty McKay brings the story which she began last week to a most satisfying conclusion.
…We found the café deserted, and Aunt Mary ushered us to a table and left us there in suspense while she approached Miss Warke who had emerged from an inner room upon our entry.
Having given her order Mary returned to the table and said, “There’ll be some ice cream and something else you’ve never seen before.”…
What was the great surprise? All is revealed in the third episode of Alan McConnell’s account of life in rural Ireland in bygone days.
Continue reading "An Outing with Great Aunt Mary Part 3 - Something Never Seen Before" »
Peter Wintersgill tells of the Valencia-born singer Lucrezia Bori.
The maiden name of Mollie Mercer's mother was Browning.
Every year the Browning family held a reunion in Twin Lakes, Georgia. Mollie wrote this moving tribute to the "early'' Browning for the 40th of these re-unions.
To read more of Mollie's words please type her name in the search box on this page.
...There is no room in his universe to doubt that he will, indeed, triumph. He is a roaring siren, a marching band, a banquet of obscene indulgence, a bloody boxer with gloved hands raised...
In this marvelous piece of writing Julie Drew gets inside the head of a 13-year-old boy - and of the mother who walks the fine line between being protective and allowing freedom.
Watch out next Monday for another fine article by Julie.
Jane Cranham returns to Little Blessant where her father was once vicar, the village where she grew up. And there she meets...
To find out who you will have to wait until next Monday to read the second part of Betty McKay's engaging story.