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Jenny Ridd lived at 5 High Street for several years and this book sets out the stories she uncovered about the people connected with the house over nearly 400 years. Most are ordinary folk with special stories, others were more famous, like the Pre Raphaelite painters and poets Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Elizabeth Siddal, and the Georgian diarist Anne Lister, now better known because of the TV series ‘Gentleman Jack.

The collection [of pieces from the excavation of the garden] represents every stage and every owner over the 400-year period during which the house has been occupied [and] tells amazing stories . . . there can be few other such collections for any house in this country. Dr R.G.W. Anderson, then Director of The British Museum

If you could come across these pieces [from the excavation of the garden] complete today you could never form a collection like this. It would cost you a huge amount of money. . . . As broken fragments they’re worth nothing like this, but it’s a great way to learn and even better when you get them for nothing from your garden. John Sandon, presenter and pottery expert, Antiques Roadshow

As the house goes back well over two centuries, it should be reclassified as antique and unique and thus priceless and Grade 1, rather than ordinary. Richard Saville, Sussex Record Society, Historian And Author

2024: ISBN: 978-1-7393444-1-2; Price £15.00

Pett Level, just along the coast from Hastings in East Sussex, has a fascinating past. Geologically, the cliffs at its south western end are the only ones between here and Hythe, and the frequent cliff falls regularly reveal fossils – including those of dinosaur bones and footprints. There is also a former sandstone island (the Toot) which sits incongruously above land which is now below sea level at high tide, whilst the vast beach is partly comprised of a submerged forest that dates back to the Ice Age.
Equally interesting is the way in which the village developed, with a small number of individuals very much shaping what we have today. One – Napoleon Bonaparte – never even set foot here; another was a maverick, self-made businessman; and a third an unremarkable publican whose many descendants would become synonymous with modern-day Pett Level. A further group of artists, sculptors and poets also created a bohemian enclave here between the wars.
Despite all this, Pett Level remains amongst the least known of all the villages on the south east coast. This book explores its rich history and aims to prove that it is well worth seeking out.

2023: ISBN: 978-1-7393444-0-5; Price £18.00

A Changing Shore, An Illustrated Account of Winchelsea Beach by Michael and Ruth Saville, charts the development of this small seaside settlement since the 1930s, when it was called Dogs Hill or ‘thirty-one’ after the nearest Martello Tower. The book covers the coast itself, nearby Camber Castle, the development and silting up of what was known as Smeaton’s Harbour, the loss of the lifeboat Mary Stanford and development of the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve.

The revised edition includes addition information in several of the chapters, including the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and the Mary Stanford lifeboat disaster. In addition, many of the pictures are now in colour.

2023, ISBN 978-0- 9933203-9-2, Price £15.00

The son of a Rye fisherman, Cliff Arkley joined the Merchant Navy at an early age and gradually progressed up the ranks until he held a master’s ticket and a nautical surveyor’s ticket, latterly gaining Fellowship of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers. After a few years working around the UK coast, he started to work abroad, mainly in association with the off-shore oil industry. His recollections range from Africa and South America to Siberia, the Far East and the Caspian littoral countries, with a period living in, and working from, the USA.
Cliff’s recollections cover not just the technical issues, for example moving oil rigs and operational tasks, but also the human side of the industry. This includes the sometimes poor treatment of the sea-going crews by the administrators in large companies and the lack of understanding by desk-bound jobs-worths of the realities of operating in often difficult political regimes. Cliff has visited more than 80 countries and worked in over 40 of them.
Within the book are described situations, often dramatic, that are both tragic and comical, as Cliff describes some of the characters and incidents that he has encountered in his 50 years in the industry. In addition, he has been in a position to critique many types of society. At times a little near the knuckle, his comments are perceptive, to the point and honest.
For a picture of life in the Merchant Navy and the off-shore oil industry over the last fifty years, this is the book to read.

2021 ISBN 078-0-9933203-7-9-8 Price £19.99

Many are familiar with Dungeness, but few are as aware of the charms of its neighbouring coastal villages. At the turn of the twentieth century, anyone who was anyone was a member of Littlestone Golf Club. Many, including serving and former Prime Ministers, members of the judiciary and even a Hollywood starlet, bought second homes here just to play the course. In contrast, Greatstone – much of which was still under the sea in the 19th century – was marketed as the New Playground of Kent in the 1930s. Both these villages were in the invasion front line in World War II;
and Greatstone was at the forefront of pioneering work that predated the invention of radar, also playing a pivotal role in the remarkable Pipe Line Under the Ocean (PLUTO) project.

Whilst a glittering future was mapped out – plans included a pier at Littlestone – the area did not take off in the way envisaged; although it was not the quiet backwater that one of the Great Train Robbers had hoped when he tried unsuccessfully to find anonymity here. This is the fourth book by Keith Swallow, the author of The Book of Syn, Much Drinking in the Marsh and Nanny Goat Island. It also covers the villages of Lade and Lydd-on-Sea and traces the history of this unique part of Romney Marsh and the individuals who have shaped its development.

2021 ISBN: 978-0-9933203-6-1 Price £15.00

On 6 June 1944, Bert White, fisherman, publican and Head Launcher of Hastings Lifeboat – a man out of the ordinary, insisted against petty official opposition to name his son ‘D-Day’ because he was born in the early hours of that momentous day.

The boy ‘Dee-Day’, as the name was finally registered, came to share his father’s fervour for helping and serving others wherever and whenever he could, which has informed and characterised his life.

Dee-Day’s tale is a captivating story of what life was like growing up in the poor but proud fishing community of Hastings Old Town after the war. It makes compelling reading because many of the estimable social values he describes still endure in that community, despite their fading away elsewhere under a tide of consumerism and soulless technology.

Profits on the sale of this book go to the MacBean and Bishop Trust for the maintenance of the two historic lifeboats on display in Hastings.

2020 ISBN 978-0-9933203-5-4 Price £10.00

Few forget their first visit to the shingle outpost of Dungeness. To the uninitiated, its stark beauty is totally unexpected in a location only two hours from central London. So much has been said of it that it has become cliched: “unique”; “magical”; “a special place”; “Britain’s only desert”. All these descriptions hold true except for the last – which is no more than an urban myth. But all this would have been totally different had plans to build a vast new ferry terminal, offering the shortest route from London to Paris, come to fruition.

In his third book, Keith Swallow, the author of The Book of Syn and Much Drinking in the Marsh, tells the story of the development of this special corner of Kent, from the early settlers, whose only source of milk was the animals that they kept untethered on the shingle, to the current day. It explores the hardships of those who have earned a living from fishing the waters here, the coming of the railway, wartime fortification, nature conservation, lifeboat and rescue services, the construction of the power stations – and exploding goats!

2019 ISBN 978-0-9933203-4-7 Price £15.00

Bruce Nicol has been writing poetry for about 60 years. This volume includes poems from across that period. They range from the humorous to the deeply serious, but all show a richness and understanding of language that many would
envy.

The title Between Belief and Delusion gives a clue to Bruce’s patterns of thought. While having little time for those who would rule our lives on the basis of politics or organised religion, he has a deep concern for humanity and individual freedom, combined with a certain scepticism about the meaning of life.

The book is divided into sections, such as ‘Development of a Species’, ‘Conflict’, ‘Death’ and ‘Musings’, as well as ‘Humour’ and ‘Love’. In all the sections Bruce’s concern and humour come through, prompting the reader to think about the issues he raises.

2019 ISBN 978-0-9933203-3-0 Price £12.50

This book, by David Breakell and Martin King, is about the war memorial at Pett in East Sussex. It gives a brief biography of each of those killed in World War I whose names are listed on the memorial. It lists those killed in World War II and describes the new plaque added with the names of others from both world wars.  It also tells the story of the setting up of the memorial after the first world war and of the more recent restoration in time for the centenary of the 1918 Armistice.

2019 ISBN 978-0-9933203-2-3 Price £12.00