Ronald Blythe has lived in Bottengoms farm in the Stour valley for almost forty years. Before that, owned by the painter, John Nash, the ancient farmhouse had long been a hub for a talented artistic community. With Ronald Blythe in residence that rich tradition has been maintained with a stream of painters and writers visiting.

Stour Seasons is the latest collection of the acclaimed columns written for the Church Times. Blythe has said, ‘What I basically am is a listener and a watcher’. In these essays he quietly records his observations of life in the countryside while reflecting on culture, literature, friends and his beloved garden. Whether describing market day in the village, a visit to Aldeburgh or the life of the local parish church, Ronald Blythe brings a freshness of vision to all he sees and gently teases out the value and richness to be found in the small things that make up life.

In the early years of the twentieth century that part of Colchester we know as Old Heath was more like a country village. Some houses backed onto farmer’s fields and people would regularly wake up to find cows grazing in their back garden! Cars were rare; it was horses and carts that delivered coal, milk and bread. With no electricity and a single tap for four houses, life was very different.

Reading these collected memories of Old Heath residents is to be transported back in time. To a time when the toilet was mostly in the garden and when bath time meant filling the tin tub in front of the fire and all the family taking it in turns to climb in. There are memories of wartime – the excitement of the famous zeppelin crashing in Wigborough during WW1 or watching the doodlebugs fly over during WW2.

Packed with pictures this book of memories brings to life the labour and the laughter of a time gone by.