As the Pandemic Blog continues, contributors continue to send in their weekly reports.  You may see subtle changes in the tone and content they despatch. This week, there are several  who look back reflectively, remembering the hardship their parents or grandparents endured; others recall times from their childhood.  Reflection during compulsory isolation is … Continue reading Living in the present, thinking of the past: Life in Trimley St. Martin during the Pandemic, Week 5. →

  Pink Moon   Courtesy of Laura Locke   Over the last three or four weeks, regular correspondents have been contributing weekly reports about their life in self isolation to this Blog. One of the common features of all correspondents is their positive approach to the crisis of the Covid 19 pandemic. Everyone is sustaining themselves … Continue reading Lockdown continues. Another week in the life of Trimley and the Corona Virus: Week 4. →

 “The budding twigs spread out their fan…”  (William Wordsworth) After nearly three weeks of being confined to quarters, two of them compulsory, I awoke one morning to find the hedge outside my house had  sprung into  life  with blossom, flowers and tender ferns  unfurling  in  front of me. In the  weeks of  ‘lock down’,  the … Continue reading Spring arrives as the Great Pandemic continues: Week 3. →

...in  the time of the Great Pandemic. We live in the  short section of Grimston Lane which finishes in spiked metal and a dead end.   Compulsory self-isolation means that although we may hear our  neighbours, it is no  longer a frequent occurrence to see them in actuality.  Last night, at five to eight, I … Continue reading A round of applause … →

    Small spring flowers in the hedgerow We appear to still be in a ‘phoney war’ period with the Covid-19 virus. It’s sniping fiercely around the edges while building up strength for a full onslaught. This  time  last week  the  total number  of cases in Suffolk were 22. As  of 11.00 p.m.  on Monday … Continue reading Official lock down in Trimley. The Great Pandemic: Week 2 →

Tuesday 24th March 2020 "...Will these hands ne'er be clean?" I have never incited any one to murder knowingly or otherwise but for the last three or four weeks  I have assumed the persona of Lady Macbeth, as I wash and wring my hands until they are red raw. This is my diligent attempt to … Continue reading Pandemic in Trimley St. Martin: Week 1 →

   Sue Biddle in 2009 A fortnight ago, before the world became something unfamiliar to us all, Sue Biddle cycled round to see me with the aim of discussing one of her longstanding projects. Some years back I met Sue in the Ipswich Branch of Suffolk Record Office, one dull Saturday morning when she was … Continue reading Sue Biddle… Headstone Hunter →

“Bound for Van Diemen's land, brave boys, Far, far across the sea”  (The story of Lydia Rackham and her family was originally published in three separate parts in 2018 and 2019. I have decided to put all three together as one long narrative for ease of access.) Part 1 If you have lived in the … Continue reading The true story of Lydia Rackham… →