A Review By Keith Smith

Timothy West has led a charmed life as an actor: Rarely out of work, moving effortlessly between TV and stage, film and recordings, he is perhaps most famous for his television portrayals of Edward VII and as patriarch Bradley Hardacre in the hit TV series Brass. With his wife, Prunella Scales, and now his son, Samuel, the West family have provided many memorable moments in theatre, film and television. Timothy West’s early years as a young actor read like a map of a now vanished landscape: box-office at Frinton, assistant stage manager at Newquay, weekly rep at Hull, a two-year contract at Salisbury…and meanwhile coping with a small child and a manic depressive first wife.

Soon the parts get meatier, and the venues better known: the West End, the Royal Shakespeare Company, performing Dickens and Dostoyevsky on television, and a stint running the Old Vic, which includes coping with Peter O’Toole and his disastrous ideas for Macbeth…

Not my usual sort of book, so I thought it would be enjoyable to read something out of my normal tracks. In fact I gave up after a short while, as Timothy West seems to be a bit of a bore. If sewing fish into a landlady’s settee because her digs weren’t good is the sort of thing that amuses you this might be the book for you. Alas, not for me……Can’t recommend, except for out and out thespians.

A Review By Keith Smith

I really really enjoyed this book. I can understand now the reviewer who said that he didn’t want Bess to die. Neither did I. Her life was so fascinating and tells us so much about the times in which she lived.

My interest was pricked when we decided to visit Hardwick Hall one Sunday recently (to try to get more use out of our National Trust cards……). The drive up the M1 was certainly worth it. The buildings are magnificent. ‘Hardwick Hall, more glass than wall’ the contemporary rhyme went. And the new hall built by Bess is truly astonishing…a Modernist building before its time. But then the old hall next door where Bess was born is equally breathtaking with its astonishing views and magnificent rooms.

So, as soon as we got into the shop on the Monday I ordered a guidebook to Hardwick Hall which duly arrived next day (I was just as pleased as our customers at the wonderful service), and the book by Mary Lovell. When I got it, I laid it to one side. It was long, and by someone I didn’t know as a reputable historian. Curiosity got the better of me, however, and I picked it up one evening in bed, and fell asleep with it in my hand much later at about 3am. From then on I devoured it.

‘Bess of Hardwick’ is incredibly well researched, with much more use made of original documents and correspondence than by most accepted historians. In fact it puts people like David Starkey to shame. And yet, it is written in such a way that we feel Bess’s life is unfolding before our eyes in magazines or newspapers. It is gripping stuff. A book you can’t put down. A thoroughly interesting, entertaining rollercoaster of a ride yet all based on absolutely top-notch, solid scholarship. What could be better? My book of the year.

“Life Along the Line” takes a nostalgic look at the world of British railways through the eyes of bestselling author and antiques expert Paul Atterbury. Focusing on the human experience of the railways – the drivers, firemen, guards, station staff, signalmen, engineers, caterers and, of course, passengers – the book is a visual feast, filled with fascinating archive photographs of steam trains, other locomotives, memorabilia and evocative railway ephemera. Built from archive photographs, old postcards, badges and other railwayana, the book is filled with fascinating material that Atterbury has himself collected from tireless searching at postcard and antique fares and auction sites.

Many of the illustrations are therefore original and previously unpublished. This title covers railway life across the network as well as showcasing local differences in a series of regional sections.

Join Marie Elaine on a thrilling rooftop journey that takes her to a most unusual party! One night Marie Elaine finds her cat Malcolm dressed to go to a party. On condition she keep his secret, Malcolm agrees to let her come with him, and they set off through the streets – a dangerous journey, for Marie Elaine is now as small as her cat! At the party there are cats and more cats, and they are all very excited…the Queen of the Cats is on her way! It is a night that Marie Elaine will never forget – and she won’t forget to keep the secret either.