Last night I watched the WW1 film, Passchendaele. It is a film about relationships, and the effect that war has on them. Not just that, but it is about family and identity, a film that asks questions about who we are and the decisions we … Continue reading The joy and the pain of nationality
Category: Home and other places
The past in the present
Sam and I watched The Dark Knight Rises last night, the third in the Batman trilogy. Great film, as good as, maybe better than, numbers one and two. I was keen to see the interiors from Osterley House which we saw when we were there in October. What … Continue reading The past in the present
Osterley Estate
We found ourselves at Osterley on the last day of the season, Wednesday 30 October 2013. It was a chilly autumn day, but the sun was shining in a blue sky. We had driven up from Gatwick via the M25 and through the outer suburbs … Continue reading Osterley Estate
By train through George and Mabel’s world
We have been in Surrey. We flew into Gatwick airport the other night and stayed at a B and B in Horley. We caught a train the next day into London, passing through Redhill, Merstham, Norwood Junction and New Cross before finally getting off at … Continue reading By train through George and Mabel’s world
Uncle Jack remembers Osterley
The only one of the Simmonds boys that I ever knew was John (Jack), my grandfather's brother, who must have been in his 70s when I met him one sunny day in Brisbane - could it have been in the 80s?. I can't remember how … Continue reading Uncle Jack remembers Osterley
Forgotten tales 