2026-03-16T14:58:14Z Edna Copyright 2026, Edna SPHPBLOG Little white cottage) I thought what a good idea. I have been climbing my family tree for years now and have discovered lots of family folklore and stories and I’d like to share them with family and friends because all too soon these stories and tales are lost forever. I’ll start with the tales I can relate to and work backwards to my Great Grandparents. I’ll start with my Nanny

Hilda May Hipkin May 14th 1902 - February 12th 1960
My Grandmother, known to us as Nanny Seguss, was born in Henstead in Norfolk. Her father was police constable in the Norfolk Constabulary and in 1901 he married Ellen Emily Osborne. My Nanny was the eldest of six children - Hilda May(1902), Nellie Emma(1906), Jack (1911), William(1912), Thomas (1916), Betty Joyce (1922). As you can see her youngest sister Betty was twenty years her junior. She is the only sibling that I remember. My Mum used to tell me the story of how the family lived in a bungalow alongside the Norfolk Broads. I do have an old photo of what appears a very small house. Apparently her father, in the course of his work’ arrested a man for possible horse theft and he and his ‘friends’ took it upon themselves to go round to the bungalow and ‘frighten’ the family. As a result of the incident the family moved to Woolwich in the early 1900s and her father joined the London constabulary. As Hilda grew up she worked as a ‘nippy’ in one of the Lyons tea houses. She married Alfred Seguss in Woolwich where they raised their family until their move to Lancashire so my Grandad could work at the newly built Royal Ordnance Factory in Euxton.
My memories of Nanny Seguss are few as she died when I was 8 but I can remember spending Friday nights at 29 Broadway when I was a little girl whilst my older sister was taken for physiotherapy early on a Saturday morning. Nanny was a good cook, her steak and kidney pie, fruit tarts and egg custards were wonderful!
She liked to grow Lupins and Pinks in her garden, could crochet and knit very well, she would crochet ‘net’ curtains for the windows at Broadway. When I recall her now I always remember her as a lady with lovely silvery white hair who always seemed to be wearing a wrap around type apron. I can remember sleeping in a large bed in the back bedroom and the street lamps in the road behind forming patterns on the wall through the net curtains. Although she spent her later years in Lancashire she always remained 'close' to her family in Woolwich. The things I do remember vividly as a child was that she was always smiling and full of fun. At Christmas we would always go her house and she would always have a Christmas bomb which was placed in the middle of the table and lit (No health and safety in those days!). As the fuse reached the bottom there would be a puff of smoke and small toys would fly everywhere!

My mum would tell me that a couple of years before her death she suffered a stroke and lost her sight but went on to make a full recovery. She died very suddenly on Friday the 12th of February 1960, following a ruptured cerebral aneurysm. (Brain Haemorrhage). My memory of that day is one of Grandad coming to collect me as usual after tea and us walking back together to their house in Broadway via the small sweet shop on Golden Hill. As we reached the end of Broadway I ran ahead as usual, somewhere along the way I picked a bunch of ‘flowers’, I can’t imagine now what they were as it was February! I knocked on the front door and it was opened by my Nanny’s neighbour, Annie, who led me into the kitchen. I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t give Nanny the flowers and Annie hugged me and promised to give them to her as Nanny needed them now. After much hushed talking I was given a ride back home with Uncle Alf in a neighbour’s car where it was explained that my Nanny had died very suddenly. I remember for a long time after that having the same recurring dream of sitting in our dining room at home and Nanny tapping on the window, as she did when she came to visit us, and me opening the front door to find the porch empty. I like to think now that I inherited her love of crochet and just wish I could crochet in the fine cotton as she did.
]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry120304-154956 2012-03-04T00:00:00Z 2012-03-04T00:00:00Z :fgh:

Dont forget you can zoom in and out also (Shift / Cntrl Keys or Mouse wheel)!! and the little button along the bottom makes the image fullscreen.....
Any problems do use the "Contact Me" link on the top right-hand menu, otherwise we will never know if your having a problem :hjk:]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry120129-123900 2012-01-29T00:00:00Z 2012-01-29T00:00:00Z inject pigs with antibiotics? Maybe I’ll just stop eating!
=)) ]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry120128-163447 2012-01-28T00:00:00Z 2012-01-28T00:00:00Z Where did the last year go?
I’ll tell you where:-
January = Hibernation Mode
February = Woke from Hibernation
March = Lancashire to Celebrate my Sister’s 60th Birthday
April = Off to Glastonbury, then onto Wales via Rhandirmwyn in the Welsh hills, over the Brecons to Daffy meet of Bongo pals then to Llanystumdwy, Porthmadog, Ponty Pool Oswestry then home!
May = New Forest, Seatown, Burgh Island, Plymouth, Falmouth, Senan Cove, The Minack Theatre, Truro, St Michaels Mount,Bude Widemouth Bay Tavistock then back to Glastonbury and home from there!

June = Up to Kew to stay with our son for a few days and explore Kew Gardens and the National Archives. Then we headed up to Stourport, for our annual Bongo Bash, with other Bongo owners. After that it was onto Bedgelert Wales, Anglesey, Bala, Cardigan Bay, Cwmtydu, Aberporth, and home via Devises,

July = Leek, Very WET! Derbyshire got rained off after 4 days out!

August = Up to Lancashire twice. First for my niece’s 21st Birthday. Whilst there I enjoyed Southport the views from Rivington Pike, exploring the countryside around Rawtenstall, Chorley market, and pottering on my brother’s allotment
I trundled back to Sussex picked up the other half and headed North again! We visited Hebden Bridge, The Lancashire Panopticons, Formby Point, Gormley Statues, Brinscall, Blackburn Market, Gawthorpe Hall, Rufford Old Hall in fact all the places I never get ‘around to when visiting Lancashire because I am too busy visiting family and friends! Then it was north to Scotland
Our first wild Camp was at Luce Bay with a view over to the Isle of Man. We then enjoyed a beautiful day at the Mull of Galloway RSPB centre that night it was wild camping at Stranraer where the RAIN arrived! The fish didn’t seem to mind though they were busy leaping out of the water. The sun returned and we went over the bridge to Skye. We explored every windy lane and cove! Fish and Chips in Portree are not to be missed.

September = Still on Skye for a few days then it was onto Aviemore. We then headed to Glenmore for Scottish Bongo meet. The sky at night was lovely and clear but it did make for a very cold night. I had wanted to do the Applecross run– over the top but as it was a very low cloudy day so we took the coastal route and were not disappointed, the scenery was stunning. Then we camped at Inverewe. The Melvaig Inn was amazing the Sea Bass and Scallops were wonderful and the 60s pop memorabilia around the walls was like a trip down memory lane. We found Dingwall rather dour and Moffat as usual was bathed in rain! Wild Camp in a forestry Site – the wildlife that came out in the evening was good to watch. We headed down to Clent hills and finally we headed home to recharge the batteries and enjoy a few home comforts.

The end of September the wanderlust took over again so we booked into to Canterbury C&C Club site to explore the castles of Kent! We visited Sissinghurst, Deal, Samphire Hoe and the Reculver Towers on a VERY hot day!

October arrived whilst we were in Kent and the weather was VERY Hot!!! After a few days more it was home via Margate, Gravesend Sheerness.
November! REST!

December = Back up to Lancashire to deliver Christmas presents and visit friends and family!

Now I have sat here and written all this I now realize where all the money went last year, and why I have so many photos to sort through! I’m just about to plan this years’ ramblings!!
Shame I can’t order the weather as well.
:-oo

]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry120125-122639 2012-01-25T00:00:00Z 2012-01-25T00:00:00Z Time is very strange indeed. The quote by Helen Van Dyke is so very true :- “Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.”
Very often I wish life had a pause button, rewind would be another useful feature! Delete, perhaps, but maybe not our trials and tribulations in life help in forming us into the people we become!
Lancashire watch out Evil Edna is again out and about!!

dragonemoticonflame

]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111210-090035 2011-12-10T00:00:00Z 2011-12-10T00:00:00Z But in the mean time I am off to hit the shops, but please don’t tell the hubby. Poundland & Primark here I come !


Kneck]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111209-205217 2011-12-09T00:00:00Z 2011-12-09T00:00:00Z :asd:
I think there must be a new national sport developing here as the gap was usually occupied just as I was about level with the offender! I lost count of the number of tail end shunts I saw along the way. (Honest!) The best one I think was five cars in the outside lane of the M6 all damaged because they had obviously been driving too close together when someone decided to partake of this ‘national sport.’ What was reassuring though was the road designers are obviously determined to stop this by replacing all the Armco Barriers with very solid concrete barriers. One assumes this is so the said offenders bounce nicely off and hit poor innocents minding their own business driving along safely. I think it must be part of a greater plan to decrease the number of vehicles on the now busy roads.
:yui:

]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111203-081342 2011-12-03T00:00:00Z 2011-12-03T00:00:00Z :| :| :| :|
I am up to a word count of 38,000 but as there are only three days left I cannot see myself managing 4,000 words a day. But hey nothing ventured nothing gained. The great thing is my Dragon story is almost complete. When I started the month I had an outline of a story that I imagined was going involve a fierce battle between the Faerie Dragons and the fire breathers but it has taken a completely different line. Now comes the worse bit, editing and reediting it. Part of my problem this month has been that I keep going back on my self and amending storylines and checking spelling. I think I will have to content myself with 40,000 words this year and really ‘go for it’ next year.

As I started writing this blog I looked at the calendar and realized I had missed someone's birthday - off to send an email! Then I'll try and rattle out another few hundred words!
:fgh:
]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111127-222903 2011-11-27T00:00:00Z 2011-11-27T00:00:00Z -0-0-0-!)))
If you remember this is my first draft I will share one of my favourite passages of yesterday:-
There in front of them was another dragon, bronze in colour, wearing a monocle, deerstalker hat and a long black leather overcoat with gold coloured buttons down the front. Each button was adorned with a coat of arms. She stepped forward, ‘You must be another member of the Jewel family.
The dragon bent towards her very slightly and in a very soft lilting voice asked ‘How would you know that little girl?
Because that crest is the Jewel family crest Jonus has it above his bed in there, she pointed toward the bed chamber.’ Her Dad poked her in the back. He stepped forward ‘who might you be?’
The dragon offered a paw, ‘
‘Donnan Diamond and you must be a good friend to Jonus to try and protect his property like this.
‘Aw you are Jonus’s little brother the one that went missing! Ruby told us about you. I’m very pleased to meet you I’m Ellie and this is my Dad Alfy to you. Do you know that Jonus is very ill?’
‘One thing at a time little girl I am not sure what Ruby has told you but I never exactly went missing. My crime I’m afraid was that I fell in love with a Fire Breathing Dragon and made the mistake of getting her in the family way.
Well Here I go again another few thousand words today!
*-))))))G]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111118-111505 2011-11-18T00:00:00Z 2011-11-18T00:00:00Z Best passage so far is:-
‘Well ladies,’ Dr Owain addressed Ruby and the girls, ‘I am afraid it isn’t good. Years of pipe smoking has taken its toll on the old boy, he’s interlobes are completely clogged up.’ Dr Owain noticed the girls frowning, ‘They are the tubes between his lungs and his fire breathing chambers, because they never fully developed in the faerie dragons they become a problem in later years. Not helped by his pipe smoking. I am afraid he has Intermonia. Sorry Ruby.’ Both girls looked toward Ruby who was now holding onto the back of a chair.
‘Sit her down quick she’s gone pale!’ Ellie remembered her first aid training and added ‘put her head between her knees’.
Ruby slowly gradually deepened in colour but started to sob quietly muttering ‘My love what will I do?’


This is a reprint of the earlier entry as the 'Guru' who lives up in the loft had a problem with his fail safe back up system!!!
D3O(]]> http://www.ednamather.me.uk/blog/index.php?entry=entry111113-222749 2011-11-13T00:00:00Z 2011-11-13T00:00:00Z