Bedfordshire Archives Service Catalogue
  • Reference
    AU34/21/7/16/24
  • Title
    Letter from R P S Waddy
  • Date free text
    15 December 1982
  • Production date
    From: 1982 To: 1982
  • Scope and Content
    A typewritten letter from R P S Waddy (former Rector of St Andrew's, Ampthill) to Honora Grimmer, on headed paper from Maiden Newton, Dorchester, Dorset: "My dear Nora, Bishop Philip Loyd taught me that the only wise course of action, on receiving from its author a new book, was to write immediately and say how much you were looking forward to reading it. That spared the embarrassment of trying to say the nice thing afterwards. I did not adopt this course over Church & Town (though I do not accuse you of authorship!) but it has taken this long for me to finish them. Very readable and informative too. But now I have lost your own letter (in the welter of Christmas) although I can remember bits; more particularly that Anne of Bungay is now married - and her husband has done a good thing and acquired a good woman. I must enquire what her married name is. And thank you for Andrew's latest productions: I remember the Cornwall Brass all the more vividly because my Cuddesdon friend Bishop Nigel Cornwall claimed descent from Sir John; it was splendid to have the Garter King of Arms down to do the unveiling of the window. It was a great delight when Simon Houfe came to call one Sunday evening - unfortunately Stacy our daughter had to leave an hour before he arrived - I learnt a great deal of the background about events I remembered in Ampthill and later events that followed; and Simon enjoyed himself too. I have not yet read his life of Sir Albert, but Stacy is looking out for a copy in London. She is busier than ever; particularly as she is responsible for a historical series on Channel 4, Today's History, which appears monthly on a Sunday afternoon. She is really at home in that TV world, and prefers it to the teaching in London University which she gave up a year ago. Her life is a little less hectic because Havana, now 10, went to a prep school near Shaftesbury for her first term in September. She loves it - in spite of being whisked to hospital after a fortnight to have her appendix out; but she seems well over that now, and sent us her exam results last week. Christopher's three younger specimens are now settled in Kent, and we have been to stay with them; a delightful bunch, but exhausting to the aged, and with a highly developed sense of each other's duty, against which my mother warned me - with what success I don't know! Margaret's arthritis has taken a turn for the worse, when she lost the power of her left hand - although she does not let it stop her doing all that she did before. Mine does not stop me going round the villages round about, and celebrating and preaching nearly every Sunday - life would be dull without that. I was faced with the prospect of an operation in the autumn, but was sent to Harley Street, where the specialist refused to cut me up, on the grounds, not that I was too ill, but too well! If a crisis arises, he will do the op. overnight - and that is a good guarantee. That did my ego a lot of good! So there - all good wishes for 1983. Do you know the story of the grammar school boy who was showing a friend over his house. In an upstairs room they came upon an old lady reading a Bible. Whereupon: Who's that? That's my granny. What's she doing? Reading her Bible. What's she doing that for? You ass, she's swotting for her finals! I like that; and can only wish you, as you would wish me, good swotting! Yours affectionately, Pat Stacy Waddy
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