Joyous Jukebox Opera
From the moment the slight figure of Francesca Lanza wandered into the nave and started to warm up her vocal cords, I knew that I was in for a treat. Her soprano voice filled Rosslyn Hill chapel with glorious, unmistakably world-class sound. And unlike in most opera...
Remembrance Sunday
I thought I’d share a little bit of magic with you in advance of Remembrance Sunday. It occurred in Bedford, when grandmother and erstwhile choir member Pat French, who is living with advanced dementia, broke into song. Pat was a little girl during the second world...
Big Ian
Big Ian. The name fits him like a supersize glove. Ian Donaghy, all 6ft 2ins of him, has big ideas, huge energy and a massive Geordie heart. Many of you will know him through his Twitter handle @trainingcarers. As we walked together round the grounds of York...
Old People’s Home for 4-year-olds
“People are rarely happy on their own. Which is why multi-generation houses are the model for the future: learning from one another, feeling needed, sharing joy. A real recipe for happiness!” So said Dr Eckart von Hirschhausen, author and patron of a multi-generation...
Pickering House – a tale of our times
I’ve had a busy summer with much travelling (hence my woeful lack of blogs, for which apologies). There have also been two weddings and two funerals, to misquote Richard Curtis; and both friends’ funerals were due to dementia. The first of these very sad deaths was...
Seniors Helping Seniors
The only advert that Christian and Sally Wilse ever used for their care service Seniors Helping Seniors appealed to those with “the heart of a volunteer”. It was a clever idea that immediately weeded out anyone applying for the money. “Applicants thought they...
Thank you Barbara
A few years ago as I wandered along a London street looking for a parking ticket machine, I saw an immaculately dressed, petite blonde I recognised. “Hi,” I said. “Hello,” she replied, giving me her trademark beaming smile. It was only then that I realised the...
The Little China Clogs
It's not often that you get to travel the world on a Monday but recently I did just that, escaping to the sun of Barbados and the oriental delights of China via Brighton, Southend and Cuba (my geography was always appalling) then zooming back to my childhood via a...
Old Fools
Two people, a piano stool and Tristan Bernays’ script are all that constitute Old Fools, currently playing at the Southwark Playhouse, and there isn’t even a linear plot. Yet somehow, in just 60 minutes, we’re taken into the world of Vivian and Tom, from their first...
Somebody I Used To Know
Wendy Mitchell’s memoir, Somebody I Used To Know, gives us dementia from the inside out, from the first, fearful inklings that something is wrong to the nitty-gritty of daily life with a progressive disease that gradually forces her to give up those things (from her work to her running) that make her who she is.
