Cairns

I organised Space for God in the presbytery. I had an anguished call from a parishioner worried about Catholics discussing doctrine with non-Catholic prayer guides but I said only prayer and spirituality would be discussed. One of the guides was disabled and the house was far from ideal. P.1206. Roger O'Hogan died inJoburg. P.1215 !meeting Stravinsky recalled. P.1218 Janet and Lloyd prepared for the house swop. The exchange rate was on our favour.p.1220 Fr Daniel 's Anglican mentor.
P.1228 Jo hn Ewington did not bother to tell us Christopher Dearnley was to be given a Guild fellowship so I missed it. I became increasingly fed up! We flew to Singapore and loved the Zoo and night safari . P. 1230 we arrived in Cairns and bought a 3 day package. Great barrier reef where Louise dived. Snorkelling in the sea complete failure! The steam railway and treetop cable car were great. Really enjoyed the aborigine show for which I had the least expectations.

Princess Diana

Fr Gerry Coates and Gill Ness-Collins choir picnic Steyning

 Adrian conducting Neville Squires with beard

Book 6 p.1133 the terrible news of the death of Princess Diana. We were in Steyning. I played some Elgar on the keyboard but not the music for royalty. The same thing happened later when we were in Sydney when the Queen Mother died. I have found a diary for 1997 but it only starts at October so I must have lost a diary. The big event of the year was April 12 vespers celebrating our 50th birthdays and a party at Addiscombe. Louise was senior choir Secretary at Coloma so we were in the box for the Christmas concert at Fairfield Hall. She sang at Peterborough and Lincoln. Bruce sang in Bath, visited Germany and Yorkshire and sang in Carmina Burana. Liz's aunt Sheila died.
The Nicholson singers sang a weekend at Wells. We sang Rachmaninoff vespers at Union chapel, Islington. I had joined Norwood circle and we all enjoyed the Provincial President's Sunday at Mayfield school. Swimming in the pool I was surprised to mee t a fellow tenor from the chorus. He suggested I play the Compton organ in the chapel. If there is a problem, say I said it's Ok. No sooner had I sat down came the voice from the door "and what do you think you are doing? " I went on to play for many of these annual Masses. I organised a week of guided prayer in the presbytery. This was when I met my first spiritual director St Campion from Greenwich Ursulines. The music day at Our Lady went well. David Hill played at St Barnabas Dulwich. We sang vespers at St Augustine's abbey, Canterbury. Cirla Lewis gave a wonderful talk about reconciliation. She was a Jewish child saved by Belgian Catholic nuns. I had now moved to West Hill library.

 May 27 1997 Canterbury and Belmont June 1997 with Alan Rees

.p.1167 April 1998 moved to Battersea Park library and I stayed there until one year before retiring.

 David Hill at St Barnabas

 Stephen Rose

Ray Carter

Gill died 2016 and organised our Steyning visits first with Fr Gerry Coates both SSG stalwarts

Dom Alan died 2005 a gifted composer and friend at Belmont Abbey