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Jack Hill moved with his wife and family to a house called Brookside at St Mary's, Chalford, Gloucestershire in 1962.
The children, after Rebecca arrived, were given beds in the small room next to ours, and a new ceiling was created using 600mm square softboard tiles, so this room had good insulation, and thus a small radiator was sufficient.
At the outset, Beryl wanted a good bed so we invested in two singles which were attached and had a double mattress spread over. Thus the bed size was square and each occupant had space to move independently.
The floors were so uneven and had slopes so the idea of conventional furniture was soon dismissed, and I created cupboards and shelving across the fireplace and an alcove, all hidden behind sliding folding steel doors.
I ignored the second bathroom for several years, then ripped everything out and started anew by lining the walls with glass fibre on softwood framing but finished with cedar 'tongue and groove' boards which had a soft warm glow.
We installed a bidet, but had problems keeping it from leaking so it was seldom used. This room had a good-sized radiator so could be made really hot. Beryl always had hot baths full to the overflow and so the drill was for her to wallow until stewed, then shout for me to take over.
We tried the Meecham's idea of bathing together on one or two occasions but I was the one relegated to the taps end and this soon put me off the concept. A purple carpet kept the floor nice and warm.
My reason for having softboard ceilings in squares was due to the way in which the original plaster and lath system had become disengaged from the joists by the bounce in them, so I wanted a flexible method.
In addition, when I had removed the old plaster the weight had been so heavy and it seemed illogical to overload the joists.
The dining room needed insulating, so the first step was to face the end wall with more cedar boards attached to softwood framing. The south wall with the sash window was given a complete covering of window drapes, well-lined, and the wall also had softboard squares stuck on.
The roof space over the dining room required cleaning out before I could spread mica insulation and this was really dirty work because of the railway engine smoke deposits.
In later years, I opened up an old window in the wall above this space to try and get natural light into the corridor. I inserted a piece of plastic as a temporary measure but never found the money to get a proper roof light. {The opening was blocked up again by the new owners in 1999, seemingly preferring not to have the daylight.}
Continued ......
Jack Hill, St Alban's, Hertfordshire, 2002
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