Edwards Profile.

Revised 1.March 2005 and 21. January 2010.



Hi, I’m Eddie the eighth child of ten; I was born at 41, Whittle Drive in Ormskirk on the 14th March 1955.

As a child I was quiet and often unhappy and started school life at West End primary school, it was at the end of the road so I didn't have far to go it had 3 class rooms and about 15 kids in each class it was there I met Ray Holburt and we ended up going through school life together as friends. We enjoyed playing together in the small play ground, but we were competitors on the school sports day, I was in the red team which I continued in other schools, we had running races, egg and spoon races, high and long jump, and skipping at which I won clever boy, I ended up getting a book for good attendance when I left the school. (Which I don’t know why but I have it to this day). Then it was on following the Finch clan to Greetby Hill Junior School.

John was there at the time but he wanted to be with his mates and not wanting his little brother hanging around. At 11, I went to Wigan Road High School and thought that I wanted to be a draughtsman but that meant staying on at school for another year, which I wouldn't have minded but at the time I didn't know what English literature entailed, so there-fore there was my downfall.

One of my mates was Ray Holbert, we used to go fishing together catching Bream and Perch, we also got up to a bit of mischief, I remember stealing detonators from a railway signal box with Ray, our John and a few others where also in on this and we got caught by the cops and put up before the magistrates. Dad was not amused and scared the hell out of me saying ‘I would go to jail and he would not save me.’

I left school when I was 15 and started work at Millbrooks Upholstery as an upholsterer. I learnt my trade and enjoyed the work, learning reupholstery of old and new furniture...

Home life was not so great, I felt Dad used to pick on me a lot and I really hated him for it for a long, long time. Meal times was also something different, we weren’t even aloud to talk for fear that Colin would swipe us across your ears, but we where just little kids and knew no better..

Mum would take us to Auntie Cons and Uncle Bills, it was always nice to go there and they had a piano that she would play for us, she used to live at Scarisbrick at the time..

The first funeral I attended was Uncle Bills, after that I had many bad dreams about dying until I had a talk with Mum, she told me how she had made her peace then things started to change for me.

The only holiday I remember was at Butlins and all I can remember from that holiday was the porridge for breakfast, it had salt in it and tasted like ‘yuck’,

I met Freda in 1971 at a night club called the Dixieland, we had a lot of good times there even if I was under age, but there was a lot of people in the same boat, we used to go dancing but the floor had to be crowded for me, but, Freda loved dancing, Saturday was the main night, It seemed to me that it was always chuck up night I hated been sick but I must of been a slow learner. We got to know each other better on a holiday to the Isle of Man we had a good time and enjoyed each others company we were in love and eventually married in 1974.

We bought a house in Calder Ave. Ormskirk and moved in after spending our first couple of months at Dorothy and Roberts’s house in Burscough.

I joined the darts and dominoes teams at the Yew Tree Hotel where Eric and John played but they were better players than me. I didn’t stay there long and moved on to the Greyhound Hotel which was closer to home, there was not a hint of any brothers to have to look up to, win or loose it didn’t matter I was on my own two feet.

Our first son James Edward was born on 22nd. March 1977. We had our ups and downs which led to our divorce, then later resolved our disagreements and remarried again in 1979.

We then decided to make a break and a new life and decided to immigrate to Australia.

We settled in Queensland in a suburb called Bethania.

It was a struggle being by ourselves but we were determined to make a go of it. Our second son, Ryan John was born in England on the 18. January 1985 while we where there on holiday.

That is the last time we were in England and also the last time we saw the whole family together, well nearly as big Colin was working over-seas in Oman.

Every-one was very nice and made us welcome and put up with us for six weeks, but deep down we felt that things where not the same as they used to be. We had only been away five years, but we could see a lot of changes in the family maybe it was just the different life we were getting used to, we where going to go back to Australia shortly anyway. That didn’t really matter to us as we where on our way again back to Australia and ‘Home’ or is it? I don’t know really as I still support every-thing English. We lived in Bethania almost 10 years then moved to Logan Village buying a bigger plot of land, two and a half acres, building our own house with the help of a couple of mates.

We have a few sheep to keep the grass down, and Ryan keeps his show chooks, but that will come out in his profile, when he gets around to writing it! Wont it Ryan!

I continued upholstery for a couple of more years and then went into the road building industry in 1986, which I am still doing.

When Mum and Dad came over to visit us, I got to know Dad a lot better I asked him what the problem we used to have was, but he didn’t answer me.


Just before they left, I told him I loved him and we hugged each other, it was something special, he then told me he didn’t want me crying at his funeral, sadly I listened to him once again.

We have also had visits from Eric and his family which went by so quick and we enjoyed the reunion.

We then got a visit from Graham and Carol so it was another reunion and more of good times and more good-bye tears! Freda's sister Susie came for a short stay and then Eric and Leanne came back again. The King of Bar-B-Q’s had to show us how to cook a proper Barbie, but didn’t have time to help the croc hunter, he managed to get into trouble on the ride on mower

the first time but his help was greatly appreciated in 2004.We did manage to find the Logan -Village Hotel, a few times and they sold beer, ha, ha, ha...

A few years back I had a breakdown, I’m not sure how it started but the reaction from other people amazed me, they avoided me or talked in whispers about me to Freda or just stayed away and didn’t bother. It really hurt that I had to explain that I was not mad or mental. At times I could not cope with talking to people but over the past couple of years I have been fine and back to normal, with the occasional lows here and there but thanks to the help from Freda we get through it. I don’t know what the future has in store but I am ready to face it head on.

My main pastime is golf; I’m a member at the local Logan Village Golf Club playing off a handicap of 15.at the moment, my lowest handicap to date.

I enjoy working and making improvements in the garden and around the house.

In summer are main problem is water, when it rains we catch what we can, but it might not last through the draught, we might have to buy it in as most of you will know from Freda’s letters which is like a pet hate of ours.

I’m still a football fan and follow what I know is the best team in the world, Manchester United, maybe you don’t agree with me on that point, but that’s it.

Ryan now works at the same firm as me and we go off together in the mornings with a kiss from Freda and our 'butty tins' and ‘Billy’ in our hands.

James met and married a lovely girl Iona, she is really good for him and they now have a little girl Claudia, this being the start of the Finch family tree down under.

END for now, to be continued…..



Revised Friday 22. January 2010.

Good-day EVERYBODY, I’m back,, The best news I suppose I have is another granddaughter from James and Iona, and a sister for Claudia, her name is Chloe Rachelle, and was born on the 30 April 2007, other news is that I’ve stopped taking my medication for depression for just over 12 months and with no signs of any set backs, but I do have a different out-look in life, but still miss my mum, although I didn’t see her in her prime of her life, but I do have good memories of her, I’m still married to Freda and probably always will be, as she doesn’t mind me playing golf when I want too, I did manage to get my handicap down too 11.8 but has steadily gone back out to 14, obviously more practise is needed, and will toil away at it, I’m still working with the same firm in Civil Engineering ( road construction ) and have been for nearly 23 years. I do get to do different things as they are needed and jump on a variety of machines a roller, compactor, backhoe, drott, dozer and loaders other machines are available, but I haven’t got the license for them, as everything is getting SAFTEY, SAFTEY, Ryan still works at the same firm as me but on different sites, driving his Scrapper which he likes.

Christmas in Australia!. What’s it like? Well it’s hot and humid, and you do not feel like a hot traditional Christmas dinner, so prawns, crab, cold meat and a salad, is the norm. We used to go to the beach for lunch, when the kids where small, but we ended up under the sun umbrella trying to stay in the shade, so why go to the beach and come home red and sore and sun burnt. We gave that up after a few years, and don’t really go to the beach much. One time we did go I got caught in a riptide and nearly drowned trying to get back to the beach. That seemed to put me off the whole idea of going to the beach. Now at Christmas, we usually stay at home and relax in the shade.

As I am working out in the sun all year I don’t REALLY want to go on holiday and lay in the sun.....

I suppose that why Tasmania is there, or New Zealand, maybe we have to look into these places for holidays….



Till next time Bye Bye from Queensland Australia.

Edward.


Email: edsfemale@hotmail.com