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My Books
- Book List & Themes
- Strictly for Adults Novels >
-
Tales from Portlaw
>
- No Need to Look for Love
- 'The Love Quartet' >
-
The Priest's Calling Card
>
- Chapter One - The Irish Custom
- Chapter Two - Patrick Duffy's Family Background
- Chapter Three - Patrick Duffy Junior's Vocation to Priesthood
- Chapter Four - The first years of the priesthood
- Chapter Five - Father Patrick Duffy in Seattle
- Chapter Six - Father Patrick Duffy, Portlaw Priest
- Chapter Seven - Patrick Duffy Priest Power
- Chapter Eight - Patrick Duffy Groundless Gossip
- Chapter Nine - Monsignor Duffy of Portlaw
- Chapter Ten - The Portlaw Inheritance of Patrick Duffy
- Bigger and Better >
- The Oldest Woman in the World >
-
Sean and Sarah
>
- Chapter 1 - 'Return of the Prodigal Son'
- Chapter 2 - 'The early years of sweet innocence in Portlaw'
- Chapter 3 - 'The Separation'
- Chapter 4 - 'Separation and Betrayal'
- Chapter 5 - 'Portlaw to Manchester'
- Chapter 6 - 'Salford Choices'
- Chapter 7 - 'Life inside Prison'
- Chapter 8 - 'The Aylesbury Pilgrimage'
- Chapter 9 - Sean's interest in stone masonary'
- Chapter 10 - 'Sean's and Tony's Partnership'
- Chapter 11 - 'Return of the Prodigal Son'
- The Alternative Christmas Party >
-
The Life of Liam Lafferty
>
- Chapter One: ' Liam Lafferty is born'
- Chapter Two : 'The Baptism of Liam Lafferty'
- Chapter Three: 'The early years of Liam Lafferty'
- Chapter Four : Early Manhood
- Chapter Five : Ned's Secret Past
- Chapter Six : Courtship and Marriage
- Chapter Seven : Liam and Trish marry
- Chapter Eight : Farley meets Ned
- Chapter Nine : 'Ned comes clean to Farley'
- Chapter Ten : Tragedy hits the family
- Chapter Eleven : The future is brighter
-
The life and times of Joe Walsh
>
- Chapter One : 'The marriage of Margaret Mawd and Thomas Walsh’
- Chapter Two 'The birth of Joe Walsh'
- Chapter Three 'Marriage breakup and betrayal'
- Chapter Four: ' The Walsh family breakup'
- Chapter Five : ' Liverpool Lodgings'
- Chapter Six: ' Settled times are established and tested'
- Chapter Seven : 'Haworth is heaven is a place on earth'
- Chapter Eight: 'Coming out'
- Chapter Nine: Portlaw revenge
- Chapter Ten: ' The murder trial of Paddy Groggy'
- Chapter Eleven: 'New beginnings'
-
The Woman Who Hated Christmas
>
- Chapter One: 'The Christmas Enigma'
- Chapter Two: ' The Breakup of Beth's Family''
- Chapter Three: From Teenager to Adulthood.'
- Chapter Four: 'The Mills of West Yorkshire.'
- Chapter Five: 'Harrison Garner Showdown.'
- Chapter Six : 'The Christmas Dance'
- Chapter Seven : 'The ballot for Shop Steward.'
- Chapter Eight: ' Leaving the Mill'
- Chapter Ten: ' Beth buries her Ghosts'
- Chapter Eleven: Beth and Dermot start off married life in Galway.
- Chapter Twelve: The Twin Tragedy of Christmas, 1992.'
- Chapter Thirteen: 'The Christmas star returns'
- Chapter Fourteen: ' Beth's future in Portlaw'
-
The Last Dance
>
- Chapter One - ‘Nancy Swales becomes the Widow Swales’
- Chapter Two ‘The secret night life of Widow Swales’
- Chapter Three ‘Meeting Richard again’
- Chapter Four ‘Clancy’s Ballroom: March 1961’
- Chapter Five ‘The All Ireland Dancing Rounds’
- Chapter Six ‘James Mountford’
- Chapter Seven ‘The All Ireland Ballroom Latin American Dance Final.’
- Chapter Eight ‘The Final Arrives’
- Chapter Nine: 'Beth in Manchester.'
- 'Two Sisters' >
- Fourteen Days >
-
‘The Postman Always Knocks Twice’
>
- Author's Foreword
- Contents
- Chapter One
- Chapter Two
- Chapter Three
- Chapter Four
- Chapter Five
- Chapter Six
- Chapter Seven
- Chapter Eight
- Chapter Nine
- Chapter Ten
- Chapter Eleven
- Chapter Twelve
- Chapter Thirteen
- Chapter Fourteen
- Chapter Fifteen
- Chapter Sixteen
- Chapter Seventeen
- Chapter Eighteen
- Chapter Nineteen
- Chapter Twenty
- Chapter Twenty-One
- Chapter Twenty-Two
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Celebrity Contacts
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Thoughts and Musings
- Bereavement >
- Nature >
-
Bill's Personal Development
>
- What I'd like to be remembered for
- Second Chances
- Roots
- Holidays of Old
- Memorable Moments of Mine
- Cleckheaton Consecration
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- Mum's Wisdom
- 'Early life at my Grandparents'
- Family Holidays
- 'Mother /Child Bond'
- Childhood Pain
- The Death of Lady
- 'Soldiering On'
- 'Romantic Holidays'
- 'On the roof'
- Always wear clean shoes
- 'Family Tree'
- The importance of poise
- 'Growing up with grandparents'
- Love & Romance >
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- My Wedding
- My Funeral
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- Contact Me
'Why do birds sing?'

Are you a morning person? I am. Every day, I set the alarm for 7am and get up gladly, even though I’ve no compulsion to do so if I chose not to; being retired. Then without fail, I sing in the shower. This morning practice of mine has remained with me throughout my life and irritates my sister Mary no end whenever we go off for the weekend in Scarborough and share some self-catering apartments. Our Mary believes that all singing should be banned before 10am, and only then engaged in on the strict proviso that the culprit exercising his/her lungs is a ‘good’ singer. Naturally, I remind her what my mother often told me. I tell her that the ability to sing a song either well or badly is neither here nor there and that everyone has the right to sing. Below is one of my favourites by the great Ronnie Ronalde who is the world's finest whistler and imitator of birds: 'In a Monastery Garden.' Enjoy:

Whoever said that ‘good singers’ have been designated as the only warblers to express themselves happily in song? Surely, anyone of any worth has the right to sing? Do not their musical expressions carry every bit as much meaning as the next person in the choir of life? There is no passion in the human soul that doesn’t find itself in music, and once found, surely it cannot be unhealthy or wrong to express it!
I grew up with my mother's morning rendition of her favourite song, 'Far away places'. Whatever the weather or her mood, she never failed to sing it out of tune and out of verse. Whenever I berated her for her inability to hold a tune or remember a line, she would always reply with the same words: 'Everyone has the right to sing, Billy; even those who can't. The woods would be a silent place if no birds sang there except those that sang best!' She was of course right in what she said and I wish she was around now to sing her song. She may not have been able to hold a tune, but she always had a song to sing. Her favourite singer was Vera Lynn; someone in later years who became a friend of mine. Love you, Mum. Miss you lots. Your son,Billy. Enjoy:
I grew up with my mother's morning rendition of her favourite song, 'Far away places'. Whatever the weather or her mood, she never failed to sing it out of tune and out of verse. Whenever I berated her for her inability to hold a tune or remember a line, she would always reply with the same words: 'Everyone has the right to sing, Billy; even those who can't. The woods would be a silent place if no birds sang there except those that sang best!' She was of course right in what she said and I wish she was around now to sing her song. She may not have been able to hold a tune, but she always had a song to sing. Her favourite singer was Vera Lynn; someone in later years who became a friend of mine. Love you, Mum. Miss you lots. Your son,Billy. Enjoy:
All my life while growing up on Windybank Estate in liversedge, West Yorkshire, my mother woukld never let one day pass by before singing bits from a favourite song of hers called, 'The Isle of Innesfree'. This song came from the film 'The Quiet Man' starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. There has never been one Christmas since my childhood when I have not watched this film at home, as have others in the Forde Family. In memory of my loving Mum, I sing this song for her.
https://youtu.be/pKzmf_hZQ14
https://youtu.be/pKzmf_hZQ14

When I was growing up and not yet 10 years old, I became enthralled by a singer/whistler called Ronnie Ronalde. My father, who rarely sang also loved the whistling of Ronnie, who was then described as being the finest whistler in the world. His imitation of British birds was beyond belief. He kindly sent me an autographed book and tape for the honeymoon period me and Sheila spent in Morocco in 2010. Until recently he still lived and was happily whistling away. I include the very first time he stirred my heart and soul with his magical sound: 'If I was a Blackbird.' Enjoy:
I was once asked,” Do you know why birds sing?” Upon replying in the negative, the answer came back, “Birds sing because they have a song to sing.” So, the very next time that anyone knocks your humble offerings in the bath or around the house, simply remind them that you are simply singing 'the song of life.' Who knows, they might even say, "Blow it! You sing and I'll whistle!"
William Forde Copyright: March 12th, 2015.
William Forde Copyright: March 12th, 2015.