Strangely it was an unexpected encounter with a lady on a train which finally persuaded me to write my story. I have had an extremely interesting and enjoyable life and have always had pleasure narrating my experiences to my Children, my grandchildren, friends and even strangers. It stems from the fact that as a child I had no real memories of my grandparents as they weren't still with us. It was because of this that I decided to keep my family informed of my life. They were all very interested in what I told them and over the years quite a few have said to me, 'You could write a book,' which usually went in one ear and out the other.



I have worked in many jobs in totally different industries, travelled far and wide by land, sea and air, visited many beautiful countries and have many experiences to tell. I fortunately met the most wonderful young lady who became my dear wife for over 50 years. We had 3 children, 2 girls and a boy, then 7 grandchildren and now 7 great-grandchildren. In December 2019, I travelled up to the Midlands to spend Christmas with our eldest daughter and our eldest granddaughter. It was on a packed train home that I found myself sitting next to a very sociable lady and we began talking with me saying most about my life, as usual. An hour later when I got up to leave the train, we said goodbye and she said, 'That was interesting, you could write a book'. Then came January 2020 complete with Covid-19 and then lockdown. That lady's comment for some reason stuck in my brain and I finally thought, 'Let's go for it'. So this is my story and I hope that you derive as much pleasure from reading it as I had writing it. Enjoy.



Best wishes John.