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I had the honour of being born in
Crawley, next door to
Gatwick Airport - which is, perhaps, the reason why I find airports and planes so fascinating!
My parents are Anne and Joe Nolan. My mother was born in Wembley. Her family left London during the war, and then she spent the rest of her youth in Ealing. My father was born in Bishop Auckland in County Durham, in the north-east of England. They met as student teachers in London and married in 1959. My older brother John was born in May 1960, and then my younger brother Paul in September 1963 - so I am neatly sandwiched in the middle! |
The Nolan Coat of Arms |
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In April 1964, my father got a new job in Swindon, Wiltshire.
We lived in Whitbourne Avenue, and the most important landmark for me at that age was a rather large stone on the other side of the road, which was just right for me to climb on.
We moved out of Swindon for the next six years and lived in a new house in Highworth. This was a great place for riding my bike very fast and catching butterflies. (Not at the same time.) Then, in 1974 we moved back to Swindon, where more teenage-like activities took over. I loved reading and soon got into the thrilling habit of reading a whole book at one sitting. The Famous Five, as well as other series of Enid Blyton kept me busy for a while - her Saint Clare's and Mallory Towers books ultimately led me towards the fabulous collection of Elinor M. Brent Dyer's Chalet School stories, set mostly in the Tyrol, and contrasting satisfactorily with my own education! My first visit to the cinema continued the mountain theme. The Sound of Music has to classify among the greats for sheer wearability. I've watched this film countless times and always enjoy singing along with Julie Andrews and that energetic batch of kiddies!! More mountainous enjoyment came with that wonderful French TV series Belle and Sebastien. There were some great TV shows for kids during the sixties and seventies weren't there? Andy Pandy and Bill and Ben the Flowerpot Men featured pretty heavily at first, followed by Blue Peter, Tom and Jerry, and The Clangers. Hiding behind the settee was my usual activity whilst watching Doctor Who, and who doesn't remember Jackanory, The Wombles, Vision On - or TISWAS??! Find out all about classic Kid's TV from the 60s and 70s if you want a real trip down my kind of memory lane! |
A Little Music
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Go to a Hawaii 5-0 site.
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| The music and "style" of the seventies of course has a feel and atmosphere of its own. School discos throbbed with the sound of Abba and 10CC, whilst bands like Mud, Wizard and the Osmonds entranced the teens around me... Tartan scarves wrapped around wrists, lip gloss, Smitty perfume and Jackie's Cathy and Claire agony column merged horrendously with crimped hair, flared jeans and Chelsea Girl fashion. Charlie's Angels, bionic men and women, John Travolta and Olivia Newton John blazed the trail with trouser suits and medallions, Gary Glitter joined the gang and Starsky and Hutch vied for the drooling attentions of innocent secondary school pupils who should have known better. Disco Ducks, Yellow Ribbons and Kung Fu Fighters added a warped dimension to what would otherwise have been a sane era for us all... |
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| Life wasn't all teenybopping. The levity of tune and costume came to an abrupt halt with the advent of the punk movement and my first Saturday job. After serving cold meat and coleslaw at a local delicatessen, I moved onwards to a toyshop type of newsagent, where my main tasks were breaking up boxes and tidying the Barbie dolls. I wore a blue overall of a man-made fibre. Promotion came in the form of the china and glass department at Debenhams in Swindon. For some reason china and glass included the lighting section and pine furniture. I became adept at speedily wrapping up 50 piece tea-sets, hauling onyx tables (part of the pine section), advising on lampshades and stands and locating lost forks for the canteens of cutlery. It was an auspicious start in the world of work! |
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Next -
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There's a lot more to say! Do try out the links on this page - I had great fun finding them all for you! Many thanks to
Eddie Geoghegan for the Nolan Coat of Arms. Great music and links from
Midi Haven. And a big thank you to all those artists who have given us a lot to enjoy!!!
There's theoretically a great Chalet School site that everybody links to - but at the moment it's not up and running - what a shame!! I'm still looking for a better link for Belle and Sebastien, too.
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