Welcome to my Home Page

Egyptology

A Nile cruise in 1997 and more recent visits to Cairo, Giza, Saqqara, Dahshur, Dendara and Abydos stimulated an interest in ancient Egyptian history and culture. I am particularly interested in the New Kingdom, have visited several sites in Upper Egypt (Aswan, Edfu and Luxor), and hope to visit many more once my grasp of hieroglyphs has improved. I recommend anyone with an interest in current work in the Luxor area to visit the Theban Mapping Project website which gives up-to-date information on work in the Valley of the Kings, including progress with the excavation of the tomb of the sons of Ramesses II.

Images of Egypt - a selection of photographs taken on our visits to that most fascinating of countries.

Family History Research

I am actively researching the histories of all lines of my family and, having pretty well exhausted the period covered by Civil Registration and the 1841-1891 Censuses, I am exploring Parish Registers. Many of my ancestors were farmers in Cheshire or lead miners in Derbyshire, both areas are well documented in one way or another and I am hopeful of getting back to 1700 or before on most branches without too much trouble. Visit my Family History Page where you will find my current research interests, summary family trees, links to several Family History Society sites, the Catley Database, datasets of events extracted from a variety of sources and brief biographies of selected individuals.

New on the Family History Page:

	Sep 2004	Olby One-Name Study
	Mar 2006	Collingwood events added to datasets
	Nov 2006	Mystery photograph - The Family Grave of James Westbrook

Wild Oat Books

I am writing a series of books for publication by Wild Oat Books, the first of these, 'From Flints to Fireplaces' describing the history of a branch of the Olby family, was published in February 2006.

The Questors Theatre, Ealing

The Questors, the UK's largest non-professional theatre, has comprehensive facilities for lighting and sound in two auditoria and I spend many evenings and weekends working on the lighting and, occasionally, on the sound for shows. I have been a lighting designer since 1997 (qv lighting designs), doing two or three shows a year, which is great fun as I really enjoy attending rehearsals and watching the production take shape before getting down to the actual task of designing and setting up the lighting. I always try to see the shows in production - when I can get a seat, several have been 'sold out'.

Walking

There are plenty of good walks in and within 50 miles of London, but most are rather flat. In the early summer I escape to the Lake District to indulge myself on some real hills! And, of course, having a good pub lunch is all part of the enjoyment. Here is a small selection of my favourite pubs:

Cumbria: 'The Queens Head', Hawkshead Tel: 01594 36271 Fax: 01594 36722 Email: enquiries@queensheadhotel.co.uk
Website: www.queensheadhotel.co.uk [OS Map ref: SD 352 983]. Excellent food, ideal for dinner after a long day on the fells.

Cumbria: 'The Drunken Duck', near Hawkshead [OS Map ref: NY 351 013]. Signposted from the Clappersgate to Hawkshead road, the name itself is an attraction but the food is also very good. They have their own award winning micro-brewery.

Cumbria: 'The Britannia Inn', Elterwater Tel: 015394 372210 Fax: 015394 37311 Email: info@britinn.co.uk [OS Map ref: NY 328 048]. An ideal lunch stop for walks in the Langdale valleys, on Loughrigg or by Elterwater/Skelwith Force. The village shop opposite the pub sells excellent locally produced ice creams.

Cumbria: 'The Woolpack Inn', near Eskdale [OS Map ref: NY 190 010]. Just the place to stop for lunch or a drink to recover from or prepare for the drive across the Hardknott Pass.

Gloucestershire: 'The Red Lion Inn', Westbury on Severn (Tel/Fax: 01452-760-221) [OS Map ref: SO 717 140]. Run by John and Liz Parry, their home cooked food is delicious. Comfortable rooms for B&B.

London: 'The Ship & Whale', Gulliver Street, Rotherhithe (Tel: 020 7237 7072). Situated just north of the Greenland Dock, the Ship & Whale is a good place to stop for lunch during walks along the Thames Path.