Memories of Daphne ffiske

I was born at Hillside in Brundall in 1926. One of my earliest memories is of the paper man coming to deliver papers in a pony and cart - a white pony, can’t remember his name. Every morning the milk used to come down from High Noon, Braydeston.

I have memories of cattle being driven through the village, (hence all the front gates), going down to the marshes to spend the night, I think, Strumpshaw Marshes before going on to Acle Sale on a Thursday. The cattle had probably been brought from Norwich and would have been driven in to the Village via Postwick Lane.

We lived at Hillside until we moved to Corner Pightle -we built that when father became very ill and we needed a ground floor for him.

We had black sheep in both our fields. The sheep were on what is now the cricket field. We also had the field where Mallard Close is now. In the middle of that field there were springs and we had lovely water cress beds. When we knew they were going to build there we thought what they will do! There’ll be floods of water but it hasn’t happened yet has it?

Father sold that field for Libby (Dicker) to have donkeys on. She had a lovely hunter. I used to have a pony on that field; we had several ponies and also donkeys from Yarmouth in the winter.

St Michaels Way – Mr Morse used to grow roses down there (?). Brecklands, that’s the main one I remember. St Michaels Way belonged to Merrison the farmer. (?) That’s the brother of Merrison who kept the shop on the corner (cousin) - the one who had the farm had barns by Blofield Church. Mr Smith was just before Orfords where my brother had a market garden.
The Merrison shop – Ronnie used to deliver on his bicycle with a basket on the front – that was great. He used to get excited if mother asked for crème de menthe.

My mother was Ethel Mary and my father was Geoffrey Ernest. I had a brother, David. He was the eldest and lives is in New Zealand. He is 83. Then I had a brother, Gerald who was the third child and he died four years ago.

My father’s name was Henry. His grave is in the churchyard. I didn’t know him. He put up the porch and the thatch. Some years ago the ffiskes and other people paid to rethatch the lych gate.

He lived in Brundall House and then moved to Holm Close. 1906 it was built. It got burnt down on night it was due to open as a social centre. Mr Jermy used to live in the Lodge. Holm Close Lodge was thatched originally. Jermy was employed as gardener and groom; my grandfather being the last of the Dunstan Harriers.

Miss Butcher was where the supermarket is now. Not that I used it very much but it was just a lovely little village shop. It had a thatched roof I believe. She sold groceries and sweets, ice creams.

There was a second hand shop, Mr Naylor. He used to sell everything you can think of, garden stuff, junk. He used to go to auctions. The windows were very large (was it a motor show room?)

Then there was the chemist, Mr Snell. Round the corner was Wilkinson’s.

I went to school with Mrs Blyth. I went to Thorpe House when the house burnt down and then to St Felix at Southwold.

We were evacuated during the War to the Lake District. We found a school up there that had been evacuated from Liverpool, called Highton College. We used to go pea picking in the holidays.

Then I went to Chatsworth.
I don’t think the War had finished when I came back to Brundall because one night there was a hullabaloo up there. Americans were shot down by the Germans and I think some of the planes were found on Halvergate Marshes. One day a doodlebug went over. By the time I came back to Brundall all the soldiers had gone.

There was a big do at Brundall Gardens – George V was it? We had a great parade, a great hullabaloo. I was in my little pedal car going down the street. The Daynes family, Judge Daynes who was uncle of Lord Blake, He was a wonderful man, a surgeon. We are intermarried with the Blakes. Lord Blake’s parents lived in the Red House.

The Backs are another big family, the wine people on The Walk. Backs lived where the Dickers used to live, Springfield - this caught fire the year before our house. Barn Row caught fire of course.

Down Highfield Avenue was Mr Smith’s farm, apple trees and things; he used to drive his cows down Strumpshaw Road to one of our fields and beyond right down to the marshes at Strumpshaw.

One of our fields had oats in - the cricket pitch field - roses where Corner Pightle is and grazing cows where Mallard Close is as well as our black sheep earlier on.

Barn Row belonged to my grandfather and opposite Holm Close where there are lots of buildings now that was the field where he used to have all his hunters and things.

Jack Paul lived at Riverscourt. (Heron’s Hill). He was part of Boulton and Paul. Opposite there was an old barn. Old father Page lived where Mrs Ling now lives. Mr Page was the printer.

I went to school at Uplands. Miss Fowler was a sister to Mr Fowler who ran Cantley factory. Dr Mckelvie had a little hut on the corner.

Parkers, the boot and shoe people were in St Ninians before Harrisons.

Dr Blake brought me into the world.

We used to have a Christmas Fair for Braydeston Church at the White Horse. Mr and Mrs Spalding, George’s parents took my parents in after the fire and wouldn’t let them pay. When George Spalding heard that I had to move he offered me one of those chalet places to grow my herbs but I decided to start afresh at Bramerton.