Dreams
"I’ve spent as much of my life in a world of dreams as in the world of reality,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
Home | Feather's Miscellany
October 27, 2013
October 26, 2013
Teddy Todd
John Waddington-Feather, a White Rose man to the core, dedicates this poem to his Red Rose friends.
October 20, 2013
Bed-Time Stories
"One of the many delights of my young fatherhood was telling bed-time stories each night to my three young daughters, Sarah, Katherine and Anna,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
October 13, 2013
Quill Meets Horatio
...The more he sniffed, the more his mouth watered and his tummy rumbled louder and louder. Someone in the copse over the hedge was cooking his evening meal, for Quill could smell the homely wood smoke mingling with the cooking of food. A kettle’s whistle added its harmony to the music of camp-cooking; a symphony of sizzles, crackles and soft seductive hisses...
Prolific author John Waddington-Feather brings us an extract from one of his popular children's novels.
A good selection of John's books are now available from Amazon. Click here for details http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=john+waddington-feather
October 06, 2013
Chestnut Trees In Victoria Park
... I climbed tall trees
as green as my youth, and on seas
of leaves I sailed a while whole worlds away
to live delight in dreams...
John Waddington-Feather longs for a return to the salad days of childhood.
September 29, 2013
Fulfilment
...A doorway opening wider
Day by day in welcome...
John Waddington-Feather brings us the ultimate in optimistic poems.
September 22, 2013
Some Reflections On Life At Eighty
"One great change in my lifetime has been the loss of religion in many people’s lives. It seems that years of affluence have led to an utterly materialistic view of life. On the other hand, youngsters are more involved in voluntary charity work overseas than my own generation were...''
John Waddington-Feather looks back over eight decades.
September 15, 2013
Religion
"...religion played a very important part in my life right from the start and as I grew up, it gave me a moral code to live by,'' declares John Waddington-Feather.
September 08, 2013
The Duke Of Bumpton’s Mishap
John Waddington-Feather tells of a duke who damaged his credentials.
The Duke Of Bumpton’s Mishap
John Waddington-Feather tells of a duke who damaged his credentials.
September 01, 2013
Pick-Pocketed Copper
John Waddington-Feather brings us a poem with a delicious chuckle in its tail/
August 25, 2013
Religiosity In The Poetry Of The Brontë Sisters
John Waddington-Feather considers the religious thoughts expressed by the Bronte sisters in their poetry.
Continue reading "Religiosity In The Poetry Of The Brontë Sisters" »
August 11, 2013
Signs Of The Times
John Waddington-Feather writes a wry poem spotlighting our digital age.
August 04, 2013
Delights Of Fatherhood
...On another occasion in Germany, I was snoozing on a seat in the sunshine near Heidelberg, when a magpie flew down from the tree I was under and started pecking my bare toe through my sandal. The girls thought it hilarious.
July 28, 2013
Children’s Fiction
"It was my experience as their teacher that children came to terms better with the death of a parent than with a divorce,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
July 21, 2013
Carpentry
"I’m not a very practical person and the only tool I handle well is my pen, but I always enjoyed the woodwork lessons at school,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
July 14, 2013
Dick Dedhed
John Waddington-Feather brings us a poem in West Yorkshire dialect.
July 07, 2013
Two Cats, Two Cousins And A Catch
John Waddington-Feather tells of a dreamy, work-shy lad who caught the eye of two wealthy cousins.
June 30, 2013
Summer Scene
The delights of summer bring John Waddington-Feather near to heaven.
June 23, 2013
Delights Of Fatherhood
John Waddington-Feather recalls the joys of family life.
June 16, 2013
Peter Pratt’s Pets
John Waddington-Feather introduces us to two remarkable performing pets.
June 09, 2013
Children’s Fiction
"It was my experience as their teacher that children came to terms better with the death of a parent than with a divorce,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
June 02, 2013
Trinity Hymn
John Waddington-Feather brings us a seasonal hymn.
May 26, 2013
Awake, O Sleeper
John Waddington-Feather brings a new hymn of praise.
May 19, 2013
Quill's Adventures In The Great Beyond
John Waddington-Feather brings us an extract from his book This time an extract from Quill’s Adventures in the Great Beyond at the point where he and Horatio, the tramp cat, cross the border of The Great Beyond and see the devastation which Mungo Brown and his army of Wasteland rats are causing by ill-planned urbanisation of the beautiful countryside. The scene was inspired by an oil-paining in Cliffe Castle Museum and Art Gallery of my hometown Keighley in about 1820. Where I lived was part of the estate of Eastwood House, a gentleman’s residence in Airedale. Parkland and farmland dominate the scene, but here and there the odd mill chimney is already appearing as the very first signs of the Industrial Revolution. By 1870 the hamlet of Keighley had become a dirty, smoke-ridden mill and engineering town of over 40,000 people. Slums appeared overnight and the rivers and streams around the town polluted – just as happened in the Great Beyond extract.
The Great Beyond novel is now on Kindle as will be the rest of the Quill Hedgehog series over the next few months.
May 12, 2013
The Jolly Politician
John Waddington-Feather's poem concerns a jolly, crafty, sleazt politician.
The Jolly Politician
John Waddington-Feather's poem concerns a jolly, crafty, sleazt politician.
May 05, 2013
Easter Hymn
John Waddington-Feather presents a new hymn for this Easter season.
April 28, 2013
Godfather
...He always wore his flat cap on the side of his head both when he was working and inside at home in the little house next door. But when he dressed up and went out he wore a bowler and a shirt collar and tie. In the brewery office, just off the main street, he played host to a variety of folk who dropped in daily to see him – and sample a glass of King’s Ale which was renowned for its health-giving properties...
John Waddington-Feather pays glowing tribute to his brewery-owning godfather.
April 21, 2013
Dolly Smith
John Waddington-Feather tells of Dolly Smith, a woman who made the very best of her abundant assets.
April 14, 2013
My Kindle Venture
John Waddington-Feather, whose stories, articles and poems have been appearing in Open Writing for a number of years, has now ventured into the wonderful world of Kindle.
April 07, 2013
Poetry Narrator
John Waddington-Feather's poetic words paint a vivid portrait of a gritty northern town in yester-year.
March 31, 2013
Old Jake
John Waddington-Feather's tale-in-a-poem concerns a sad misunderstanding.
March 24, 2013
Destination - Known Or Unknown?
John Waddington-Feather considers the biggest questions life has to offer.
March 17, 2013
A Timely Tail
John Waddington-Feather's poem really does concern a timely tail.
March 10, 2013
Easter Hymn
John Waddington-Feather brings us the words of an Easter hymn. We hope someone is inspired to write music to go with these words.
March 03, 2013
A Lent Meditation
"We are mere specks of next-to-nothingness compared with the billions of planets and stars in the universe. Yet each one of us is a universe in ourselves,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
February 24, 2013
Tom And Jerry
John Waddington-Feather's poem tells a cat and mouse story - in Yorkshire dialect.
February 17, 2013
Spring Song
John Waddington-Feather's poem leaps for joy at the prospect of returning Spring.
February 10, 2013
Coffin Dilemma
John Waddington-Feather, writing in his native Yorkshire dialect, brings a poem with a chuckle in its tail.
February 03, 2013
Old Coppice Chorus
John Waddington-Feather's poem is a harbinger of Spring.
January 27, 2013
The Marcham Mystery
Here is a sample chapter from John Waddington-Feather's detective novel The Marcham Mystery,
Many of John's books are now avaiale from Amazon. Please click on http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=john+waddington-feather
January 20, 2013
Judas
John Waddington-Feather's poem reflects the thoughts of an abhored man.
January 13, 2013
A New Year Resolution
"In September 1984 I walked unwittingly into a Graham Greene novel. I’d volunteered to go to Sudan as an emergency teacher, not realising in my ignorance before I went that the country was in the grip of a dictator General Nimieri and a group of fundamentalist fanatics operating shariah law. So I arrived in Sudan naively thinking I was merely helping out in a developing country which was desperately short of teachers. I was soon to learn otherwise,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
December 30, 2012
Freezing Fog On Lyth Hill
John Waddington-Feather's poem highlights a reason for great hope in a cold season.
December 23, 2012
Prison Incident
John Waddington-Feather tells a rewarding tale involving his famous fictional character the Revd Detective Inspector Blake Hartley.
December 20, 2012
SEVENTYFIVE
Emma Cookson rounds off in fine style her gripping novel set in the 19th Century in a Yorkshire mill valley.
December 16, 2012
Advent Hymn
John Waddington-Feather has written an Advent hymn filled with joy but which also brings a warning.
December 09, 2012
Keighley Characters
"In the Keighley of my youth, there were characters wandering about the town who were clearly retarded and today would be residents of care homes. Then, they lived goodness knows where but earned their livings selling cheap wares. I don’t recall any of them begging as junkies or alcoholics do now,'' writes John Waddington-Feather in his evocative article.
December 02, 2012
Creator God
John Waddington-Feather's new hymn can be sung to the tune of Sibelius’s penultimate air in ‘Finlandia’.
November 25, 2012
Tunning t’Clocks Back
John Waddington-Feather, writing in his native Yorkshire language, puts in a very special plea to those who muck about with time.
November 18, 2012
A Sodden Cap
John Waddington-Feather presents a grand Yorkshire poem.
November 11, 2012
Time
"Perhaps that is what religious faith is all about – stepping outside time for a moment to think about the mystery of life,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
November 04, 2012
Elsie Kilton And The Westwood Mills Fire
John Waddington-Feather tells the story of a brave young woman who lost her life trying to save others.
Continue reading "Elsie Kilton And The Westwood Mills Fire" »
October 28, 2012
Harvest Hymn
"Fill us with the grace to give,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
October 21, 2012
Fisty Falshaw And The Werewolf
...Then he heard it! A long mournful howl which chilled him to the core. He stopped and listened intently. Then it came again, this time closer, and Fisty felt his heart beat faster. “A werewolf!” he whispered to himself, and quickened his pace...
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale set on those bleak Yorkshire moors.
October 14, 2012
Surgical Ward Trio
...In the surgical ward there were six fellow patients. When I entered it, the men there seemed just ordinary guys; but as we got to know each other better a rich tapestry of life opened before me...
John Waddington-Feather enjoys companionshop during a stay in hospital.
October 07, 2012
Summer Scene
John Waddington-Feather's poem reflects the lush glow of summer.
September 30, 2012
Dentists
"When I meet him socially, you couldn’t wish to meet a nicer fellow, but meeting him professionally is quite another matter, for I’ve been terrified of dentists since childhood,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
September 23, 2012
Winter
"Old age is the wintertime of life, and growing old accords in many ways with the last season of the year,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
September 16, 2012
Surgical Ward Trio
"Each time I enter hospital, (and I go three times a week to be dyalised) I seem to gain more insight into human nature; as if I’m the observer of a pageant being played out where my fellow patients and the staff are the players,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
September 09, 2012
Simon Braithwaite
Stevens-Smith grinned from ear to ear. “A ‘must’ in my job,” he replied, then tried to impress Simon with his computerage and made him a bet. “Let’s have a little wager, Mr Braithwaite,” he continued. “I’ll bet you £5 I can tell you exactly how much stock you have on your farm without leaving my car.”
But can a politician iutwit a canny Dales farmer?
John Waddington-Feather tells another choice tale.
September 02, 2012
Post-graduate Education
...At the sanatorium my duties supplemented the work of qualified nurses. I polished the floors each day, emptied bed-pans and sputum mugs (enamel mugs with lids on into which patients expectorated and made me feel like throwing up when I had to clean them out), made up beds each morning – and laid out corpses...
John Waddington-Feather tells how his education was enriched after leaving university.
August 26, 2012
Fisty Falshaw And The Werewolf
Fisty Falshaw became quite unpopular in the town after he had had too much to drink.
John Waddington-Feather tells another of his choice tales.
August 19, 2012
Were It Not For...
John Waddington-Feather's poem should make every last one of us grateful for the gift of life.
August 12, 2012
Emmaus Road
John Waddington-Feather's poem brings the ultimate message of hope.
August 05, 2012
Sex At Eighty
John Waddington-Feather brings a most encouraging tale for those who think they are past it.
July 29, 2012
Dent de Lion
John Waddington-Feather highlights a favourite of the English hedgerows.
July 22, 2012
Gerry Gent
John Waddington-Feather's poem tells of a gent who got his legasl comeuppance.
July 15, 2012
Starlings
John Waddington-Feather's beautiful poem reminds us that we humans are a part of nature.
July 08, 2012
A Wedding Blessing In Yorkshire Dialect
John Waddington-Feather, in his native Yorkshire dialect, brings a blessing to the happy couple.
Continue reading "A Wedding Blessing In Yorkshire Dialect" »
July 01, 2012
And Must It Be?
John Waddington-Feather's poem encapsulates the very essence of hope.
June 24, 2012
The Garland
...Old Roger Kent, the church warden whose farm adjoined the church, had told me when I’d arrived in the parish about the ghostly couple who appeared mysteriously each Christmas Eve...
John Waddington-Feather tells a ghostly tale.
June 17, 2012
Summer Scene
John Waddington-Feather paints a word portrait of England in Summer.
June 10, 2012
A Visit To Kissing Tree House
...There was one amusing incident while we were discussing dialect, when Priestley and I began quoting bits of Yorkshire dialect. Jacquetta looked on blankly, not understanding a word. “I’ve never heard you speak like that before, Jack,” she said. To which he replied, “I don’t get chance to speak Yorkshire dialect these days and I’m making the most of it.”...
John Waddington-Feather recalls the day he dropped in on fellow Yorkshireman, novelist and playwright J B Priestley.
June 03, 2012
English Summer
God-made this summer day,
The whole of heaven at play...
John Waddington-Feather gives thanks for a perfect English summer's day.
May 27, 2012
Paul Oxenhead’s Miracle
"Alderman Joe Oxenhead and his younger brother Paul were as different as cheese and chalk,'' begins John Waddington-Feather in this tale of a miraculous conversion.
May 20, 2012
Spring
Sap and words rise in Spring, as John Waddington-Feather's poem reveals.
May 13, 2012
The Teachers
...Before he knew it he’d been called for an interview in London, got the job despite his age and was sent on a course to learn basic Arabic and familiarise himself with the way of life he was about to enter – a very different way of life he was to discover; a way of life in which Jack Pedwar found his real self...
John Waddington-Feather tells the story of a man who went to teach in Africa in troubled times.
May 06, 2012
Lyth Hill Walk
John Waddington-Feather's poem highlights one of his favourite walks.
April 29, 2012
A Wedding Blessing In Yorkshire Dialect
John Waddington-Feather brings a wedding blessing in his native tongue.
Continue reading "A Wedding Blessing In Yorkshire Dialect" »
April 22, 2012
Abe Illingworth’s Premonition
John Waddington-Feather reintroduces us to Abe Illingworth, one if the major characters in his Illingworth House trilogy of novels which follows the lives of a Yorkshire mill-owning family.
April 15, 2012
Winter
“Best of all, when once we’ve got Lent safely behind us, no matter what our age, we can look forward to Easter and the Resurrection of new life in the human spirit as well as in the world of nature,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
April 08, 2012
The Return Of The Swifts
John Waddington-Feather brings us a poem concerning an event which signals the arrival of Spring.
April 01, 2012
The Ilkley Moor Tykes
The Romans were in for a big surprise when they came up against the Yorkshire Tykes, as John Waddington-Feather reveals.
March 25, 2012
Haworth Moors
John Waddington-Feather muses ipon Haworth Moors, native heath of the Bronte sisters.
March 18, 2012
Spring Song
John Waddington-Feather’s poem celbrates the lifting of Winter’s gloom.
March 11, 2012
The Sea
“The sea runs in every Briton’s blood,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
March 04, 2012
Edie’s Extra
Edie Summerscales had the answer when presented with a £300 bill for extras at the end of her Mediterranean holiday.
John Waddington-Feather tells a spicey tale.
February 26, 2012
February Frost
John Waddington-Feather anticipates the coming of Spring.
February 19, 2012
God And Gods
“J. B. Priestley once remarked that if there were no God, man would have to invent one; and there’s some truth in that,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
February 12, 2012
The Heavens Sing Out
John Waddington-Feather brings us a poem, a hymn of joy, based on Psalm 19.
February 05, 2012
An Annscroft Prayer Book
John Waddington-Feather tells how a prayer book containing the old Aglican liturgy helped to heal a Russian friend.
January 29, 2012
Growing Old Gracefully
“So now I’ve arrived at old age, how do I find it?’’ asks John Waddington-Feather, going on to provide positive and encouraging answers to his question.
January 22, 2012
Teddy Tank
...Down Garlic Lane there lived a right old soak
Called Teddy Tank, a happy, carefree bloke...
And Teddy Tank, a lad whi liked his pints, caught the bus in a big way, as John Waddington-Feather reveals.
January 15, 2012
Epiphany Prayer Poem
“Grant that we, with overmuch, may give to those with less than little,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
January 08, 2012
A Maiden Meek
John Waddington-Feather presents a poem/hymn which was set to music by David Grundy.
January 01, 2012
Love
“The beast within is ennobled by the beauty of love,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
December 25, 2011
Alone At Christmas
John Waddington-Feather brings a story for this very special day.
December 18, 2011
Advent
John Waddington-Feather brings a poem for this Advent season.
December 11, 2011
Snowdrops
John Waddington-Feather brings a poem appropriate to the season.
December 04, 2011
Christmas Cards
“What of Gpd this Christmastide?’’ asks John Waddington-Feather.
November 27, 2011
The Garlic Lane Monster
John Waddington-Feather tells a tragic tale.
November 20, 2011
My Mentors
“I had a good start in life as a boy and young man and was fortunate enough to have senior colleagues who enabled me pursue a very happy, and I hope successful, career in teaching,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather in this tribute to those who influenced his life and career.
November 13, 2011
Deck-chair Attendant
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale with a most satisfying punchline.
November 06, 2011
Humour
“At times of crisis in our lives, humour often saves us. It beams its wholesome shafts of light through the blackest clouds of depression or danger.,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
October 30, 2011
Graham Growser
John Waddington-Feather’s poem tells of the fate of a chap who couldn’t stop grousing.
October 23, 2011
Moorlands
...these moors have a supernatural atmosphere. Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age man wandered across them and left their mark in strange carvings on rocks and upright stones where they worshipped their gods, and since then countless others have tramped them to refresh their souls and bodies...
John Waddington-Feather tells how the moorlands around his native Yorkshire town have had an inspirational effect on his writing, particularly his wonderful Chance Child trology which has been serialised in Open Writing.
October 16, 2011
Coffin Knocks
John Waddington-Feather tells the tale of a woman who had two funerals.
October 09, 2011
Harvest Hymn
John Waddington-Feather brings us a new hymn for this harvest season.
October 02, 2011
Funeral Scones
His wife confessed herself well beaten;
For no way could her cooking staunch
The flow of food into that awesome paunch.
Percy Peake was a man with an insatiable appetite, as John Waddington-Feather’s poem reveals.
September 25, 2011
Peace Hymn
In another Age of Reason,
When the world will be at peace,
Nations living with each other
In the Age when all wars cease.
John Waddington-Feather brings us a processional peace hymn.
September 18, 2011
Keighley’s Museums
...I also went into the museum often by myself to reinforce what I’d been taught at school and to let my imagination run riot...
John Waddington-Feather tells of museums in his home town which fired his imagination and inspired his writing.
September 11, 2011
All Change
...Recently as I lay on my bed in the renal ward being dialysed at hospital, I noticed that all the older patients like myself were reading books, while the younger ones were reading from i-pads. It dawned on me that I was witnessing a literary revolution, such has happened when the printing press was invented and books were mass-produced for the first time...
John Waddington-Feather enthusiastically enters the electronic age.
September 04, 2011
Gerald Bates And The Bull
Overweight Gerald Bates could be said to be prone to accidents, as John Waddington-Feather reveals in this tale. Gerald finishes off his friend – then hooks more than he bargains for when he goes fishing.
August 28, 2011
Keighworth Birds
...It’s a mystery to me why some folk have to stroke strange animals immediately they meet them. They’ve only to look into an animal’s eyes and read what they see there to see if it’s safe to pamper it; and had they done so when they approached that cranky cockatoo they’d have recognised at once the evil glint..
John Waddington-Feather tells some avian tales.
August 21, 2011
Chestnut Trees In Victoria Park
...I climbed tall trees as green as my youth...
John Waddington-Feather yearns for the salad days of youth.
August 14, 2011
Garlic Lane Domestics
...My father just before I married gave me some very sound advice: “You’re bound to have the odd quarrel,” he told me, “because marriages aren’t made in heaven. They have to be worked hard at here on earth all your life – and damned hard work it is, too. But always remember this: if you’re wrong, apologise; but if your wife’s wrong keep your mouth shut else you’ll never hear the end of it!.’’...
John Waddington-Feather tells of home life as it used to be in a northern mill town.
August 07, 2011
Bishop George Bell (1881 – 1958)
John Waddington-Feather pays tribute to George Bell, “ Chichester’s bishop, but a man for all,’’
July 31, 2011
A Tale Of Two Towns
“Britain has such a wide variety of dialects, cultures and architecture that I thought I’d make a change from writing stories about my home town, Keighley, and pen an article about the town where I’ve lived and worked since 1969, Shrewsbury, and where I now live very happily in retirement. It contrasts greatly with my home town in the north of England, once part of a Viking empire which has left its mark on the area to this day in speech and in other ways. You could say that Keighley sits in the Anglo-Norse part of England in the North, whereas Shrewsbury is in the Anglo-Saxon part in the Midlands,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
July 24, 2011
Earthfolk
John Waddington-Feather’s poem tells of the power of the humblest creatures.
July 17, 2011
John Waddington-Feather's Stories: An Appreciation
William Ruleman, Professor of English at Tennessee Wesleyan College, brings a personal appreciation of the short stories of John Waddington-Feather.
Continue reading "John Waddington-Feather's Stories: An Appreciation" »
July 10, 2011
Cruelty To Animals
“It’s all a question of balance and humaneness; and where the animal world is concerned a question of compassion, too – and I count ourselves as part of the animal world. We’re supposed to be the most intelligent of creatures, but as I grow older I have my doubts as wars and terrorism ravage the world,’’ declares John Waddington-Feather, going on to introduce us to a most remarkable vicar of Howarth.
July 03, 2011
The Jolly Politician
John Waddington-Feather's poem expresses a view of a Parliamentary man that is a long way short of flattering.
June 26, 2011
A Tale Of True Love
John Waddington-Feather, a master of the short story, tells a most satisfying tale of the birth of true love.
June 19, 2011
John Waddinton-Feather: An Appreciation
William Ruleman, Professor of English at Tennessee Wesleyan College, brings a personal appreciation of the stories of John Waddington-Feather. Many of John's stories have appeared, and will continue to appear, in Open Writing.
Continue reading "John Waddinton-Feather: An Appreciation" »
June 12, 2011
The Real Garlic Lane
Author John Waddington-Feather tells of the Yorkshire mill town in which he grew up.
June 05, 2011
Spring Chorus
John Waddington-Feather’s poem celebrates the season of new life.
May 29, 2011
Edna Pearson
John Waddington-Feather’s tale reveals that the wrong question can be life-changing.
May 22, 2011
A Royal Blessing
John Waddington-Feather presents a timely poem for a right Royal occasion.
May 15, 2011
Tom Marsden
John Waddington-Feather’s tale confirms that it doesn’t pay to bet with a canny Yorkshire lad.
May 08, 2011
Creation’s Eyes
...Lord, give us means to raise our eyes
to nobler heights, and see you care,,,
John Waddington-Feather pleads for a clearer vision with which to recognise true beauty.
May 01, 2011
Keighley Gala Day
John Waddington-Feather recalls the excitement and joy of Gala Day in Keighley.
April 24, 2011
Edward - Act 5, Scene 4
Here's the final scene in John Waddington-Feather's gripping and highly-readable play about the abdication of a British monarch.
To rerad earlier scenes please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
April 17, 2011
Edward - Act 5, Scene 3
Here is the penultimate act in John Waddington-Feather's play about the abdication of a British king.
April 10, 2011
Edward - Act 5, Scene 2
John Waddington-Feather continues his compulsively readable play about a King's love which cost him his throne.
April 03, 2011
Edward - Act 5, Scene 1
John Waddington-Feather continues his dramatic play about a royal romance which led to a British constitutional crisis.
March 27, 2011
Edward - Act 4, Scene 5
John Waddington-Feather continues his engrossing play based on a crisis in British constitutional affairs.
March 20, 2011
Edward - Act 4, Scene 4
John Waddington-Feather contains his epic and very readableplay about a crisis in Britain's constitutional affairs.
March 13, 2011
Edward - Act 4, Scene 3
Here is the third scene of Act 4 of John Waddington-Feather's must-read play about a crisis in British dynastic affairs.
March 06, 2011
Edward - Act 4, Scene 2
Here is the next scene in John Waddington-Feather's reads-like-a-novel play about a crisis in Britain's royal succession.
February 27, 2011
Edward - Act 4, Scene 1
Here is the next scene in John Waddington-Feather's play, performed in London last year, which vividly brings to life one of the biggest dramas in British royal history.
February 20, 2011
Edward - Act 3, Scene 4
John Waddington-Feather continues his play about the greatest royal drama of modern timers.
February 13, 2011
Edward - Act 3, Scene 3
February 06, 2011
Edward - Act 3, Scene 2
Here is Scene 2 of the Third Act of John Waddington-Feather's gripping and highly readable play about a crisis in British affairs of State.
January 30, 2011
Edward - Act 3, Scene 1
Here is the first scene of Act 3 of John Waddington-Feather's play about a time of crisis for the English monarchy.
January 23, 2011
Edward - Act 2, Scene 3
Here is the conclusion of Act Two of John Waddington-Feather's highly readable play concerning the 20th Century crisis threatening the British monarchy.
January 16, 2011
Edward, Act 2 - Scene 2
Here's another scene from John Waddington-Feather's play Edward, a dramatic account of an epochal event in English history.
January 09, 2011
Edward - Act 2, Scene 1
Here's the first scene in Act Two in John Waddington-Feather's play - which is as engrossingly readable as any novel - about a time of crisis for the British monarchy.
January 02, 2011
Edward: Act 1, Scene 4
Here's the fourth scene of Act One of John Waddington-Feather's play which concerns one of the most significant events in the history of the British Monarchy.
December 26, 2010
Edward - Act 1. Scene 3
Here is the third scene in the play Edward by John Waddington-Feather, the story of events which threatened the future of the British monarchy.
December 19, 2010
Edward - Act 1, Scene 2
John Waddington-Feather continues his five-act play which illuminates the greatest crisis faced by the English monarchy in modern timers.
December 12, 2010
Edward - Act 1, Scene 1
Smith: [Winking] He always did like the lower orders – specially the ladies. I know ‘cos I drives ‘im to his rendez-vous, an’ he keeps me waiting hours in the cold outside sometimes while he makes ‘imself cosy inside.
James: [Looking over his shoulder] For God’s sake keep your voice down, Smith. You open your mouth too much at times. You’ll land us both in trouble one of these day. If ever anyone overhears you and it gets back to the Prince that we discuss his personal affairs, we’ll be out on the street before we know it.
Smith: [Lowering his voice] But it’s true. He’s knocking off this rich American woman now at the same time as he’s got two others on tow, an’ they’re all married. He’s a right ladies’ man, I can tell yer, an’ he likes his loaf sliced and well buttered
Today we begin the serialisation of a play by John Waddington-Feather. Edward is a dramatic reconstruction of an epochal time in British monarchy. We will present the five-act drama scene by scene, week by week.
December 05, 2010
Lyth Hill Walk
John Waddington-Feather writes about his favourite walk
November 28, 2010
Airport Incident
John Waddington-Feather tells of a vital question put by a blind Ukrainian girl to a businessman in a hurry.
November 21, 2010
The High Master And Little Billy Clough
John Waddington-Feather tells a reight grand tale to suit all folk born in the West Riding of Yorkshire who are proud of their accents.
Continue reading "The High Master And Little Billy Clough" »
November 14, 2010
On Being God
“In that sense, that God is in us and gives us an awareness of His presence, we can all be God and at one with Him,’’ writes John Waddington-Feather.
November 07, 2010
A Nurse's Tale
Some jobs just can't be rushed, as John Waddington-Feather's sprightly poem reveals.
October 31, 2010
Eddie Stansfield
Mace bearer Eddie Stansfield has his own particular way of reacting to local government changes.
John Waddington-Feather tells a worthy tale.
To read more of John's stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
October 24, 2010
Democracy And Religion
John Waddington-Feather says that Christianity can only flourish in a true democracy.
October 17, 2010
Dreams
John Waddington-Feather suggests that dreams give us a foretaste of a life to come.
October 10, 2010
The Station Ghost
...He was crawling past the ruins of an old woollen mill built over a hundred years before and set back in ghyll flushed with water, when she appeared out of the night, a slight figure of a girl flagging him down at the roadside. She appeared so suddenly Tom had to brake to avoid hitting her. She was a thin, wan girl wrapped in a shawl and wearing an old-fashioned ragged skirt and shawl. She was bedraggled and white-faced and, most surprising, shoeless. Her hair was plastered against her forehead and her eyes were red-rimmed, staring at him with an unearthly light...
John Waddington-Feather tells a classic ghost story.
October 03, 2010
Hymn For The Grieving
John Waddington-Feather’s hymn brings sustenance to the bereaved.
September 26, 2010
Taking God For Granted
John Waddington-Feather thanks God daily for the natural beauty surrounding his home in Shropshire.
September 19, 2010
The Jolly Politician
John Waddington-Feather’s poem expresses something considerably less than admiration for our political masters.
September 12, 2010
An End-piece Of War
Harry Fotheringill and Teddy Sutcliffe think World War One has ended, but after serving four years in the trenches, but they are ordered into Germany as part of the army of occupation.
However Teddy,who is a lawyer in civvy street, has other ideas,
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale with a most satisfying conclusion.
September 05, 2010
Time And Memory
...Somehow here we are just shadows of the fuller persons we will be in our next life...
John Waddington-Feather brings a happy thought for you to reflect upon,
August 29, 2010
In Memoriam
John Waddington-Feather’s poem pays tribute to his friend David Grundy who died recently. David wrote the music and John the words for a large number of hymns.
August 22, 2010
Percy Lister
Percy Lister is a shrewd chap, particularly when it comes to looking after his own money.
John Waddington-Feather’s tale features a cunning Yorkshireman.
August 15, 2010
Ego And Counter-Ego
...After all, what’s the point of writing if my work isn’t read or acted; if it isn’t giving pleasure to others? That’s the most satisfying part of writing – not being a celebrity, but giving pleasure...
John Waddington-Feather’s counter-ego ensures that he never gets too big or his boots.
August 08, 2010
Jollity
John Waddington-Feather believes we were designed to be happy and joyful.
August 01, 2010
Christianity
"If practised aright, religion makes us aware of what is good and reveals a loving God at work in the world and our personal lives,'' says John Waddington-Feather.
July 25, 2010
Some Parsonic Tales
Anglican priest John Waddington-Feather demonstrates that “gentlemen of the cloth’’ have a keen sense of humour.
To read more of John’s hugely entertaining stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
July 18, 2010
House Martins
"It’s surprising how little things can lift you when you’re feeling down,'' says John Waddington-Feather.
John wrote this wonderfully uplifting article earlier this year.
July 11, 2010
Chestnut Trees In Victoria Park
...I climbed tall trees
as green as my youth, and on seas
of leaves I sailed a while whole worlds away
to live delight in dreams, and stay
all day in that land of leaves...
John Waddington-Feather's poem expresses a deep longing for the salad days of childhood.
July 04, 2010
A Chestnutty Tale
...“Hey, mister,” he gasped, “I think I’ve just heard God and the devil sharing out souls!”
“Gerraway, lad” growled the old man. “Tha’rt pullin’ me leg.”...
John Waddington-Feather's choice tale reveals exactly what was going on in the cemetry.
June 27, 2010
Connor
...If by chance you caught him off-guard and saw his eyes more closely, you’d have noticed how hard they were, full of unbridled greed and ambition, full of self-pride...
John Waddington-Feather's story tells most satisfyingly of how a rogue politician got his comeuppance.
June 20, 2010
Gold Diver
...In time he was contracted to bring up bullion from a ship, H.M.S Edinburgh, torpedoed during the war off the Russian coast. It was a new venture for him because his contractors were a consortium from Eastern Europe, newly released from the grip of Communism and flexing their capitalist muscles...
John Waddington-Feather’s intriguing story about a diver has a factual base.
June 13, 2010
Old Coppice Chorus
John Waddington-Feather's poem celebrates the most fecund of all seasons.
June 06, 2010
Henry Wade
John Waddington-Feather's tale tells of the day the employment inspector got more than he bargained for when he called at a Northern hill farm.
May 30, 2010
Celebrity
...Younger generations today may be more streetwise and they're certainly more affluent. They're more knowledgeable, too, in handling electronic gadgets, computers and such. But are they more wise? Is the Age of the Celebrity an age of wisdom?...
John Waddington-Feather is unimpressed by today's "celebrities''.
May 23, 2010
Ghosts
...The night was so bad, I was glad to get back from Haworth where I’d been attending a meeting, and before I turned in I had a nip of whisky to warm myself up in front of a roaring log fire in the great open fireplace in the dining room downstairs. It was a bitter night and I wore my jumper in bed; wearing that and warmed by the whisky I was soon asleep despite the racket outside. The next thing I knew was being shaken by the shoulder and a girl’s voice sobbing: “Don’t let them get me! Don’t let them get me!”...
John Waddington-Feather tells of his encounter with a ghost.
May 16, 2010
‘Masher’ Rooney
...Lady Withington fully dressed peeped round the corner of the bathroom door and stared in horror at the empty space where the wardrobe had been. “My God!” she gasped. “He’s been taken!” and rushed after the two removal men, but she was too late. By the time she reached the entrance, they’d hoisted it onto the van and were driving off...
John Waddington-Feather tells with great gusto the fate which befell ladies-man 'Masher' Rooney.
May 09, 2010
The Keighworth Car-Park Attendant
...the open space was looked after by an unassuming, soft-spoken, little man wearing an official-looking peaked hat and carrying a large leather money bag on a shoulder strap. He was in attendance daily from about 7 am till 5 pm. for almost ten years, charging drivers a pound each and lorries and trucks five pounds for the day...
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale concerning a very canny businessman.
May 02, 2010
Theatre
...Whatever your skill, whatever your interest, there is always a place for you in the theatre where you can contribute your talent to a production...
John Waddington-Feather, extolling the joys of being involved in the theatre, tells of Yorkshire actors and actresses who became household names.
April 25, 2010
The Lost Hour
John Waddington-Feather’s poem calls for a really significant turning back of the clocks.
April 18, 2010
The BankJobs
John Waddington-Feather tells a most satisfying tale which involves two unlikely bank robbers.
April 11, 2010
Theatre
John Waddington-Feather is thrilled by a performance in a London theatre of one of his plays.
April 02, 2010
Good Friday
"Somewhere in the events which surround Good Friday is the answer to the mystery of pain,'' writes John Waddington-Feather.
March 28, 2010
Daffodils
John Waddington-Feather’s poem celebrates the harbingers of Spring.
March 14, 2010
Snowdrops
John Waddington-Feather presents a timely poem.
March 07, 2010
Friendship – A True Tale
...They met at Keighworth Fair, when she was twenty one and he twenty. By all accounts they fell in love at first sight; certainly she was beautiful and he good-looking. He was also an auctioneer, a good catch, yet they were in other ways not very well matched...
But the marriage of Ira and Belle was turbulent, though blessed by the friendship of Clarice and John.
John Waddington-Feather tells a personal story.
February 28, 2010
The Ghost In The Forest
...Daily they met there, hidden by the friendly trees and on the old trysting-tree Olek carved a heart with Anna’s and his name inside. It was still there years later when Olek returned as an old man. But at nineteen and about to leave for university, he bought two gold rings and had inscribed inside them: “Olek-Anna. In love eternal. June 1939.” At the trysting-tree they swore their lasting love as he slipped a ring on her finger and she on his, before returning home at dusk, hiding their rings so no questions were asked. Each time they met they wore them, betrothed to each other...
John Waddington Feather tells a remember-for-ever ghost story.
February 21, 2010
Garlic Lane
Here is the opening speech of John Waddington-Feather’s new play Garlic Lane, recently performed to acclaim in London.
February 14, 2010
Stepping Stone, Yukon
John Waddington-Feather's poem celebrates the beauty of Nature's order.
February 07, 2010
Lyth Hill And Mary Webb
...Another writer, much older and more famous than myself, made her home on Lyth Hill not far away from mine in Spring Coppice. She was Mary Webb and her work is still read, though perhaps better known in the 1920s and ‘30s. In her novels and poetry she captures the countryside, the dialect and the people of Shropshire exactly...
John Waddington-Feather writes with deep affection about the corner of England in which he has chosen to live.
January 31, 2010
The Critic, The Romantic And The Cynic
...Cynicism has turned my generation into grumpy old men and women who see all the wrongs of life and nothing right!...
But John Waddington-Feather senses a return to romanticism.
January 24, 2010
Reverend Herbert Wilkinson
John-Waddington Feather tells a story about a remarkable clergyman.
January 16, 2010
Edward - Act 2, Scene 2
January 10, 2010
Dialect And Accent
...Priestley and I spent a very pleasant hour or two at his home hosted by his lovely wife, Jacquetta Hawkes, who made me very much at home. Just why, I don’t know, but Priestley and I switched into dialect for a few moments, because we came from the same area of Yorkshire; he from Bradford and myself from Keighley a few miles away. Suddenly Priestley realised his wife was looking blankly at us. She didn’t understand a word of what we were saying. He apologised and she remarked she’d never heard her husband speak like that before...
John Waddington-Feather, a former secretary of The Yorkshire Dialect Society, recalls a pleasant encounter with one of England’s famous writers. J B Priestley.
January 03, 2010
Maiden Meek Carol
John Waddington-Feather presents a new carol.
January 02, 2010
Act 1. Scene 4
December 27, 2009
Prison Reality
John Waddington-Feather tells of his work as a prison visitor.
December 25, 2009
A Christmas Ghost Story
...As Ernest entered, his dad waved cheerily and beckoned him over. “Come on, lad, an’ make thisen at home. ‘Ave some mulled wine. It’ll warm thee up.” More bewildered than ever, Ernest went over. His dad had been dead these thirty years, so had all his friends and they were chatting...
John Waddington-Feather tells a ghostly tale.
December 13, 2009
Willie Walker
...Willie had married a tiny, very domineering woman with a face like a walnut and a voice like a foghorn. She’d been a weaver all her life and adjusted her voice, like most weavers, to the clatter of looms; and in the process gone slightly deaf. Her voice was like an under-oiled train braking to a halt, and you could hear her a mile off...
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale which confirms that Willie really did need a partner capable of organising his life.
December 10, 2009
Memories – Part 2
...I went to an international camp hosted by the mayor and citizens of Brouages not far from La Rochelle in Poitu. Brouages was a village built inside a huge eighteenth century fortress erected by the Roman Catholic Cardinal Richlieau in the eighteenth century to house munitions and his troops fighting against the French Hugenot Protestants holed up at La Rochelle on the coast.
Our job was to cut away the thick brushwood from the walls of the castle and around it, which had accumulated during the war; to make the site attractive to tourists once more. We came from many parts of Europe: Britain, Italy, France, Germany, Holland, Portugal, Yugoslavia and, notwithstanding the Cold War, Russia. Unlike the politicians we all got on well, and I remained in contact with some of them for years afterwards. In honour of what we did, the French government struck a postage stamp showing the cleaned up walls of the fort...
John Waddington-Feather brings another chapter of memories accumulated during a well-lived life.
December 06, 2009
Christian Elegy
John Waddington-Feather’s poem expresses the ultimate in comfort and security.
November 29, 2009
Memories – Part One
...On one occasion while visiting my uncle’s farm at Embsay above Skipton, I actually captured a German air crew, who’d landed their plane to surrender near the end of the war. I happened to be out walking near a large meadow when the plane came lower and lower, then much to my surprise landed and the pilot in fluent English asked me to take his crew to the nearest police station in the village. Wide-eyed and gob-smacked, I duly obliged. I was half-expecting to be given a medal, but I was told not to breathe a word about the plane and its crew. Within hours it was dismantled and carried off under shrouds...
John Waddington-Feather, an outstanding writer, publisher and ordained Anglican minister, begins his autobiography by recalling his school days in a northern mill town during World War Two.
November 22, 2009
Antics And Antiques
...Though now grey-haired and wrinkled, he never lost the habit of looking at himself in every mirror and shop window he passed, smiling his horsey, long-toothed smile of self satisfaction and sleeking back his oiled hair. He kept his lanky figure, dressed impeccably and had his suits made by the best Leeds tailors...
But can fancy dresser and Keighworth’s biggest rogue be taken in by a crafty art dealer?
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale with a surprising conclusion.
November 15, 2009
Love Song In Old Age
John Waddington-Feather’s poem expesses undying love.
November 08, 2009
Eco Poem
John Waddington-Feather's poem spotlights a wrecker of the planet.
November 01, 2009
China And The Chinese
John Waddington-Feather tells of the ordeal of three Chinese coal miners who were trapped underground for 25 days.
October 25, 2009
Harvest Hymn
John Waddington-Feather’s harvest hymn reminds us that we too have things to give.
October 18, 2009
Poddle On
John Waddington-Feather’s Yorkshire dialect poem expounds a stoical approach to life’s setbacks.
October 11, 2009
Mutability
...Now that I’m an ageing seventy six year old, I’m discovering more and more change. Everything is farther away than it used to be. Distance has expanded. I used to go for a three-mile walk every day. Now I manage only half a mile with a stick and the gentle slope up to the church has become a hill. I stopped running anywhere years ago nor do I do press-ups any more. They’d find a corpse on the floor if I attempted them...
John Waddington-Feather muses on the inevitability of change.
October 04, 2009
Ashes
In this tale by John Waddington-Feather we meet a man who will never forget the day he scattered his great-aunt’s ashes in the sea at Morecambe.
September 27, 2009
Always Change
John Waddington-Feather tells of the immigrants from all parts of the world who, down the long centuries, have come to live in the Yorkshire town in which he was born.
September 20, 2009
Cricket
John Waddington-Feather enthuses about cricket, the sweetest of sports.
To read more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
September 13, 2009
The Hymn-Makers
John Waddington-Feather, whose words appear every week in Open Writing, tells of his 30-year hymn writing partnership with David Grundy.
September 06, 2009
Aneferti, The Pharaoh’s Daughter
John Waddington-Feather tells a ghostly love story involving an Egyptian princess who haunted a Yorkshire museum.
August 30, 2009
Overseas Aid
John Waddington-Feather’s poem goes to the very heart of what it is to be Christian.
August 23, 2009
Wedding Reception
...The feuding between the Capulets and Montagues was nothing compared with the brawling between the Flanagans and Kenndeys which spilled out into the street that afternoon. They spoke of it in Keighworth long afterwards...
John Waddington-Feather’s tale tells of a wedding reception which ended in a brawl in which the parish priest vigorously participated.
August 16, 2009
Cross Talk
...I had two options when I went on dialysis: I could regard being dialysed as some sort of life-sentence; or I could regard it as a life-saver. I chose the latter, and consider myself lucky to be still alive...
John Waddington-Feather brings an inspirational message.
August 09, 2009
Wilderness
John Waddington-Feather tells of wildernesses he has visited in various parts of the world – and also of an encounter with a desert angel.
August 02, 2009
Ben Boothman
Ben Bootham came up with the perfect sign when speeding motorists started to mow down his errant prize-winning hens, as John Waddington-Feather’s poem reveals.
July 26, 2009
Change And Unchange
...Indeed, the whole world has changed; and nearer eighty now than seventy, I can see more clearly history turning its pages slowly before my eyes than ever I could as a younger man. I can look back and see my part in it and my home town’s patch on history’s landscape...
John Waddington-Feather tells of the changeless centre point of his life.
July 19, 2009
Blake Hartley’s Military Medal
In this gripping tale of a Cold War spying journey into East Germany John Waddington-Feather recounts how Blake Hartley’s cool bravery merited the Military medal.
To read more of John’s superb stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
July 12, 2009
Neil Woodward
...He stammered slightly, was of average height, shy, dark-haired, brown-eyed, eyes which seemed casual at first glance, almost dreamy, but a great deal went on behind them as you’re about to hear....
John Waddington-Feather serves up another excellent tale.
To read more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
July 05, 2009
The Gala Balloon
...It all started when Ira bet Joe one night in the Cycling Club that he wouldn’t go up in the balloon with Ira on Gala Day to scatter the annual hospital lottery tickets from several hundred feet up to the crowd beneath. Ira knew full well Joe had no head for heights and would be scared to death...
Joe has no track record for bravery, as John Waddington-Feather’s story reveals.
To read more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
June 28, 2009
Keighworth Gala
...The fair-ground folk were a mysterious breed, dark skinned, gypsy, rough-and-ready folk who traversed the country from one fair and fete to another throughout the summer, bringing laughter and joy wherever they went, excitement into the dullest lives. When they entered Keighworth, the town let itself go!...
John Waddington-Feather paints a vivid word portrait of a Yorkshire mill town letting its hair down during gala week.
June 21, 2009
Germany And The E.U.
...Yes, Germany is now united and Europe is not at war, thank God – not even a Cold War. And Britain and Germany are part of the European Union. Whatever the drawbacks of that Union – and there are many – it has brought peace....
John Waddington-Feather muses upon German history and Germany’s place in the European Union.
June 14, 2009
John Trefusis
John Waddington-Feather recalls his time in the Army, and also the military career of John Trefusis who was in action in the Boer war.
June 07, 2009
Deadhead
...At that time boxing was still allowed in the gym and he knew I went in the odd night to spar with prisoners who boxed to keep them in trim. So I arranged to see him there the nights I went in. But the very first time I'd agreed to teach him he was in the cooler. He'd been fighting with another prisoner. We began our boxing lessons in his cell...
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale concerning a prisoner, Bertie 'Deadhead' Deadham, who was fascinated by the noble art of boxing.
May 31, 2009
Alfred Tickler
...All their married life Alfred was a liability to his wife. He landed her in some embarrassing situations; like the time he got his finger stuck in the washing-machine....
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale concerning a most unfortunate accident.
To read more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
May 24, 2009
Revelations
John Waddington-Feather is moved to spiritual thoughts by the beauty of Springtime.
May 17, 2009
The Madcap Pedwars
...Just then the Pedwar brothers and their friends decided to have one of their ‘dares’. It was George’s turn to carry out a ‘dare’ He was dared to drop onto the bare back of the great Shire horse dozing under the tree they were in. They’d seen the cowboy Roy Rogers do just that, dropping onto his horse, Trigger, in a movie the previous week...
In this delicious tale John Waddington-Feather tells of the exploits of the madcap Pedwar brothers.
May 10, 2009
Bradford
John Waddington-Feather tells of the rich cultural history of the city of Bradford.
May 03, 2009
To A Skylark
...this skylark's song ravishes the air...
John Waddington-Feather's poem celebrates the most tuneful of all birds.
April 26, 2009
Arthur Donaldson
Master story teller John Waddington-Feather introduces us to Superintendent Arthur Reginald Jeremy Donaldson, a cocky little police officer who gets his just reward when he skives off work to play golf.
April 19, 2009
Rugby Football
...Rugby has always been my sport from the start: playing it as a boy and man, and now in old age watching it live or on television. I can’t remember a time when I was not throwing or kicking a rugby ball...
John Waddington-Feather declares a lifetime allegiance to the great game.
April 12, 2009
Gerry Gent
Gerry Gent demanded a public holiday for atheists. And he got it on an appropriate day, according to John Waddington-Feather’s poem.
April 05, 2009
Spring 2009
Spring as an effect on every poet, no matter what their age, as John Waddington-Feather reveals.
March 29, 2009
Bington Building Society
...I could go on at length about the staff at Bington Building Society, later the Binghop Bank, who apparently went about their work amicably with well oiled precision, but on closer examination weren’t so amicable – and sometimes not so precise. Behind the scenes as in all big establishments lurked lust for power and greed, resulting in stress, turmoil and hurt...
John Waddington-Feather’s story reveals a seething sea of emotion behind those respectable building society walls.
March 22, 2009
Buskers
John Waddington-Feather tells the inspirational story of a young musician from Manila – a story which reminds us that we should be prepared to pause and listen.
March 15, 2009
And Must It Be?
John Waddington-Feather's poem reminds us that there is a road of hope, rather than the gloomy road which leads to blank oblivion.
March 08, 2009
Engraved On Stone
A poem by John Waddington-Feather is to be engraved on stone at a Shropshire beauty spot.
March 01, 2009
Edie Phillips
John Waddington-Feather tells a satisfying story in which a hard, uncompromising hill farmer who got the shock of his life.
February 22, 2009
Kings Of Con
...Patrick O’Connell and myself, James Augustus Delaney, (aka Jack ‘the Fingers’ Smith) regarded ourselves as top-notch professionals among those who followed our way of making a living. (We never thought of ourselves as ‘criminals’) We were gentlemen of the first order: myself a burglar and he a bigamist; indeed, you might say he was a quadramist, for he married four wives bigamously and cleaned them all out...
Master story-teller John Waddington-Feather introduces us to two lovable rogues.
To read more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
February 15, 2009
Starlings
There’s a message for humans who watch flocks of starlings wheeling and gathering at dusk on a winter’s eve, as John Waddington-Feather’s poem reveals.
February 08, 2009
Murmansk Pilot
...So dense was the snow outside, darkness began to fall early. They were sailing through a freezing maelstrom taken they knew not where by the sea and elements outside. They were in another world, a freezing hell set to claim them any minute...
Captain John Anderson and his crew, which includes his sons, are in deep trouble as they battle their way through an Arctic storm when they receive help from a surprising source.
John Waddington-Feather tells a satisfying tale.
February 01, 2009
Change
...We cannot avoid change, try as we may. Darwin pointed it out very painstakingly in his “Origins of Species” and “The Descent of Man”. We are involved completely in change and are part of it, for better or for worse. We ourselves change remarkably in our lifetimes, though we are hardly aware of it; leastways when we are young. Old age is another matter...
John Waddington-Feather’s thoughtful article brings the reassuring thought that we have one refuge from change.
January 25, 2009
Thelma Pepper
P.C. Kemsworth regretted the day he questioned the splendid Thelma Pepper.
John Waddington-Feather tells another tasty story.
To read more of John’s words please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
January 18, 2009
Funeral Romance
It takes a couple of funerals to bring this love story by John Waddingtton-Feather to a happy conclusion.
January 11, 2009
True Love
John Waddington-Feather tells a wonderful heart-warming story of lovers separated for decades by the ravages of war.
January 04, 2009
Dogwood Falls Distillery
John Waddington-Feather tells the tasty tale of how the Feds were tricked when they came to raid a small distillery in a Kentucky town during Prohibition days.
December 28, 2008
The Garland
...My disbelief was to be proved wrong sooner than I expected, for on Christmas Eve as I left the lych gate at the entrance of the graveyard, finding my way through the dark by torchlight, I noticed a strange glow in the porch, a warm inviting glow. At first I thought someone had been in the church before me to put on the lights, yet the rest of the church was in darkness...
John Waddington-Feather tells a seasonal ghost story.
December 21, 2008
Keighworth Culture
John Waddington-Feather tells the story of a wife who had sweet revenge on her philistine and bullying husband.
December 14, 2008
Some Thoughts For Advent
...As a Christian, I believe my spiritual self is a part of a greater whole. In common with the spirits of other people it can be a great force for good in the physical world in which I live...
John Waddington-Feather presents some inspirational thoughts for this important time in the Christian calendar.
December 07, 2008
Leonard Cullen
What happened when a brain surgeon found himself operating on the brain of the person who had mercilessly bullied him at school?
Master storyteller John Waddington-Feather creates another intriguing situation.
November 30, 2008
November
...Perhaps it’s the hedgehog in me; a kind of annual hibernation which comes over me each November. My dear mother believed that the blood used to thicken each autumn and thin again in spring, and for sure with me a kind of drowsiness sets in about November and lasts until the end of February...
John Waddington-Feather is content to snuggle up in his home during the dark, dank days of November.
For more of John’s sterling stories and articles please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
November 23, 2008
The Teachers - Part 4 - Revolution
John Waddington-Feather tells of troubled times in the Sudan.
To read the three preceding episodes of this story please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
November 16, 2008
Trinity Church Organ
...The church had one solemn, solitary bell, which summoned the faithful to church each Sabbath or tolled in the dead for burial during the week. Trinity Church also boasted an excellent choir coached by Horace Benn. And a very capable organist, Sam Bottomley, made the magnificent organ, constructed by Harrison & Harrison, cathedral organ makers of Durham, thunder out its praise to the Almighty whenever he played it. This story is about that organ...
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale of the supernatural.
November 09, 2008
Teddy Walker And The Dead Donkey
Surely Teddy Walker couldn’t sell a dead donkey?
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale of Yorkshire business brains.
November 02, 2008
The Gambler And The Talking Dog
John Wadington-Feather’s tale about Heinz the talking dog will leave you speechless.
October 26, 2008
All Souls Day
John Waddington-Feather's poem reflects upon All Souls Day, an important day in the Anglican calendar.
A third collection of 50 hymns and anthems by David Grundy and John Waddington-Feather, Seasons and Occasions Book 2, is now available. The other two are Seasons and Occasions. Book 1 and Hymns from the Classics. Like the other collections Seasons and Occasions Book 2 covers the Church’s Calendar and other services within the Church such as Harvest Festival.
There are hymns for soloists and choir, as well as congregational hymns. Hymns have been written for specific organisations like the Mothers Union, Amnesty International; Young Church services, Church Army, Christian Aid and Oxfam. There are in addition hymns suitable for choreography. The previous collections have had very good reviews by The Church Hymn Society.
Copies are available at £6.95 $17 US a copy. (Postage paid) Direct from
Feather Books of Shrewsbury, UK.
Overseas buyers please send cheques in sterling or dollar bills
or use PAYPAL.
Feather Books, PO Box 438, Shrewsbury SY3 0WN, U.K.
http://www.waddysweb.freeuk.com
October 12, 2008
Two Mothers
John Waddington-Feather tells the story of two mothers who tried to turn their children into life-long slaves.
To read more of John's stories and articles please click on
http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
October 05, 2008
Autumn
...For what purpose this life unless it be accumulating the wisdom, love and knowledge of God ready for the next?...
John Waddington-Feather reflects on the idea that the seasons follow the pattern of a human life.
September 28, 2008
A Repaid Debt
John Waddington-Feather tells how a passionate teenage girl was able, in later life, to repay the handsome teacher who preserved her honour.
September 21, 2008
Gerald Levin
John Waddington-Feather tells a satisfying story about a man who knew how to be discreet.
To read more of John’s stories please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
September 14, 2008
The Teachers - Part 3 - Meeting Moses
...So there he was, an Anglican priest, teaching English to Muslim and Christian girls in an Italian Roman Catholic school. Being an Italian speaker, he also coached the nun who taught science. And it was while cycling to the school that he first met Moses, a deaf-mute who lived close by the Cathedral...
And Moses becomes an invaluable friend and ally as violent riots sweep through the Sudanese capital.
John Waddington-Feather continues his account of teaching in Africa.
September 07, 2008
The Teachers - Part 2 - Flies, Famine And New Friends
...The city was surrounded by desert, which crept through the suburbs into the very centre. Sand and silt were everywhere. When a sandstorm was unleashed, the sun was blotted out and streetlights (such as were still working) were switched on.
Life came to a standstill till the storm had passed. Nomads travelling through the city halted just where they were and sheltered behind their crouched animals. All traffic ceased and wrappings were thrown over engine bonnets...
Middle-aged English teacher Jack is forced to experience the Third World after volunteering to teach in the Sudan.
To read the first part of this story, and other articles and stories by John Waddington-Feather, please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
Continue reading "The Teachers - Part 2 - Flies, Famine And New Friends" »
August 31, 2008
The Teachers - Part 1 - Many Roads To Allah
John Waddington-Feather tells of a man in his fifties who decides to teach in Africa.
John bases his story on his own experiences in the Sudan in 1984-85. This is the first of four episodes. The second episode will run in Open Writing next Sunday.
Continue reading "The Teachers - Part 1 - Many Roads To Allah" »
August 24, 2008
Henry Wade’s Deafness
So what are folk saying in your presence when you are extremely deaf and the winner of seven million pounds on the Lottery?
John Waddington-Feather tells a delicious tale.
For more of John’s stories and articles please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/feathers_miscellany/
August 17, 2008
Hypocrisy And Meanness
...Many a man small in stature and in mind, once he gets behind the wheel of a Rolls or Mercedes becomes puffed with pride. By their dresses and cars ye shall know them. But what goes on inside the minds and hearts of these people is often allied to hypocrisy and meanness....
John Waddington-Feather’s story reveals how money can divide a family, but also can serve as a measure of good-heartedness.
August 10, 2008
The Gamekeeper And The Poacher
John Waddington-Feather tells the delicious tale of an old poacher who knew how to best a bullying gamekeeper.
August 03, 2008
The Ant And The Grasshopper
...There were rumours in Keighworth that he’d been sent down for some misdemeanour, but whatever the truth he left Cambridge early and travelled the world, living off his wits and his parents, till he settled to a dubious life in the south of France playing cards and the roulette tables in various casinos, borrowing money from friends and acquaintances unashamedly in that charming way of his when he was down on his luck – or returning home for a hand-out, when money was not forthcoming abroad...
Could black-sheep Philip have a surprise in store for his relatives? John Waddington-Feather tells a satisfying tale.
July 27, 2008
A Tale Of Divorce
Vladislav Pletnov was of medium height, dapper and good looking, and very much a lady’s man. He had the politician’s smile, the smile of a con-man which flashed on and off with about as much feeling behind it as a light bulb. And like all politicians he was adaptable, bending which ever way served him best. So, when Communism collapsed, with the ease that came with practice he switched sides and became a successful Capitalist. He was also a womaniser...
John Waddington-Feather tells of a spurned wife who served up an abundant “plateful’’ of revenge.
July 20, 2008
The High Master And Little Billy Clough
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale to gladden the heart of every Yorkshireman.
Continue reading "The High Master And Little Billy Clough" »
July 13, 2008
Wealth
...We are all blinded – and tempted by – wealth and the urge to amass it. The media assesses everyone by it and constantly rams it down our throats. They would have it that those who have nothing are nothing, not worth bothering with. How wrong they are!...
John Waddington-Feather offers sound advice in a greedy age.
July 06, 2008
Willy Clayton And The Greedy Bishop
Can the new bishop butter up mill magnate Willy Clayton and prize some cash out of him?
John Waddington-Feather tells a story concerning a shrewd Yorkshire chap.
June 29, 2008
Bob Cowling
John Waddington-Feather tells of a small-time farmer who was delivering more than milk on his daily rounds.
June 22, 2008
Honour
Honour is sadly lacking in this age of crippling cynicism, says John Waddington-Feather.
June 15, 2008
Museums And Education
...Early on my father must have realised I had a flair for language and history which developed at school and university.
Both subjects were nurtured by my visits to the town’s museum, which stood on our doorstep in Victoria Park. It was a wonderland stimulating the imagination, for by simply gazing at its exhibits you could travel back to the beginning of time or journey across the globe and back without leaving dear, old Keighley, the Keighworth of my novels and short stories...
John Waddington-Feather pays tribute to the museum which had a huge influence on the course of his life.
June 08, 2008
Atonement
John Waddington-Feather points the way to peace of mind and a meaning to life.
June 01, 2008
The Ghost Of Crag Castle
John Waddington-Feather tells of an inspirational ghost with a golden heart.
May 25, 2008
Jack Pedwar’s Misdemeanours
…“What you do,” they said, “is simple. You ask old Evason for the toffees on the top shelf; then when he’s busy with his back turned up there, grab a handful of jelly babies from the box on the counter and shove ‘em in your pocket..” It seemed so easy and they shared with Jack the loot of their own pilfering, just to show how easy it was…
John Waddington-Feather tells of a lad who landed in trouble, acknowledged his guilty and received a smile he would never forget.
May 18, 2008
Sammy Taylor an’ t’ Funeral Scones.
John Waddington-Feather tells a reight good Yorkshire tale which says a lot about us folk from the county of broad acres.
May 11, 2008
Sergey Petrov
...Though he’d abandoned Communism, like many former members of the Party, he never really believed all men and women were equal. He saw where the main chances in life lay and took them. Number One was always first and that’s why he had risen high in the Party ranks. That’s why he quickly landed himself a well-paid job when the Party crumbled...
But Sergey Petrov is about to discover that there is much more to life than money and success in this splendid story by John Waddington-Feather.
For more of John's satisfying tales please click on Feather's Miscellany in the menu on this page.
May 04, 2008
On Breaking Wind
John Waddington-Feather tackles a subject which, though rarely discussed, is hard to ignore.
April 27, 2008
Slavery
John Waddington-Feather suggests that many of us are becoming slaves to our baser selves.
April 20, 2008
Snorin’ i’ Church
So what caused old Jonas to snore in church? John Waddington-Feather's poem ends with a chuckle.
April 13, 2008
Freddy And The Bank Notes
John Waddington-Feather tells of punch-drunk boxer Freddy McNeigh, who finds himself in possession of more money than he can handle.
April 06, 2008
Tunning t’Clocks Back
John Waddington-Feather, writing in his native Yorkshire language, has some fun with time.
March 30, 2008
Thelma Pepper
...Thelma and I used to walk up the lane sometimes on the way to our schools and by the time I reached the sixth form I’d fallen in love with her. She was beautiful, witty, eloquent and a flirt, but she had more enterprising boyfriends than myself. However, we remained good friends right through school and beyond; for in later life she returned to Keighworth as you will hear...
John Waddington-Feather's story concerns an incident in the life of Thelma Pepper, a lass who knew how to take a copper down a peg or two.
March 23, 2008
How I Came into Publishing
John Waddington-Feather’s account of how he ventured into publishing is an inspiration to authors who find it difficult to get their work into print.
Please do visit John’s Web site www.waddysweb.freeuk.com
March 16, 2008
Rugby League Field
John Waddington-Feather’s poem features the game he played as a young man, and the sort of town in which he grew up.
March 09, 2008
The Teachers - Part 1 - Many Roads To Allah
John Waddington-Feather tells of a man in his fifties who decides to teach in Africa.
John bases his story on his own experiences in the Sudan in 1984-85. This is the first of four episodes.
Continue reading "The Teachers - Part 1 - Many Roads To Allah" »
March 02, 2008
Cyril
...Nykola Wessolovskyi, the child's father, had been a Bolshevik, a revolutionary from the start. "What has religion done for the people?" he'd argued with his wife years before, "except blind them to reality and suppress them, kept them under as tools of the bourgeoisie and the aristos."
As a result Danya Wessolowska, his wife, had had to wait until that cold February morning, when, wrapped up in her thick black shawl like her mother, she'd smuggled young Cyril out to the chapel while his father was away in the army the other side of the country...
John Waddington-Feather's story arises from the drama and agony of Russia's 20th Century history.
February 24, 2008
Belle
Beautiful Belle was married to Ira for almost fifty years - and a right dance he led her for most of them...
John Waddington-Feather's story concerns a working class lass whose life reaches a plateau of modest triumph.
February 17, 2008
Ira And The Cycling Club Lion
...The Cycling Club Committee were a humourless lot. They couldn't see anything funny in a lion being brought into their Club and frightening folk to death; still less, pissing over the billiard tables...
John Waddington-Feather tells of the night when Achilles the lion terrorised the serious drinkers of Keighworth.
To read more of John's well-crafted tales please click on Feather's Miscellany in the menu on this page.
February 10, 2008
Ann
John Waddington-Feather tells a tale which proves that good teaching can bear fruit generations later.
February 03, 2008
Those Pills
...Jim and Ethel were loyal chapel-goers. They never missed a Sunday at the tiny chapel at Ruddledene down the hill from their farm. The congregation was small compared with the old days when there was less money around and less free time. The old-timers would have been shocked to see people playing sport, washing their cars or driving off for the day to the seaside on the Sabbath. The old order had gone and a new one had taken its place - but not quite...
But Jim and Ethel are about to be unexpectedly caught up in the sexual revolution. John Waddington-Feather tells a satisfying tale.
January 27, 2008
Barabbas
...But who's the character the great dictator
Pilate's hung between the two poor sods
who shared my cell with me?...
John Waddington-Feather's poem presents the musings of the freed prisoner, Barabbas.
January 20, 2008
Dandelions
John Waddington-Feather hails the humble flower which outblazes the sun.
Do visit John's Web site http://www.waddysweb.freeuk.com/
January 13, 2008
Khartoum Trilogy
John Waddington-Feather is a writer, teacher and Anglican priest who taught in the University of Khartoum during one of the more momentous periods of Sudan's history. While there, he saw the terrible effects of drought and famine, witnessed public hangings under a perverse interpretation of Islamic Shari'a Law, and finally left the country under the turmoil of civil war and anti-government riots.
But it was among the Sudanese people he discovered new dimensions of love and endurance, and a real deepening of his own faith serving as a priest at the Episcopal Cathedral, and among Muslims and Christians alike in his work as a teacher. He was befriended at the university by the Republican Brothers and Sisters, a group of Muslims seeking to establish closer links with Christians to share in a deeper understanding of God.
Their leader, Mahmoud Taha, was hanged by General Nimeiry for heresy at Kober Prison, opposite the author's own apartment, in January 1985. In the preceeding months, 15,000 Falasha Jews, refugees from Ethiopia, were airlifted over that same apartment from Khartoum Airport a couple of miles away across the Nile. All these events are recorded in his trilogy of poems about Khartoum.
The author was born in Yorkshire in 1933 and graduated at Leeds University. He is married with three grown-up daughters and has written children's books, regional histories, drama and other collections of verse, including a series of humourous poems on his Yukon travels. Much of his ministry outside his work has been in prisons.
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