Sunday July 19th 2026 "Have YOU visited YOUR local zoo recently? You might get a big surprise haha!"

Yes, Friends, have YOU visited your local zoo recently? Give it a go - you might be surprised at the new-style exhibits, like the one at New York's Bronx Zoo, according to today's exclusive in the Onion News! 

Check it out - and do it now haha!!!!!

Fascinating stuff, isn't it! And a wake-up call, perhaps, for the UK's own local zoos, to be finally dragged, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century maybe? Once again, America shows the way!!!!

And certainly those 'loitering teens' seem to be coping well with their adjustment to zoo life, and, reading the story today brings a welcome half-smile to the faces of me and my wife Lois this morning, here in semi-attractive Liphook, Hampshire - no doubt about that!

me and my wife Lois - a recent picture

Lois and I are currently undergoing our own "period of adjustment", having said goodbye, just two days ago, to our dear daughter Sarah and family, who, after spending 3 weeks with us, finally flew home to Perth, Australia, leaving Lois and me to rattle round our house like two peas in a drum.

Poor us !!!!!

flashback to Friday: Lois and I bid a tearful farewell to our daughter Sarah,

her husband Francis, and their 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica

At least this morning, however, we get a five-minute whatsapp audio call with the family, on their way out to the shops to do some much-needed re-stocking of groceries etc, and hear about their long, 17 hour non-stop flight home. 

Apparently, after their gruelling flight they were dismayed to find that their car, parked way out in the airport "boonies", proved to have a flat battery, which was a pity! Luckily this was the car the family had paid for roadside assistance for, so it was just a question of another 1-2 hour wait for somebody to drop by and 'jump-start' it for them, before they could get home and finally go to bed - poor them !!!!

(left) the family's long, 17-hour non-stop flight home, only to find their car,

out in the "boonies" of the Perth airport car park, with a flat battery - what madness!!!!

On our call to them this morning, we catch them dealing with their own "period of adjustment,  at the start of their first week back home, with Sarah due to re-start work at her accountancy job in Perth tomorrow, and 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica all set to start what they call, locally, "Term 3" - also tomorrow, sorting out their uniforms etc etc. 

Their twin's school has been active on social media this weekend, reminding students of the school's uniform requirements, and tempting them with the school canteen's latest delicacies - yum yum!

Poor twins!!!  

At least for our daughter Sarah herself, however, it won't be so much of a shock getting back into the normal routine, because, during her stay with us, she was continuing to do bits of work online for her firm, trouble-shooting problems etc - what madness, isn't it !!!

flashback to a couple of weeks ago: although officially on holiday

from her accountancy job in Perth, our daughter Sarah continues

to do bits of trouble-shooting for her firm online, while Lois

works on the official 'holiday jigsaw'. What madness, isn't it !!!!

Yes, today Lois and I are trying to readjust to what we laughingly call 'normal life' again (!), making our first appearance for a month today at Lois's church's Sunday Morning Meeting at a village hall just outside nearby Petersfield, where church-members seem genuinely pleased to see us, which is nice. We get an especially warm welcome from fellow church-member and archaeologist Grahame, who always makes a bee-line for Lois and me, I think because of our shared interest in history and archaeology, which is nice.

(left) the village hall near Petersfield where church services are held,

and (right) us waiting for the meeting to begin, with, seen in the background,

fellow church-member and noted archaeologist Grahame

Grahame, who's buddies with TV archaeologists Alice Roberts and Raksha Dave, is excited today, because tomorrow he's opening the British Archaeology's week-long, 2026 Conference with a talk about Roman Winchester. 

(above) details of this year's conference of the British Archaeological Association,

which Grahame will open, with a talk on Roman Winchester, and (below)

flashback to last August, when Grahame (in the blue shirt) took church-members 

on a tour of Roman Silchester, giving us all some unwieldy maps to manipulate (!)

And this morning Grahame also regales us with amusing anecdotes from his experiences this week at a local amateur theatre-group's performance of The Sound of Music, where, he says, audience members dressed as nuns were awarded prizes: (1) for most convincing costumes, and (2) for the best "nun-faces", whatever that means (!). 

Grahame himself assures us that he personally didn't take part in the competition, which was probably for the best!

What an extraordinary mixture Grahame is - no doubt about that! But he's also lots of fun, which is nice!

Yes, "the hills are alive with the sound of Grahame" - that's for sure haha!!!

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

22:00 We go to bed - zzzzzzz!!!!!!!

Saturday July 18th 2026 "Friends, are you about to get the better of an insect in YOUR house?"

Yes, Friends, are YOU starting to get the better of an insect, in your house, a mosquito perhaps,  that's been particularly targeting YOU?

Because fortunately, for many of us, the tide of this relentless war is turning, at least for plucky local resident Derek Moore, according to this Onion News exclusive.

Kudos, Derek !!!!!

Poor Derek !!!!!

And reading about local man Derek's heroic duel brings a much needed smile to the bite-ridden faces of me and my wife Lois, here in semi-tropical Liphook, Hampshire - no doubt about that!

my wife Lois and me - a recent picture

We just yesterday said farewell to our daughter Sarah and family - husband Francis and their 12-year-old daughters Lily and Jessica - who have this morning returned to their home in Perth, Australia, after a 3-week stay in our house, ending in an epic 16 hour non-stop flight from London's Heathrow Airport, would you believe!

flashback to 6:45am, Friday morning - we bid a tearful farewell 

to our daughter Sarah, husband Francis and their 12-year-old twin daughters,

on their way to Heathrow to catch the morning flight to Perth, Australia - sob sob!!!!

And poor Lois and me are now left, once more, alone in our house, rattling around like two peas in a drum, with only our memories, plus several mosquito bites from our adventures, as we took the family around the area, braving the unusual heatwave over the last 3 weeks, which is a pity !!!!

Our current tubes of soothing witch hazel gel now standing empty, we're forced to use an old bottle of the stuff, past its "best before" date, a nostalgic relic of the UK's last official heatwave - what madness!

I showcase our remaining bottle of witch hazel for treating

our many mosquito bites - yes, it's past its best-buy date, a relic

of the UK's last official heatwave! What madness, isn't it !!!!

Not only that, but today we have to start putting our house to rights again, stripping beds and washing bedding - you will have been through the same kind of thing, I'm sure!!!!

beds to be stripped, and towels and bedding to be washed - what madness!!!

Yes, what a madness it all is - isn't it!

Poor us !!!!!!!

And now, suddenly having to focus just on each other, after 3 weeks of hosting an Australian family of four, an exhausted Lois and I decide to spend the afternoon in bed, which is a bit decadent of us, because we're supposed to be in the local village hall watching a local play about a local writer, but, then, that's just us! 

We decide to throw caution to the winds, and switch our tickets to next Saturday at nearby Headley, when we'll eventually, hopefully, get to see the acclaimed 'local play for local people', "Flora Heatherly", all about local writer Flora Thompson (1876-1947), who wrote the autobiographical 'Lark Rise to Candleford' which was a big hit drama series on the BBC a few years ago. You must remember that!!!!

So hopefully we'll see that next week - if we're not in bed (!) - so watch this space!!!

[I can't wait! - Ed]

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

22:00 We go to bed - zzzzzzzz!!!!!!!

Tuesday June 30th - Friday July 17th 2026 "Our Australian visitors - come and gone in a three-week 'flash' haha!!!!!"

This blog briefly covers highlights of the visit of our dear daughter Sarah and family - husband Francis and their 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica - who flew into London's Heathrow Airport from Perth, Australia on Tuesday June 30th and flew back home again on Friday July 18th 2026. 

Lois and I had a wonderful time, although we're feeling a bit exhausted now our visitors have gone home, and now that our house in semi-leafy Liphook, Hampshire, has suddenly returned to its normal state, with the two of us rattling around in it like two peas in a drum  - yikes !!

There was lots of laughter, despite the serious nature of the events and attractions etc that we visited (!). Here is Colin's pick of the many epic laugh-moments, that scored above 6 on Richter Scale !!!!!

[That's enough laughing! - Ed]

Now the facts - the highlights, in brief:

(1) the trip to London, to do a lunch cruise on the River Thames and then going to the top of Europe's tallest building, the Shard.

...later, somehow finding time to go up to the top of the Shard (1000 ft):

(2) Watching one of our other grandchildren, Isaac (15) and his band New Horizon, opening up for the Haslemere Fringe Festival.

(3) a visit to the grand old stately home of Petworth House and to its enormous grounds.

(4) the trip to Warner Bros Studio near Watford, just north of London, to do the Harry Potter tour and see all the sets where the filming took place.

And - um - that's it !!!!! 

Finally, just time for some early morning, tearful, goodbyes....

Tomorrow, it'll be back to reality again - yikes (again) !!!!!!

Byeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

Monday June 29th 2026 "Blog offically paused - and that's official haha!!!"

Yes, Friends, blog officially paused as my wife Lois and I host the visit of our dear daughter Sarah and family from Australia: husband Francis and their 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica. They arrived at Heathrow Airport, London at 5 am this morning, despite which they're looking remarkably lively, which is nice, as we chat to them in our home here in semi-leafy Liphook, Hampshire, that's for sure!

See you in a couple of weeks haha!!!

(left to right) our other daughter Alison, Lois, Francis, Sarah,

and the twins Jessica and Lily in our tiny back garden today

Byeeeeeeeeeeeeee !!!!!!

Ooh, also on Monday...

Ooh - and by the way -  on Tuesday June 30th ... we drive to nearby Petersfield to let the twins sweep through the charity shops and also we visit the famous lake, the one the locals call the "Heath Pond" (!). We lunched at the Plump Duck Cafe, where a cheeky swan was pestering a poor old man for a bit of his panini - what madness!!!

Also we get first pictures of our 15-year-old grandson Isaac all dressed up for his junior prom, which is nice - what a dapper young guy he's turning into !!!!

And now I come to think about it, on Wednesday July 1st Lois and I decide to go for a morning walk with our daughter Sarah and the twins, in nearby Radford Park, including a game of pooh-sticks, which is nice!

And then we have a drink and a snack at a cafe in Liphhook's partially-bustling town centre. Francis, our son-in-law, is not out with us today because he's gone back to bed for a nap. 

Poor Francis!!!!

And not forgetting our big trip to London on Thursday July 2nd, when we took the train in from Liphook to London's Waterloo Station, then took a taxi to Tower Pier on the Thames and had a lunch cruise. After that we took a taxi to the Shard, Europe's tallest building, and went up to the top in the lift.

in the taxi

in the Costa .....

on the lunch cruise on the Thames...

Going up the Shard...having champagne in the bar on the top floor, and looking at London from 1,000 ft up, which was nice!......

 And... um... that's it!!!!

And then there's the day (Friday July 3rd, evening) when we saw our grandson Isaac's band, New Horizon, opening up the Haslemere Fringe Festival.

And then there was Saturday July 4th, when the twins decorated a special 'unbirthday cake', and we had lunch in the garden while our son-in-law Francis was taking a nap upstairs - poor Francis !!!!

Then we waited for our guests to arrive for tea this afternoon evening - our other daughter Alison, plus husband Edward, and their 3 teenage kids, Josie (19), Rosalind (18), and Isaac (15).

Then there was July 5th, and our son-in-law Francis somehow manages to chivvy the twins into getting ready for an 8am-ish departure.  The three of them are going up to the English Lake District, for three days of hiking and sailing, which is nice! They leave Lois and me, and our daughter Sarah, to 'chill out', which is also nice!

We get a call later to say that they had arrived at a hotel near Lake Windermere by 5pm or so, with a lunch stop at Harrogate, which is fair enough! From Monday they will stay in a camping pod (see below):

After Francis and the twins go off, the three of us - Lois and me, plus our daughter Sarah proceed to chill out "in spades", to put it mildly!

Then there was July 6th, when Francis took the twins on a boat cruise of Lake Windermere, and on July 7th he took them on a hike over Catbells, so called because it was originally a lair of wildcats.

the cruise round Lake Windermere

the hike over "Catbells", once the lair of wildcats

Meanwhile here in Liphook, on July 6th and 7th, Lois and I are trying to keep cool while somehow also finding time for our afternoons in bed, while Sarah "Two Jobs", as we call her (!), keeps busy doing two accountancy jobs simultaneously - the old one in Evesham UK and the new one in Perth, Australia. 

What madness!!!!

I showcase Sarah's "office" - which, with Francis and the twins up north,

leaves just enough space on the rest of the table for Sarah, 

Lois and me to have meals at mealtimes, which is nice !!!!

Wednesday July 8th, and our daughter Sarah, on holiday here with us from her home in Perth, Australia, is continuing to do her 2 accountancy jobs on the kitchen table, while Lois and I hide from the heat - what madness!!!  Meanwhile Sarah's husband Francis says will be returning tonight from a few days break in the Lake District, bringing our 12-year-old twin grandchildren with him, which will be nice!

They're driving down from their campsite near Lake Windermere, via the seaside resort of Morecambe and nearby Haydock, where they'll be dropping in to see Francis's old mate Simon. Francis says during his call that there was "zero chance" that they'd be back here in time for tea tonight, but he's surprised us before, so watch this space !!!!

[I can't wait! - Ed]

Thursday July 9th: Lois and I take Sarah and the twins round Radford Park, staying as much as possible in the shady areas, because of the heat - yikes!!! When we came back, Francis went out to the local Sainsbury's supermarket, coming back unexpectedly with pizzas, and hijacking existing plans for lunch (!). Oops!

After that, it's back to the jigsaw, which is nice!  "It's getting there!" is the official verdict on today's puzzle-work, which is encouraging!!!

Friday July 10th - with no let-up in the current heatwave until our visitors fly home to Australia, a trip out to the Chocolate Frog, Bordon and Just Ceramics is on the cards for lunchtime today, so the twins can paint some pottery, one of their fave activities before having lunch there,  so watch this space!

But "Phew! Wotta scorcha !!!!!" is the headline haha!!!!!

flashback to 50 years ago - the hot summer of '76 !!!!!

Then it's home to Liphook, andn back to bed for Lois and me for afternoon statutory nap-time [not shown!], and jigsaw work for everybody else haha!

jigsaw work: latest pictures detail the progress

following morning: I get up early to make everything spick and span 

in the kitchen, also somehow finding time to showcase the state

of the jigsaw. All seems well, I can exclusively reveal!

Meanwhile our other daughter Alison, with her family - husband Edward, and their 3 teenage kids Josie (19), Rosalind (18) and Isaac (15) - have flown  to Mallorca for a couple of weeks, and are today exploring their resort for the first time.

our son-in-law Edward,  with our granddaughter Rosalind (18)

our granddaughter Josie (19)

our daughter Alison, with husband Edward

Alison with Rosalind

Now, suddenly (!), it's Saturday June 11th and we're waiting in for two deliveries - Ocado online supermarket for some badly-needed groceries (the hard-to-get 9am to 10am slot), and then Cook for badly needed ready meals (10:30 to 11.30 am slot). 

What madness!!!!

After that, it's just jigsaws and cupcake-decorating, which is nice!

Sunday July 12th and our son-in-law Francis, despite a late night in the pub last night watching England in the World Cup and coming home about 1:30am (!), is on hand at 10am to chivvy his family into getting ready to go off for his family's annual get-together in Ealing, Middlesex, which will be nice. Meanwhile Lois and I can 'chill out' and we also manage to assemble our latest fan, equipped with remote control, which will be a comfort! 

And I'm looking forward to tasting the little cup-cakes decorated by the twins - a thought which will keep us going through the day, no problem!

Later Sarah shows us these pictures of Francis's family get-together, at a modest-looking (but expensive, given the location!) house in Ealing, West London - what madness!!!!

Key: (back,left) Francis and Kate (back, right) Sarah, Elly and Aiden

(middle row, left to right) Paul, Shirley with Molly, Barbara, Sasha, Patrick, James

(front, left to right) Jess with Honour, Jessica, Lily, Justine.

Barbara  and Shirley are Francis's sisters.

Barbara and Paul's children are Olly [not shown] and Katie [not shown].

Olly and Jess's children are Sasha and Honour.

Katie and Will have 3 daughters: Daisy, Isla and somebody else (!) [all not shown!]

Shirley and Aiden's children are James and Elly.

James and Kate's child is Patrick.

Elly and Justine's child is Molly.

And - um -  that's it !!!!

What madness!!!!!

Now,  it's Tuesday July 13th - that was the day Francis has a bad back, so Lois and I take our daughter Sarah and granddaughters Lily and Rosanna in our little Honda Jazz down to Petworth House, a stately home near Midhurst, West Sussex, one of the stately homes of England, with the most enormous grounds - 700 acres. What madness (again) !!!!!

Today, July 14th is largely a day to draw breath before tomorrow's visit to Harry Potter World at Warners Bros Studios, just north of Watford, Middlesex.

Meanwhile our grandson Isaac is getting ready for his band New Horizon's next gig, at the Boiler Room, Guildford on July 20th.

Kudos, Isaac!

Now it's July 15th 2026, and it's our day for visiting the Warner Bros Studios Harry Potter World just outside Watford, Middlesex - 68 miles there and 68 miles back, via the UK's busiest road, the dreaded M25! Yikes !!!!

Thursday July 16th - a day to draw breath again, with "packing to go home to Australia" being a big item on today's agenda. Lois and I also somehow find time to take Sarah and the twins to the Just Ceramics pottery workshop and the adjacent Chocolate Frog Cafe, to pick up the ceramics that Sarah, Lois and the twins created last week, which is nice! And there's even time to finish the intriguing Cheese-themed jigsaw, would you believe - what madness!!!!!

Alas, Friday July 17th has dawned, and it's time for our beloved Australian family to speed off to London's Heathrow Airport at the crack of dawn, leaving Lois and me to track their progress on our phones - sob sob !!!!!

at 19:36 BST

And - um - that's it haha !!!!!