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Wonderful memory
I read with interest and joy Jenni Murray’s column about Concorde (January). In 1981, I was a cancer patient at Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith; most nights at around 9.45pm, Concorde would fly over the building to London Heathrow. I’d rush to the window and declare that ‘one day I will fly on Concorde’.
My husband bought me a Bay of Biscay ‘flip’ on the aircraft for my 40th birthday in 1989. I was smitten. In 1997, we booked a trip to Barbados for our silver wedding anniversary. Unbeknown to my husband, I booked for us to fly there one way on Concorde. I worked all the hours to pay for it.
When the day came and the surprise was revealed, my husband turned white, wondering how I’d managed to save up. It was an awesome flight, taking just over three hours to arrive in Barbados. On my return, someone asked how much the flight had cost. When I told them, they said, ‘What a waste of money.’ To which I flippantly replied, ‘Well, you’re a long time dead.’ My lovely husband was dead 18 months later at the age of 51 – he was diagnosed with lung cancer a year after our holiday. It was to be our last trip together, and the best money I ever spent.
If you want to do something and can afford it or manage it physically, do it. None of us is owed a tomorrow. Such a beautiful memory.
VIP visit
Like Betty Webb (November), my mother worked at Bletchley Park for four years during the Second World War, and she also never spoke of her time there except for one story.
Staff were given short notice of a visit by the Prime Minister, to give his appreciation for their decoding efforts which led to the sinking of the enemy warship Scharnhorst, so they rapidly tidied all their rubbish into one hut. Lined up in the grounds, waiting expectantly, they heard a commotion as Mr Churchill picked out that one particular hut and was gleefully poking through all the assembled rubbish with his stick! He then climbed up on to a block and gave one of his rousing speeches, which still brought tears to her eyes after 40 years.
Treasure hunt
Thank you for the article on metal detecting (December). I’ve had an interest in it for years, but I’ve never really engaged with it, apart from buying a very cheap and less-than-effective metal detector in Australia that has flown around the world, sat in cupboards and moved house with me several times.
One thing that’s put me off is not knowing what detector I need as a beginner. So, it was interesting to discover that you don’t have to spend the earth and that there is a national body with a cheap yearly membership that can help.
I love the idea of w
