Man from Grantham area village working on second book of memoirs

A man who lives in Bottesford is writing his second book based on his experiences in the local area, over 20 years after publishing the first.

Phil Meredith, 83, is in the process of writing his second book, which will tell the story of his adult life in the Grantham area and how he reconnected with his current wife after almost six decades apart, having originally met aged 15.

When he was 62 years old, Phil published his first book that detailed his upbringing in Knipton, his account of the village during World War II and his early adult years, covering the period between 1942 and 1962.

Phil's first book sold around 150 copies, and he is in the process of writing a follow-up, although this time he is seeking to cover a period of around 60 years, from 1962 all the way to present day.

With a working title of "Broken Bridges in a Disunited Kingdom", Phil will explore the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, his experiences while working as a foreman, and reconnecting with his wife Pauline.

The couple originally met aged 15 back in 1954, when Phil was on one of his frequent outings from his home in Knipton to Grantham.

Their original first date was at the Granada Cinema in Grantham where Pauline’s father was chief projectionist.

The relationship ended when Pauline went on to marry someone else, moving to South Africa where she lived for 40 years.

Meanwhile, Phil completed his national service and went to work on Vulcan bombers.

Reconnecting in 2012 around sixty years later, Phil and Pauline fell in love again and after just six months, Phil had proposed. They tied the knot in 2013 and have been happily married since.

When they first met Phil told everyone that Pauline was the best looking girl in Grantham and he said that "she still is".

In his new book, Phil will explore his time visiting South Africa with Pauline, as well as the time that he converted a streetsweeper into a plane for Children In Need.

Phil said: "I will be writing about Grantham, which has changed dramatically over the years.”

He said that he had been thinking of writing it even before lockdown but set out work for the second book in 2020.

Phil added: “It’s difficult because I can’t remember like I used to.”

He admitted that he had been finding it difficult so far to to put all of it together and that it was a "massive leap" going from covering 20 year period to 60 years, but would continue to put the book together.