Mum’s Diary
Washed in am. Then went to bank & to 41 to show Daphne how to put in new carbon ribbon. Went for IVP – with Dr Visick – at 11.30. He said kidney emptying better – but is it really perfect. Typed all aft. Roger went to concert at school – I took him & Everard. Bought drink for his party. 5.66 + 8.50 + 60 approx. Bit depressed – ? because it’s Thursday or because of Dalmane? 2L 1S.
Got stiff neck – particularly when lying down. Took 2 Panadol at 3.30 am Fri.
Roger’s/My Diary
Mum got the drink today and we took it to Everard’s this evening and then mum took us to the review which was good. I was supposed to meet Everard after school in order to go to the city but I couldn’t find him. I almost missed my lunch-time maths lesson but Mr Rathbone found me to tell me.
Notes
Washing
Mum noted that she washed in the morning (am), see Chapter 126. While mum mostly did washing on Mondays, she did do it on other days sometimes, particularly on other days she was not at work. I think she mainly washed on Mondays partly because she was not at work that day and partly because it was traditional wash day as observed by both mum and grandma.
The Bank
Mum noted that she then went to the bank although she does not say why she went or whether it was for personal banking or related either to work, see Chapter 121, or her church responsibilities, see Chapter 124.
While things were in the process of changing, most transactions at that time were still done by cash or cheque and banking transactions usually required visiting a physical bank branch, see Chapter 125.
Mum Worked for Mr Ashken and Mr Stephens
During this period, mum worked as part-time medical secretary for the private practice of two surgeons, Mr Ashken and Mr Stephens, see Chapter 121. This practice was based at 41 Newmarket Road. She worked all day on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and half day on Fridays.
On this occasion, as it was Thursday, she should not have been at work. However, she went in to help the other secretary, Daphne, who was having trouble replacing a typewriter ribbon. Mum would have absolutely loved this but she would have complained, to anyone who would listen, that she had had to go in on her day off for this reason. I think she found it very affirming when she found, or was told, how good she was at something and how crucial she was in a work setting.
Daphne
I don’t know Daphne’s surname but she was the other secretary who worked at 41 Newmarket Road mainly for another consultant Dr Batty Shaw. She had started relatively recently following the departure in July 1976 of Barbara the secretary who had started at the same time as mum. I think Daphne may have depended on mum a lot. For example, on one day in March 1977.
IVP
Mum had had surgery for a renal stone in August 1976, see Chapter 116, an operation which had been carried out by “her” consultant Mr Ashken. She had received private-type treatment although I am not sure if she paid for some/all of this or whether some/all of this was a perk of her role as medical secretary in a private practice.
On this occasion, she went for a follow-up IVP (intravenous pyelogram) conducted by consultant radiologist, Dr Visick. He told mum that the kidney was now emptying better but she was still worrying about it noting her question about whether it was “really perfect“.
Dr James Visick
According to a local press archive, Dr James Visick was a consultant radiologist at the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital between at least 1976 and 1986, see Chapter 116. James Hedley Visick attended Epsom College in the early fifties before studying medicine at Bart’s. His outside interests included astronomy and singing in the Norwich Philharmonic Choir where he met his second wife Kirsty. He retired in 1997 and died in September 2024 aged 87.
Typing and Duplicating
According to mum’s CV, see Chapter 105, she ran a typing and duplicating business from home until 1975. However, she did typing and duplicating after this date, particularly for St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church, see Chapter 121. On this occasion, she noted typing all afternoon (aft).
School Concert/Review
Roger refers to me. Mum noted that I went to a school concert. she took me and my friend Everard Mascarenhas. I noted that I went and referred to it as a review. I noted that it was good, see Chapter 118. My main interest in it was that another friend Gary Wood was playing guitar with a band.
Everard Mascarenhas
Everard Mascarenhas and I were close friends in the Hewett School sixth form, see Chapter 118. He lived near me in Park Lane so we often walked to and from school together. Later, we worked together at Sainsbury’s in Anglia Square, see Chapter 119. In 1976, he won an endeavour prize. In 1978, he passed A level physics. He was part of the school football team. Apparently, he read physics at University College Swansea, has a PhD in semi-conductor devices from Nottingham Trent University and an MBA from Imperial College.
Gary Wood
Gary Wood was one of my closest friends at school, see Chapter 118. He and I had a lot in common. In addition to both playing, or trying to play, the guitar, we both later had motorbikes and we both worked at Sainsbury’s in Anglia Square, see Chapter 119. Gary went on both the camping trips I went on to France in 1975 and 1976. He worked at “Le Paradis” in the summer of 1977.
In 1976, Gary won an endeavour prize and, in 1978, the Sheriff’s Prize for Art. In 1978, he passed A levels in pure maths, physics, chemistry and art. He went on to study physics in York. He is a member of the Hewett Facebook group but uses the name Robert Wood. Apparently, Robert is his first name but he used Gary as Robert was also his father’s name. His Facebook page notes that he studied architecture in Rome, Cambridge, Harvard and London, that he has his own architecture studio and lives in France.
Drink for Party
Everard and I were planning a joint party at his house on the coming Saturday, see Chapter 122. Mum noted that she bought “drink” for this by which I assume she meant alcohol. I suspect she did this under some duress but probably bought some cider, maybe beer and probably soft drinks. It is worth noting that I had bought a bottle of whisky myself a few days earlier.
Mum noted the amount she spent. While I am not sure if the final amount was £60 or 60p, the latter seems more likely. This would mean that she spent about £14.76 on drink. From memory, these parties always involved “bring a bottle” so this was a starter amount which I had already supplemented by buying my own whisky and asking my father for money!
In my diary, I noted that mum bought “the drink” and together we took it to Everard’s where the party was to be held.
Depressed
Throughout the late seventies, and at other times, mum struggled with depression and anxiety, see Chapter 116. On this occasion, she noted that she was a bit depressed and wondered if it was because it was Thursday or possibly a side-effect of the flurazepam (Dalmane) she was taking as a sleeping tablet.
Apparently, depression is a recognised side effect of benzodiazepines. Mum might have felt more depressed on a Thursday either as a midweek “dip” or perhaps she did not work on Thursdays and she found work both self-affirming and a welcome distraction from other problems and worries.
Mum’s Medication
Towards the end of her diary entries, mum tended to note the tablets she had taken that day, particularly at night, see Chapter 116. On this occasion, she noted that she took two long-acting amitriptyline (L for Lentizol) tablets for depression and one senna-containing tablet (S for Senokot) for constipation. She had been trying to wean herself off both antidepressants and sleeping tablets but had been advised by her GP to increase them once again because of her current feelings of severe depression.
Relatively recently, she had changed sleeping tablets from nitrazepam to flurazepam. She had started taking two tablets of flurazepam at night but had then varied the dose between one and two. Her GP had recently offered her a higher dosage of flurazepam tablets (30mg). However, mum had not accepted these, preferring to remain on the 15mg tablets. Indeed, she had had a few nights without taking any and she did not take any on this occasion perhaps because she wondered if they were making her feel more depressed. Mum also varied the dose of the long-acting amitriptyline between one and two tablets and the dose of the senna-containing tablet from one to three.
Stiff Neck
Mum noted that she had a stiff neck, see Chapter 116, particularly when lying down. She took two paracetamol (Panadol) tablets in the early hours of Friday morning.
Meeting Everard
I was supposed to meet Everard Mascarenhas after school so that we could go into the city together but I couldn’t find him!
A Fine City
Mum usually referred to shopping in Norwich city centre as going into the “city”, see Chapter 125. Indeed, she would point out to anyone who dared refer to this as going “to town” that Norwich was a city! As a result, we always referred to going into the city and never to town.
“45 Years“
Some three years ago, I watched the film “45 Years” starring Tom Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling. They are a couple and are supposed to live in rural Norfolk. However, he referred to going into Norwich as “going into town”. This grated on me so much that I asked about this on the Norwich Remembers Facebook Group. It generated almost 600 comments which is easily the most I have ever had for one post!
Definitely City
Those who commented almost all agreed that going to Norwich was referred to as going to, or up or down the, “city” and never as “town”. Some felt that because Norwich is a city, with a cathedral, it should be clear to everyone to refer to going to Norwich in this way. However, others pointed out that not all places with cathedrals are cities, e.g. Bury St Edmunds and people in other cities, e.g. Bradford, Bristol, Cambridge, Colchester, Leeds, London, Newcastle, New York and York, sometimes refer to going into town. Colchester is a specific case. It was only relatively recently elevated to city status, in 2022, although it was apparently a city in Roman times but, more recently, has been a town.
Lunch-time Maths Lesson
I was in the lower sixth at the Hewett School and was doing A levels in pure maths, physics and chemistry, see Chapter 118. I was also intending to do two O levels at the end of lower sixth. These were Latin, a three-year course which I had started in fourth year, and biology, which I was attempting to study in a year so that I could be eligible to apply for medicine at university.
Timetabling all this was a challenge so sometimes I had lessons at lunch-time or after school. In addition, I was planning to take S levels in maths and physics so teachers gave a small group of us additional lessons at lunch-time and/or after school to help us prepare for these and also potentially for Oxbridge entrance exams. On this occasion, it seems I forgot my lunch-time maths lesson but my teacher, Mr Rathbone, found me and reminded me!
Mr Rathbone
I believe Mr Rathbone’s first name was Richard, and possibly his middle name was Simon, but everyone referred to him as Basil after the actor. Sadly, Mr Rathbone died in October 2022, aged 92. A short death notice was published in the EDP. I particularly remember his beard but he was also well-remembered for his bike.
Meal Terminology
Based on my family’s working class background in Nottinghamshire, we had tended to refer to our meals as dinner and tea. However, given that we had moved to Norwich in 1960, and possibly because we were becoming more middle class, some of that usage was changing and family members sometimes, and perhaps increasingly, referred to a midday meal as lunch, see Chapter 92 although we continued to refer to an afternoon or early evening meal as tea. On this occasion, I referred to lunch-time.
