Open Writing

...Kentish lived there alone, except for his housekeeper. If I'd been looking for company there, I think I might have taken one of those twin-engined Swedish models. He'd got an elderly woman called Mrs Bull who displaced about as much air as St Pancras station, but not quite so elegantly. She might not have looked so nifty bent over the ironing table but she did produce a game pie that would have made the angels sing...

Jim Hussy finds more questions than answers when he goes to Kentish's house.

Colin Dunne continues his mysterious tale.

To read earlier chapters please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/ratcatcher/

Continue reading "Chapter 20" »

Written by Colin Dunne - Published at 10:02 AM

Five-year-old Ronnie Bray had only a vague understanding of the significance of the onset of war.

Continue reading "War!" »

Written by Ronnie Bray - Published at 09:02 AM

...Don’t get me wrong. I am not against giving to charity. I think we all have to give in whatever way we can. But I would like to make that decision myself without being hounded into it...

Lytrice Adams is tired of the constant appeals on her charitable nature.

Lytrice writes for Bonzer! Please visit www.bonzer.org.au

Continue reading "It Never Seems To End!" »

Written by Lytrice Adams - Published at 08:02 AM

...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" »

Written by Mary Pilfold-Allan - Published at 12:24 PM

Richard Donkin zestfully joins in a debate on the progress of women.

Please visit Richard's entertaining Web site
http://richarddonkin.com/

To purchase a copies of Richard's celebrated books please clicl pn
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blood-Sweat-Tears-Evolution-Work/dp/1587990768/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1214554429&sr=1-2
and
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Future-Work-Richard-Donkin/dp/0230576389/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260983216&sr=1-1

Continue reading "The Progress Of Women" »

Written by Richard Donkin - Published at 12:02 PM

Richard Harris is struck by the thought that today's children are bigger and brighter than their parents.

Continue reading "Thoughts On Today’s Children" »

Written by Richard Harris - Published at 11:02 AM

...Too late! Nothing for it but to continue on. Feeling very apprehensive about negotiating an eighteen foot caravan in such circumstances, I gripped the steering wheel and hoped for the best...

Maureen Freeman is no lover of driving on Freeways.

Continue reading "Dream Run" »

Written by Maureen Freeman (Sunraysia U3A, Australia) - Published at 10:02 AM

...The Matron had a habit of just breezing into the house iike a ship in full sail, as she was rather plump and would send me to bed even when I was getting up, telling Rod I had to stay there for two hours as she tucked both my babies alongside of me...

Gladys Schofield found that sleep was something to savouras she looked after two baby daughters born within 17 months of each other.

Continue reading "110 - Passing The Test" »

Written by Gladys Shofield - Published at 09:02 AM

Arnold Kellett's poem was prompted by an Act of Parliament in 1652 which abolished Christmas.

Continue reading "The Unnoticed Guest" »

Written by Arnold Kellett - Published at 08:02 AM

...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.

Continue reading "Lyth Hill And Mary Webb" »

Written by John Waddington-Feather - Published at 12:22 PM

Oh the drama of acting! Richard Mallinson tells a theatrical tale.

Continue reading "Scene" »

Written by Richard Mallinson - Published at 12:02 PM

...A fair guess might be that the city’s music-loving citizens would, metaphorically speaking, be fighting in lumps over the tickets.

That fair guess turned out to be a bit wide of the mark. I’ll make no bones about this – I was embarrassed. There they were, crammed cheek-by-jowl onto the stage, no fewer than seventy-six accomplished musicians – confronted by an auditorium that was not just partially populated, but lightly dusted with a measly TWO DOZEN citizens. I ask you, how could practically ALL of Whangarei’s myriad classical fans have passed up such a rare opportunity?...

Paul Serotsky deplores the lack of local support for eloquent musicianship of the Auckland Youth Symphony Orchestra

Continue reading "Fire And Ice" »

Written by Paul Serotsky - Published at 11:02 AM

Peter Clarkson and his wife Moira enjoy Christmas in Australia with relatives from England.

Continue reading "A Travelling Restaurant" »

Written by Peter Clarkson - Published at 10:58 AM

Lisa DeMarco’s gag features one very shrewd mom.
To purchase a copy of Lisa's book please click on
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=lisa+demarco

And do visit her Web site http://funnyserver.aegauthorblogs.com/

Continue reading "Can't Fool Mom" »

Written by Lisa DeMarco - Published at 10:02 AM

Eric Biddulph spent an unforgettable week in the high Andes in Peru.

Eric’s book The First Seventy Years can be obtained for £10 by contacting http://mary@bike2.wanadoo.co.uk or telephoning 01484-658175.

All the cash raised by the book goes to a water aid project in Malawi.

Continue reading "108 - In Peru" »

Written by Eric Biddulph - Published at 09:02 AM

Paddy Webb, continuing her verse biography of her great-grandfather, tells of the heart-breaking loss of a young daughter.

Continue reading "The Well – 14 Jack" »

Written by Paddy Webb (Huddersfield U3A) - Published at 08:02 AM

Margaret Dunn recalls her sudden and dramatic decision in 1967 to leave Edinburgh and live in Zambia.

Continue reading "Zambia In The Old Days" »

Written by Margaret Dunn - Published at 12:04 PM

...He decides he's well enough to go back to school. I can hardly breathe, as I drop him off for his first day with one leg and watch him make his way inside, thin, bald and alone (he insisted on that)...

Kimm Walker continues her profoundly moving and uplifting account of her teenage son's fight to regain a normal life after battling against cancer.

To purchase a copy A Life Less Lost click on http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=A+Life+Less+Lost

And do visit Kimm's Web site http://kbwalker-lifelesslost.blogspot.com/

Continue reading "Chapter 26" »

Written by K B Walker - Published at 12:02 PM

...Stepping up to the counter with my passport, I noticed that he did not wear a watch confirming my belief that being mindful of the time was not particularly harmonious with tropical living...

Gehan Wijesinha tells of arriving in Sri Lanka on a hot steamy night.

Continue reading "Arriving In Colombo" »

Written by Gehan Wijesinha - Published at 11:02 AM

Peter Dawson of Cambridge identified with a article by Ken Holmes about the sinking of H.M.S. Warwick.

Continue reading "HMS Warwick" »

Written by Peter Hinchliffe - Published at 10:02 AM

Masimba Biriwasha conveys the profound emotions aroused by music.

For more of Masimba's thoughts, feelings and words please do visit
http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=masimba+biriwasha

Continue reading " Confession On A Music Note" »

Written by Masimba Biriwasha - Published at 09:42 AM

William Burkholder's poem is charged with the electricity of young love.

Continue reading "Hydrox Girl" »

Written by W B Burkholder - Published at 09:02 AM

"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.

Continue reading "People They Laughed At - 11" »

Written by Val Yule - Published at 08:02 AM

…William Golding is making the point that the shape of society does not depend on systems and rules but on the people who make them. Defects in society arise from defects in human nature…

Brian Barratt’s astute explanation of Golding’s great and imperishable novel goes to the very heart of how we humans organise, or fail to organise, our communal affairs.

To read the first three of this series of eight articles, and lots of othr literary treats by Brian, please click on http://www.openwriting.com/archives/the_scrivener/

For a brisk bout of mental calisthenics visit Brian’s Web site The Brain Rummager www.alphalink.com.au/~umbidas/

Continue reading "Lord of the Flies - 4" »

Written by Brian Barratt - Published at 12:02 PM

‘Well wasn’t it a deliberate foul?’ asks my distressed supporter. Aren’t they all deliberately foul, but no need to tell him, my attention has wandered, he’s not really talking to me anyway? This conversation is just between him and an unseen assenter who sits on his shoulder during all sporting events.

Enid Blackburn refuses to be enchanted by football on TV.

Continue reading "Longer Nights" »

Written by Enid Blackburn - Published at 11:02 AM

The postage stamp is worthy of our admiration, as Ron Pataky's poem reveals.

Continue reading "Stick To Your Task" »

Written by Ron Pataky - Published at 10:02 AM

Dry humour and practical jokes helped the days to go by at the huge Reyrolle engineering works, as Robert Owen reveals in the latest chapter of his history of the firm.

To purchase a copy of Robert's book please visit http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reyrolle-Story-History-Co-Ltd/dp/1905295073/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245678876&sr=1-1

Continue reading "33 - Dry Humour" »

Written by Robert Owen - Published at 09:02 AM

Dharini Parameshwaran wonders if the tsunami which devastated her homeland was sent as a punishment

Continue reading "Quirk Of Nature" »

Written by Dharini Parameshwaran (Sunraysia U3A, Australia) - Published at 08:02 AM

...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.

Continue reading "A Bit Of Colour" »

Written by Jacqueline Finesilver - Published at 12:32 PM

...On this particular Saturday I had a more pressing concern on my mind as my parents were arriving from England the next day for a month long holiday.

“I’m going home to clean the oven,” I announced to the incredulous dads...

Sandy James's husband said “If she wants to clean the oven then you should just let her do it.”

But Sandy felt compelled to do some cleaning. It's all a matter of perspective, isn't it?

Continue reading "Perspective" »

Written by Sandy James - Published at 12:02 PM

Andrew Hicks continues to gather material for an autobiography of Jack Reynolds, author of the 1956 novel "A Woman Of Bangkok''.

Continue reading "Jack Reynolds - The Search Goes On" »

Written by Andrew Hicks - Published at 11:02 AM

...He'd no small-talk, was unsociable and seemed a world away from the wild scenario around him. The other guests felt awkward in his company and drifted away from him till he stood alone, like a sour spectator at a play, watching all that went on with a jaundiced eye...

John Illingworth is a forbidding presence at Harry Clemence's party.

John Waddington-Feather continues his absorbing story about a Yorkshire mill-owning dynasty.

Continue reading "Chance Child - Part One: 74 - Smoke And Fire" »

Written by John Waddington-Feather - Published at 10:02 AM

Leslie Davies was moved by Ronnie Bray's lament for the passing of variety theatre in Britain.

Continue reading "Variety Theatre" »

Written by Peter Hinchliffe - Published at 09:02 AM

Peter Wintersgill outlines the professional life of singer Giuseppina Strepponi who married Verdi.

Continue reading "Giuseppina Strepponi" »

Written by Peter Wintersgill (Huddersfield U3A) - Published at 08:02 AM

...My personal event occurred at 3 am. I was in a deep sleep, but knew immediately what was happening. The shock felt as though my bed had been picked up about 3 feet and dropped, and there was an explosive bang. Adrenalin had me wide away in a nanosecond. I’d heard that the immediate safety precaution is to stand in a doorway, always supposing there is a doorway to stand in...

John Merchant relates the quiet story of his encounter with an earthquake.

To read more of John's columns do visit http://www.openwriting.com/cgi-bin/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&search=john+merchant

And do visit his Web site
http://home.comcast.net/~jwmerchant/site/

Continue reading "Shaken But Not Stirred" »

Written by John Merchant - Published at 12:28 PM

...straying thoughts always have tangible results. This is particularly evident when performing on stage. It’s acknowledged that much of the secret of playing music is what happens in the mind. Thoughts flow through the performer’s mind, and through the minds of the audience, and there seems to be a ‘silent conversation’ between them, a sub-text not immediately evident...

Isabel Bradley reveals what goes on in a musician's mind while playing some of the greatest music ever written.

Continue reading "Those Silent Conversations" »

Written by Isabel Bradley - Published at 11:58 AM

Lisa DeMarco tells a gag which many an office worker may find is too close for comfort.

Continue reading "Crime Watch" »

Written by Lisa DeMarco - Published at 11:02 AM

Of all the nursing homes I have visited, the ones where residents live longest and healthiest and happiest are those where the staff say straight out, ‘We don’t bother with trying to cure, or even forcing them to keep fit. We just want them to have fun.’

Val Yule brings a host of practical suggestions to improve the lives of older folk who need full-time care.

Continue reading " Care Of The Elderly" »

Written by Val Yule - Published at 09:02 AM

John Ayling longed for an eternity of love unbounded.

Continue reading "By Love Surrounded" »

Written by John Ayling - Published at 08:02 AM

Alan Nolan and his mate meet a party of "Oh really'' Americans
as they embark on their long walk across England.

To purchase a copy of Ancient Feet visit
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ancient-Feet-Alan-Nolan/dp/1906510970/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258967135&sr=1-1

Signed copies of the book are available from Alan http://apn.thelea@yahoo.co.uk

Continue reading "9 - Say No To Pipits" »

Written by Alan Nolan - Published at 12:02 PM

...My first memory of dentists is hearing my mom say, “His hands will stop shaking when the needle is in your mouth...

Motivated by suh a memory Greg Hill simply had to buy "What It's Like To Be A Dentist'' when it appeared on the library booksale table.

Continue reading "Strange Books" »

Written by Greg Hill - Published at 11:02 AM