I had to raise my hand high in order to grasp the hand of my grandfather. I eased my way down the steps, placing the trailing foot on the same step as the leading foot before negotiating the next step in the same fashion. A few minutes earlier I had ... more

We followed the sloping lane from the road behind the cottage which worked its way steadily uphill toward the old house which had once proudly nestled amongst the apple trees and rose-bushes which still grew in so prolific a fashion around the collapsed ruin which was all that remained. ... more

The flickering black and white images moved slowly forward on the screen, marching in time with the sombre music. The band in military uniform was perfectly in tune, and in step. Television cameras cleverly placed at strategic locations along the route caught the participation of the key players in ... more

My extended family gathered at St Elizabeth's church in Bootle last week to bury Norma Heron, beloved mother of Mary, Frankie, Elizabeth, Billie and Hayley. She was my aunt and I'd know her since I was a toddler on Derby Road in the mid-1960's.

I left my family home during the ... more