Book Review: Lest We Forget by Becky Bishop

I only recently discovered Becky’s beautiful poetry but I am so glad I did.  Becky writes from the heart and her haunting and moving poems will surely resonate with those of us who lost relatives due to wars.  "Lest We Forget" is Becky'’s second collection of war-themed poems and contains poems inspired by both of the world conflicts.  Here you will find poems relating to conscientious objectors, the holocaust, shot at dawn, special operations executive, the Battle of Britain and D-Day, to name but a few of the subjects Becky has felt drawn to write about.

I enjoyed reading all of the poems but I particularly like “No longer a forgotten casualty” (p.15), written in memory of Gunner William George Foxworth. I like this poem partly because I am the Granddaughter of a Gunner but also because Gunner Foxworth initially had a civilian grave but, with the help of a relative, he has now been declared an official WW1 casualty.

Another dedicated poem is “Conscientious Objector” on page 76, written to the memory of Stephen Hobhouse. Stephen was a cousin of one of my “heroines” – the charity worker and campaigner for peace Emily Hobhouse, who we included in an exhibtiion about some of the Inspirational Women of WW1 which we organised during the WW1 centenary years

Becky has illustrated the book throughout with photographs taken on her many visits to museums, memorials and exhibitions both in the UK and elsewhere.  

As with Becky’s first war-themed collection - “At The Going Down of the Sun” - to my mind, these poems should be read by all school children and by anyone planning on visiting the memorials and graves commemorating the dead of wars.

Lucy London, July 2020

You can buy your copy of the book via mail order  HERE

Book Review: Brighton Tigers - A Story Of Sporting Passion

A lot of modern ice hockey fans probably won’t know that the Brighton Tigers were a big part of hockey history from the opening of their superb SS (Sports Stadium) in the 1930s right up until it was controversially closed in 1965 just when British ice hockey was slowly edging towards its next golden era.

However, I have been watching ice hockey just about long enough to remember the valiant Brighton BVH Royals team who kept the hockey flag flying for the South Coast in Division 3 of the British League where they had to play all of their games away for double points - so, as a keen reader of Stewart Roberts’ excellent Ice Hockey Annual over the years, I have always followed the various campaigns to get a new ice rink built in Brighton and, when Stewart announced that he was working on this history of the former Tigers team, I knew it would be something special.

While the main thrust of this book is, obviously, the Tigers teams of the 1930s to the 1960s there is a very interesting introduction that tells of earlier rinks in the Brighton area – namely the Victorian circular rink that operated from 1897-1901 and then a more modern facility at Hove (1929-1932).

This book is an absolute mine of information. Who knew, for example, that while most leisure facilities were closed for the duration of World War 2, the Brighton Sports Stadium had ice hockey matches on every week featuring a mixture of local players and visiting Canadian servicemen…?

There is a complete player directory of everybody who ever turned out for the Tigers teams - and that is quite an achievement in itself bearing in mind the scarcity of statistical information from the pre-war and immediate post war periods - as well as lots of great photos of many of the stars.

I may be slightly biased as this is the sort of book that I like to produce myself  - as well as to read - but it means that I can easily appreciate the huge amount of work that is involved in putting this sort of thing together  – seeking out all the facts and figures, getting permission for all the photos, checking and rechecking all the data…  It’s is a huge undertaking and even more so when a lot of the people are dead and there is nobody around to ask anything!

Whether you’re a modern hockey fan – or a bit of a nostalgia fan like me – or maybe know nothing about it and want to find out more, this book is definitely worth read.

And you don’t have to take my word for it – here are comments that a few other people have made:

“Book arrived yesterday, thank you. I've got to say how very impressed I am with it. You should be very proud. An everlasting history of the famous Brighton Tigers and an absolute must for Tigers (Bengals) fans everywhere and for sports fans generally in Brighton.” - Gordon Wade, Heineken League statistician.

“Received through the post yesterday a copy of your book on Brighton Tigers. It is excellent - superb lay-out and illustrations. Congratulations on a wonderful achievement that provides a comprehensive record of the sport in Brighton. And can be used as a powerful PR tool to 'sell' Brighton to any potential developers as the place in the UK to locate a new ice facility.” - David Gordon, ice hockey historian and member of Britain's Hall of Fame committee.

“Thanks for sending the book so quickly. I’m having fun dipping in and out of it from time to time and it’s really interesting to hear and see what went on before I was even born. I think it’s a fabulous book, very striking and smart-looking and very well put together.” - Vicki Gardner, Brighton resident.

“Really enjoying the book - Great work! And a real history lesson too, makes me wanna get the skates on!” - Gary O'Brien, son of Tigers' legend Mike O'Brien.

You can order your copy of the book via Amazon HERE

Book Review: “At The Going Down of the Sun” by Becky Bishop

“At The Going Down of the Sun” a collection of poems inspired by conflict and written by Becky Bishop

I have loved reading books of poems since I was a little girl and, like Becky, I also write poems, some of which have been inspired by the loss of family members during wars.  Becky, however, brings a wealth of tradition to her work, because she is related to WW1 soldier poet brothers the Hon. Julian Grenfell (1888 - 1915), and The Hon. Gerald William Grenfell (1890 – 1915), and to their sister, the Hon. Monica Grenfell who served as a Red Cross nurse during the First World War. And, among the 485 relatives Becky’s family lost due to conflicts, is also the WW1 soldier poet the Hon. Ivar Campbell (1890 - 1916).

Becky’s poems are written from the heart and I found them at the same time moving and inspiring. Becky has exactly captured the mood of those of us who have relatives who were lost due to conflict but have no known grave upon which to leave flowers.  Many of the poems are dedicated to a particular soldier, which I think is the most wonderful way of ensuring their memory lives on.

As my research into WW1 also includes the contribution of women, I was particularly interested in the poem entitled “A Girl from Meavy” about volunteer civilian worker Armorel Kitty Trevelyan (1898 – 1917) featured on pages 56 – 57.  Kitty joined the Army Service Corps (Canteens), died of measles and pneumonia at the age of 19 on 27th February 1917 and was buried in Wimereux Communal Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France.


Another poem that struck a chord with me was that on page 91 in memory of Wren Isabel Mary Milne-Home, who trained Wrens as telegraphists and may have trained my Aunt, who was a telegraphist with the Wrens during the Second World War.  Wren Isabel was drowned when the ship the S.S. “Aguila” was sunk by enemy action in the North Atlantic in 1941 en route for Gibraltar.

Beautifully illustrated throughout with Becky’s own photographs from her visit to the Battlefields of the Western Front, this book should, to my mind, be required reading for every school pupil in order to remind them why we wear poppies in November each year. I would also hope that all the WW1 museums wherever they are would have copies, so that Becky’s poems could be read at commemorative ceremonies.

Becky is a very prolific writer and I know she has a book of short stories due out soon – I can’t wait to read them. To find out more about Becky’s work please visit her website https://beckyspoemsandbooks.wordpress.com/ 

Lucy London, July 2020