NEW BOOK - Sleeping Beauty, Another Grandma Chatterbox Fairy Tale

My good friend Barbara Hayes has got a new ebook out.

A retelling of the classic fairy tale for 21st century youngsters by a master storyteller. 

We are all familiar with Sleeping Beauty, of course, but there is a lot more to her than a good long sleep. She did not just marry the handsome prince who woke her up and live happily ever after. Dear me, no. The story as we usually hear it today is a very much shortened version of the original.

Fairy Stories have been told for hundreds and hundreds of years. No one really knows when they started or who first wrote them  - or told them I expect. They probably started before many people could read or write.

Anyway they have been told and retold and everyone who tells them alters them a little bit to suit themselves or to please the people listening.
So Grandma Chatterbox when she was younger (which was a long time ago) went round and about and over the hills and far away searching for the oldest versions of Fairy Tales which she could find.

So now Grandma Chatterbox is going to tell you Fairy Stories as close to the oldest versions that she can get. After all it is part of every child’s education to know all the traditional tales.

Grandma Chatterbox just loves the old stories, and simply adores telling them to young children. The vocabularly and grammar in these stories is specially adapted to be suitable to younger children. When your children get a little bit older and start to learn to read you will find that the vocabulary contains words that they will be learning. Increase the type size on your tablet or other device and you can read along with your children.

So, are you ready for a story? Good, then I will begin..

Join the Conversation and find out more on the dedicated FACEBOOK PAGE for the Crandma Chatterbox ebooks.

NEW BOOK - Welford Park Station - Stations of the GWR

My pal Charles D'Arvelle has a new book out.

A well researched history of one of closed branch line stations on the Great Western Railway. 

Welford Park Station is no more. This was once the busiest of all the stations on the Lambourn Valley Line serving as it did the huge RAF base nearby as well as the village of Welford. But now there is little left on the ground to show where this railway station once stood. Some of the older residents can still remember the trains rattling through the station and over the bridge crossing the River Kennet.

In this book we learn when Welford Park Station was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also takes a look at the large RAF base nearby and its role in World War II.

In 1905 the Lambourn Valley Railway was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books


Join the discussion and find out more on the FaceBook page for this series of books.

NEW BOOK - Boxford Station - Stations of the GWR

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has published his  fourth book in his series on the Lambourn Valley Line.

An appealing history of a once busy rural station on a branch line of the Great Western Railway. 

Boxford was for many years a bustling little rural station on the branch line from Newbury to Lambourn. It is closed now, but some of the older residents can still remember the trains rattling through the station.

In this book we learn when Newbury West Fields was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also tells the tale of Charlie Brown, porter here for 36 years and takes a look at the locomotives that ran on the Lambourn Valley line on which this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books


About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

The FaceBook page for the book series is HERE
You can buy the book HERE

NEW BOOK - Stockcross & Bagnor Station on the GWR

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has a new book out.

The third book in our Stations of the GWR collection is now available.

A dedicated history of one of this rural station on the Great Western Railway.

Stockcross and Bagnor Station no more. This once bustling rural branch line station closed in the 1960s. Steam engines once chuffed up the long gradient from Newbury, stopped at Stockcross and Bagnor and then pushed on to Lambourn at the end of the line.

In this book we learn when Stockcross and Bagnor was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained.

The book also takes a look at the construciton of the Lambourn Valley Railway (LVR) on which line this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books

About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

You can buy the KINDLE EDITION HERE
You can buy OTHER EBOOK FORMATS HERE

NEW BOOK - Speen for Donnington Station

My good friend Charles D'Arvelle has got a new ebook out today.

A charming history of one of the vanished Great Western Railway stations that closed in the 1960s. 

Speen for Donnington Station is no more. This small rural station once had its own full time staff and a thriving traffic of passengers and agricultural produce. Some of the older residents in the villages can still remember the trains rattling through the station, over the level crossing and through the tunnel on their way to Newbury, Berkshire.

In this book we learn when Speen for Donnington was built and why. The impact the station had on the surrounding area is explained and the type of freight and passengers that used the station are explained. The fatal accident of 1898 in which two people were killed is here, as are some of the colourful characters who lived in the smart village of Donnington. The thrilling events of the Battle of Newbury, fought in 1644 over the land where the station was later built, are explained.

The book also takes a look at the Lambourn Valley Railway (LVR) on which line this station stood.

In 1905 the LVR was taken over by the GWR and the entire branch line was upgraded and brought to GWR standards. The line remained open until 1964, but is now closed, the tracks lifted and the stations gone. How this station was affected is described.

This book is one of the Lambourn Valley Railway series that looks in detail at the stations along that now closed branch line. The Lambourn Valley Railway series is part of the Stations of the Great Western Railway collection published by Bretwalda Books

About the Author
Charles D’Arvelle is a railway enthusiast who has a particular fascination with closed branch lines. He has spent many happy hours tracing the locations of closed stations, abanoned sidings and lost railway tracks. He declares it is a great way to get out and explore the British countryside.

you can BUY THE EBOOK HERE

Barrage Balloons Defend Britain 1940

The defence of Britain from night bombing in 1940 and 1941 did not rely entirely on fighter aircraft. Also operating under the control of Fighter Command were the barrage balloons, searchlights and anti-aircraft batteries. Like Fighter Command, the ground-based defences had suffered from under investment between the wars and even by the autumn of 1940 were not up to full strength.

The Balloons were under the command of Air Vice Marshall O. T. Boyd OBE MC AFC, who had his headquarters at RAF Stanmore conveniently close to Bentley Priory. He divided his forces into Groups, matching those of Fighter Command. According to the plans of the War Ministry, Boyd should have had over 2,000 balloons, but in fact had only 800.

Barrage balloons were large gas-filled balloon shaped rather like a torpedo with large fins at the rear. They were connected to the ground by a tough steel cable by means of which they could be raised and lowered. From the balloons trailed a number of thinner wire cables that dangled down and blew about in the wind. In theory balloons were able to destroy any aircraft that flew into their cables – and several enemy bombers were in fact brought down in this way.

In practice, however, their main role was as a deterrent. Bomber pilots preferred not to go down lower than the balloons for fear of hitting the cables. When there was low cloud, the balloons could be positioned just beneath the cloud, thus blocking any bombing run. In clear weather the balloons were raised to their maximum height. This did not stop bombers flying higher than the balloons, of course, but did mean that they were bombing from high altitude. At this date bombsights did not allow for accurate bombing from much above 10,000 feet, so balloons could spoil the enemy’s aim even if they could not stop him bombing entirely.

from HEROES OF RAF FIGHTER COMMAND IN SUSSEX by Rupert Matthews

DFC for Battle of Britain pilots

The change of German tactics from daylight raids on airfields and aircraft factories to mixed day and night raids on cities and towns was both a relief and a worry for Dowding and the higher ranks at Fighter Command.

On the plus side, the change gave Fighter Command a much needed break. The constant pounding of airbases, especially in Kent, had caused heavy casualties among highly trained groundcrew who could not easily be replaced and had severely disrupted the smooth efficiency of the command. Now that the bases were no longer being bombed – or at least not so heavily nor so often – the fighter squadrons could return to a higher level of efficiency. Certainly the pilots appreciated knowing that at the end of an arduous mission they stood a good chance of being able to land back at base rather than finding it a smoking ruin.

One of the activities that the Command was able to catch up with was the award of medals. Throughout the Battle of Britain feats of outstanding skill or bravery had resulted in recommendations, and in most cases awards, of immediate medals. Now that the pressure was off, however, time was found to reward the less spectacular but no less heroic feats of sustained work and devotion to duty.

In October Pilot Officer Anthony Bartley of No.92 Squadron was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. During the hectic months he had shot down no less than 8 German aircraft and, as his squadron commander wrote “has always displayed great coolness in action and proved himself a clever and determined fighter.” Flt Lt George Christie was likewise awarded a DFC having shot down seven German aircraft and “shown outstanding ability and leadership over a long period of air operations”.

Sergeant Reggie Llewellyn of No.213 Squadron, being an NCO, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal. By October his score had reached four Ju88s, four Me110s, three Me109s, one Heinkel 111 destroyed plus several probables. “He has,” wrote his commander when making the recommendation for a medal “at all times shown great courage and devotion to duty.”

from HEROES OF RAF FIGHTER COMMAND IN KENT by Rupert Matthews