The Flying man and Mrs Martha Meredith....... tales from Didsbury at the Chorlton Cafe

Now it is not often that you get to hear about how a book was written rather than what is in it.

But that is exactly what is on offer for the next history talk at the Post Box  Cafe on Thursday February 13th.

The book is Didsbury Through Time which records some of the changes to the area over the last century and a bit, mixing old images of the place with new photographs and paintings and focusing on the people who lived behind the doors.

People like the young Bertha Geary who on a June day in 1911 saw the “Flying man” and Mrs Martha Meredith who ran “the Supper Bar (Fish and Chips)” at number 1 School Lane.

Mrs Meredith was 36, described herself as a widow with a 14 year old daughter and shared her home with her brother in law, as well as the young Mary Ann who she employed as a servant and John Wilson the boarder.

This a a different approach to the usual then and now books which feature an old image and its modern equivalent supported by a few sentences stating the blindingly obvious differences.

Along with stories of the people and some striking paintings by Peter the book has been designed to allow the reader to walk across Didsbury, taking in the buildings and its history, starting in the east at Parrs Woods and finishing in the west at Barlow Moor.

Peter will describe the process by which he chose the original images and talk about his paintings while I will tell a few stories and shed some light on how the research was done.

And as an added bonus Mike Billington will accompany the stories and pictures with songs of Didsbury.

Tickets include the usual excellent pre-talk dinner at 6 pm followed by the talk at 7.30.

Nor is that all, for later in the month and into the next there will be more history at the Cafe, including another of those walks around Chorlton and the history dinner where between course there will be some dark stories and a chance to ask questions about our townships past..

The Flying man and Mrs Martha Meredith....... tales from Didsbury at the Post Box Cafe, February 13 at 7.30, the Post Box Cafe,  0161 881 4853, www.thepostboxchorlton.co.uk

Picture; Mrs Meredith on School Lane circa 1911

*Didsbury Through Time, Peter Topping and Andrew Simpson