The final days at Barnston in the 1980s then onwards to Chester

There were some big changes in the 1980s. In 1980 I was 23 by 1990 33 almost fully awake. In 1980 I was a graduate management trainee by 1990 I was a senior manager at Rolls Royce. I'm not entirely sure how that happened! Dad went as a full time Archdeacon in 1984 and they moved to 25, Bartholomew Way in Westminster Park, Chester before retiring to number 1 Bartholomew Way in 1988.Dad regretted the move to full time and missed the day to day involvement in the parish.I worked for Littlewoods from 1978 until 1984 then joined Bass from 1984 to 1987 then joined Rolls Royce.I was married in 1985 and we moved to Frodsham. On a personal level I was on a pretty steep learning curve which peaked when I joined Rolls Royce. The c3 years there were probably the most intense learning period of my life.Prior to Rolls Royce I had learned about leadership at Littlewoods, applied some of it at Bass but the whole real world application of how to successfully lead change really went into overdrive at Rolls Royce (pardon the pun). We started with a very low start point and achieved some pretty dramatic results in terms of a step change in customer focus, alignment, and individual ownership and growth. Without that experience it's very unlikely I would have gone into consultancy in the first place or set up and run a successful company latterly.By 1989 I had moved to a small consultancy in Manchester that also provided many opportunities to learn prior to going self employed in 1993.

France 1981

In 1981 we took a holiday in France.Wine seemed to feature quite heavily! 

Highlights of the trip were having long lunches in the shade, eating ham and french bread and drinking wine whilst listening on the radio to Ian Botham demolish the Australians in the Ashes.Quite idyllic.
 'Despite having been 1–0 down after two Tests, England won the next three Tests to finish 3–1 victors (with two draws), thus retaining the Ashes. The series is popularly known as Botham's Ashes, owing to the remarkable performances of Ian Botham with both bat and ball'

We also met up with Mireille Cocquerel an old friend in St Omer.We had met Mireille during the1966 trip to Switzerland, mum had exchanged letters with her since then.

Barnston, Vicarage and Grounds through the Years

After 31 brilliant years we finally left Barnston in 1984. Here are some photos taken in the house and garden over the years.

Bass 1984

1984 was a year of two major changes in our lives. Dad decided to go full time as Archdeacon of Chester so we left Barnston and moved to Chester.I also left Littlewoods to work for Bass in Manchester.Whereas Littlewoods were a very paternal company, Bass were market leader in the UK and like all market leaders were a very strategic company, stretching to work for and we got free beer!

25 Bartholomew Way, Buckingham Palace and Purchasing Number 1

In 1984 when Dad became full time Archdeacon we moved to 25 Bartholomew Way. We then sold the bungalow we owned on Anglesey and bought 1 Bartholomew Way for my parents retirement in 1988.

'The Rag and Louse' 68 Kingsley Road Frodsham 1985
We moved to Frodsham while I was working at Bass then on to Sandbach when I took the job at Rolls Royce

Rolls Royce 1987 

The circa 3 years spent at Rolls Royce Cars in Crewe were very memorable.Rolls Royce was a fascinating place to work in those days, a combination of a world famous brand and some very traditional work practices and attitudes. I learned a great deal there and some of things we achieved with the team were really remarkable. When the first edit of this website is complete, I'll return to this chapter and tell the story in full...

Watch Lane Cottage Sandbach

Click Here for the 1990s
What was happening in the world at large?

1980: Ronald Reagan is elected President of the United States.Solidarity union forms at Poland's Gdańsk Shipyard under Lech Wałęsa, and begins agitation for greater personal freedoms. Death of John Lennon.
1981: First orbital flight of the Space Shuttle.
1982: Falklands War.
1983: GPS becomes available for civilian use.
1984: Beginning of the the 1984-85 UK miners' strike. Sino-British Joint Declaration agrees to hand Hong Kong back to China by 1997.
1985: Live Aid. Mikhail Gorbachev becomes Premier of the Soviet Union. First use of DNA fingerprinting. 
1986: Challenger and Chernobyl disasters. Launch of the space station Mir. First close up images of the planet Uranus. Return of Halley's Comet. 
1987: Stock market crash of 1987. World population reaches 5 billion.
1988: Perestroika begins. End of dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Pan Am Flight 103 falls over Lockerbie, Scotland. Construction of the Channel Tunnel begins.
1989: Fall of the Berlin Wall; 1989 revolution and collapse of the Soviet Bloc in Europe. Tiannanmen Square Massacre in China. Death of Emperor Hirohito; his son Akihito becomes Emperor of Japan. Fatwa issued against Salman Rushdie. Exxon Valdez oil spill. First close up pictures of Neptune.
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