This page contains some reminiscences from those of us who remember GG well. One thing she was keen on was that we all learned to play an instrument – and then her favourite pieces. Anyone who could play the Moonlight Sonata would be in her good books – though the trickier second and third movements eluded us. None of us ever achieved the higher levels of skill that she hoped for us.
David Clover
I remember being taught to say the name of the famous Welsh Village of llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch whilst on holiday with the family in North Wales. I also remember that Granny’s ‘other glasses’ were always upstairs (when she was down) and downstairs (when she was up) and suggesting that as we had ‘young legs’ we wouldn’t mind fetching them. Sometimes though, they were on her head, or within reach…
I also remember being asked to clean Grandpa’s brown shoes at ‘Greylands’ in Cronkbourne Road – and using the black shoe brush kit. The results were quite interesting – and he was very nice about it…. Once, when staying with Richard to see the Manx Grand Prix, I tuned GG’s new FM radio just a little too far – and the tuning device broke. That cost £10 to mend…
As far as music was concerned, I was known as a boy treble, and she always called for me to sing to her. I hated doing this, and used to hide when I thought that a session was due. Later though, she accompanied me in grown up songs – and she could give a fair whirl to Schubert’s Erl King when she had a mind to. We still have a scratchy recording from 1964 of Granny playing and us trying to sing to her….
I also remember that whenever Granny was on the telephone, she said ‘lovely’ when ever there was a short pause in the conversation. I’ve still got a tape recording from 1965 of ‘The Christmas Phone call‘, 3-minute pips and all. There are about 30 instances of the word. Of course, by and large, all things were quite lovely then…
I once went to see the film ‘The Rebel‘ starring Tony Hancock with Granny. It was meant to be be funny. However, throughout the film, GG kept on remarking on, and explaining to me the action and the jokes in a loud voice in case I hadn’t understood them. I squirmed with embarrassment and was relieved to get out.
Liz Maskell (Neé Love):
I remember staying at ‘Greylands’ and smuggling a pet snake into Granny’s shed – I think I was about twelve and Mum, Mike, myself & a very mischievous schoolfriend, Frances MacDonald came with us. Anyhow, Frances & I had this pet snake and nobody knew about it!! We would go into Granny’s larder (no fridges then) & help ourselves to eggs to feed this snake – then we’d hear Mum & Granny going on about how the eggs seemed to be going down in quantity and who was eating so many!! We managed to keep the snake secret for about a week & then someone spotted us sneaking the eggs out of the larder and the secret was out! Horror of horrors – when everyone knew and we took them to see the snake, it had escaped from its hutch, never to be seen again! Granny was horrified as it was either somewhere in the shed or garden & I remember it was a long time before she felt confident about gardening again.
Frances was also responsible for attaching a fake boil to her face when we were all on Laxey beach and totally fooling Granny. Granny spotted Dr Beckett on the beach and called him over to look at the ‘boil’! Imagine Granny’s embarrassment when the ‘boil’ fell off during Dr Beckett’s examination – she wasn’t too happy with us! Oh …. memories!
I remember GG offering a financial reward for the first grandchild who learnt how to sayy “llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch”. Well I hate to boast but I was first to the post and got the reward (would it have been something like shilling?) and do you know to this day, I have never forgotten it!
I remember her going into the sea to swim while we sat on the beach shivering! She was so stoic. I remember this particularly in Laxey which I think was a favourite beach.
In her later years and while I was living on the Island, we would often go to a little cafe that was right at the end of Laxey promenade and overlooked the beach and rocks. We would have lunch there and GG loved it.
GG was also known as ‘The Duchess of Douglas’ because of her involvement with so many societies, her work as a JP and her general manner. I remember staying with her quite often probably due to the proximity of Liverpool and her insistence that I wore a hat when I went into Strand Street with her (the main shopping street) as she seemed to know everyone.
Another place she loved to visit, although latterly in a wheelchair, was the Tynwald Mills where a host of fashion names had concessions. I sometimes commandeered the Sunnydale Residential Home white transit van and took GG and another resident to the Mill and in fact, I remember Pam accompanying me on one of the trips. We would ensure their wheelchairs were firmly secured in the back of the van. One of my recurring nightmares was that the wheelchairs became unsecured on the way up the hill from Union Mills to Glen Vine and GG and her friend flew out of the back of the transit van.
Pam Martin: (Neé Powell)
Granny used to take me in my pram down to Cheam village, but I was scared of the railway bridge, so she used have to take a half mile detour – I don’t think Mum ever put up with that one. I always had to move out of my bedroom when Granny came to stay – for two reasons I think. My bedroom was just a bit more feminine than Richard or John’s but more importantly, Richard once lost a mouse in his bedroom so Granny refused to go in there ever again.
We used to save up all the darning for Granny when she came to stay – she seemed to thrive on it. I went to see one of my first films with Granny, a Beatles one. As far as I can remember she completely slept through it.
At the end of Granny’s stays with us in Cheam, we often used to drive her to the Devil’s Punchbowl at Hindhead and swap her over in to the Clover’s car to take her on to Portsmouth. I was (and still am) convinced by all that the bottom of the hill at Devil’s Punchbowl was Australia, it was so deep.
Holidays with Granny in Cornwall bring back a couple of distinct memories. Firstly, her black and blue bruises from surfing, and secondly, playing a card game called “pousquillion” which I think Mike had “brought back” from France.
Don Powell
In the early 60’s GG and a friend, possibly Winnie Cowin or Winnie Sutton, went on holiday to the continent. Their flight was due back at Gatwick at around midnight on a Saturday and I was to meet them and bring them to Cheam. At around 10:30 that night I rang the airport and was told that the flight was expected to arrive on time. So I set out for Gatwick but ran into fog but still reached Gatwick on time.
Shortly after my arrival it was announced that, because of fog, the plane was being diverted to Heathrow, but, not to worry, the passengers would be bussed into Victoria. So I drove to Victoria station, arriving at around 1am only to find that the airline office knew nothing. A little later it was announced that the plane had been diverted not to Heathrow but to Birmingham, but, not to worry, the passengers would be bussed to Victoria station though there would be further delay while coaches were found. Shortly after 6am there were signs of activity and I and others arrived at where the coaches had pulled up only to see the last of the passengers leaving by taxi. I drove home arriving just after GG and friend. So what did I do? I went to Church!
Sue Diamond (Neé Clover)
Like Pam, I also remember Granny coming to stay with us, and since I had two beds in my room I used to share with her. She slept very soundly and was known to make the usual sleeping snoring noises. I couldn’t sleep through this and discovered that either making a sound or touching her would disturb the level of her sleep enough to stop the noises for a while. Getting tired of constantly coughing or getting out of bed to gently touch her, I discovered a carefully aimed soft toy had the desired effect. So one by one my soft toys, socks, slippers and anything else which lay scattered around my bed ended up around Granny’s bed. The following morning she would look very perplexed and wonder where all this mess had come from.
Granny loved games of all sorts. We were never bored on a car journey when she was with us, playing “I packed my suitcase” and “little yellow booties” She never tired of playing simple family games with her grandchildren or more complicated games like Bridge with her own children and friends. Family fun was one of her favourite things, the more the merrier.
Things had to be done properly, manners had to be impeccable, she stood no nonsense, she expected respect and always got it. She had an incredible interest in everyone, and wanted to know all about them. She remembered details about all the people she met and until her death at 100 years old continued to ask after people she had met long ago and still remembered.
Granny was a prolific letter writer. Her writing was tiny and very neat even if it did take a bit of getting used to, to be able to read it. In the days before relatively cheap telephone calls the family news was recorded in long letters which were circulated around the family. It is thanks to one such letter that she wrote after she had scattered Grandpa’s ashes that we discovered the spot where she wanted her own ashes to be scattered. That letter was found amongst my mum’s things after she died, we were so glad that we could fulfil grannie’s wishes properly.
I remember her love of music and her wish that all her grandchildren should sing and play. Like David, I also stood at the piano singing to her accompaniment and the peak of our performances was playing “the parade of the tin soldiers” as a duet on the piano. I have bought a piano with her legacy, trying to learn to play again myself and as encouragement for my daughter Fiona.
I remember a little white haired lady who filled a room with her presence, her piano, family photos on the walls, bonfires in the garden, the swing in the garden of Greylands, the balloon lady, eating Snickadoodles, going to the corner shop and last but not least that MINI!
The Greenfields 