A talk at Whitchurch Library

I had a great time in Whitchurch Library tonight. Whitchurch is such a pretty place: narrow ancient streets, a market town, history exuding from every wall, it seems. According to Wikipedia it was founded by the Romans - a settlement in the middle of the plain between Wroxeter and Chester. Then it was called Mediolanum, the 'Whitchurch' came later, named after the White Church (replaced by a red stoned one in the early eighteenth century). The more I read the more interesting this all seems. Unfortunately, I was running late and didn't have time to take a photo, so I am going to have to come back.

The librarians had gone to a lot of trouble to attract people to my talk and there was a good audience. I got a lot of interesting questions, and one lady turned out to be a descendent of Michael D Jones's sister (one of the main initiators of the Welsh in Patagonia emigration). I am sure I have met some of her distant relatives in Patagonia and intend to put her in touch with them.

I also discovered almost-a-fan of my work, 'My wife's read your other two books,' he said. (This makes her almost unique, I have to say). 'She liked one, but hated the other.' Excellent. This makes me smile each time I think of it.


At the end Kate Woodward (on the right above) - a rather attractive English name which could easily have been around before Whitchurch's red church was built - gave me not only this gorgeous bunch of orange roses in blue paper,


but a sweet little pottery snail too! I shall treasure it. Thank you! And thank you for asking me.