LatinosUSA

Today, I am delighted to feature a wonderful blogger with an interesting and eclectic blog that features all sorts of topics, books, and photographs.

You can find Derrick Knight on his blog here: https://derrickjknight.com/

Tell us a bit about Derrick Knight and why you started blogging

Having been born 7 weeks premature in 1942 in the middle of WWII I consider myself lucky to have survived until now. I attended Wimbledon College Jesuit Grammar School where art was not encouraged, so that that has always been a key interest is also fortunate.

As the eldest of five I chose not to go to university but to work to bring money into the family. Art school was similarly ruled out by me.

I began working at Lloyd’s marine insurance in 1960. After the following traumas I switched to social work, progressing to therapeutic counselling at which I was self-employed. Concurrently I also set advanced cryptic crosswords for newspapers and magazines for 20 years

I have been married four times, three to the same woman – Jackie. My two other wives both died; the first, Vivien, leaving me aged 22 a single parent of a toddler. Jessica, the third, died   after thirty years. I was reintroduced to Jackie in 2009 and we have been together ever since. I had five children, the eldest having predeceased me.

I played cricket and rugby until I was 45 and ran 18 marathons in my fourth decade.

My youngest daughter persuaded me to join Facebook but I didn’t activate it until I decided to do so as a way of keeping in touch with my now rather scattered offspring. I began this in 2012. Very soon friends and relatives told me I would be more suitable to blogging.

You have the most beautiful garden. Tell us a bit about your work to get it the way it is now and some of your interesting garden finds

When we arrived in 2014 the garden had not been touched for some years. North Breeze, next door, had been abandoned ten years before. A lonicera hedge had supposedly divided the gardens at one time; there was otherwise no fence. The lonicera and generations of brambles had leapt into our plot and rooted like bouncing balls overrunning our land.

I spent several years on clearing a division between us and next door, while Jackie worked on scouring our paths and planting where she could.

Although the basic layout was here the passages through were overgrown. One path we did not know was there so when we discovered it we named it Heligan, as the lost gardens in Cornwall. Jackie was standing on this path when she gathered these daffodils. The bed head visible was screwed to the birch trunk which also had a washing line embedded in it.

We laid some new paths ourselves.

Much rubbish was buried in the garden and had to be dug out before the land could be reused. What is now the Rose Garden  contained many sunken paving stones and even a buried bath complete with taps. As far as we could tell it was a kind of kitchen area.

The Back Drive had never contained borders but was overgrown with thick brambles. Jackie disappeared to the far end of it intent on weeding, but soon gave up until we laid it with gravel – as we did with many of the paths.

For some years we used it to burn clippings and other green refuse, piles of which soared above me.

The two slideshows below feature photographs of Derrick’s and his wife, Jackie’s, garden which they have transformed over the years.

Click on the slideshows to view the photographs.

What sort of books do you like to read and share about on your blog?

My reading is fairly eclectic, mostly fiction, history, and biography.

My most enjoyable reading is the fiction, regardless of length as long as it is creative. I have enjoyed all the great, lengthy, Russian classics and even Vikram Seth’s ‘A Suitable Boy’ which is possibly the longest of all.  A Victorian favourite is Elizabeth Gaskell. Short stories fill small spaces of time – currently I am rereading Maupassant and have read many of Balzac’s.

History has covered all world countries and events.  Winston Churchill’s ‘My Early Life’ is an example of autobiography which also covers history, including the Boer War. I might cover Thomas Packenham’s history of that conflict for WordPress. I read it before my blogging days.

A pleasantly surprising series of autobiography was by Dirk Bogarde.

What sort of camera do you use for your photography? A cell phone or do you have a digital or other camera?

All photographs before 2009 were produced with film cameras, the earliest being my grandfather’s old Kodak Box Brownie; I progressed through the Kodak Retinette 1b to the Olympus OM2 that died in 2008. None of those early cameras had any automatic facilities, for example I always had to check the distance with a rangefinder. I had long since forgotten anything I knew about speeds etc when, in 2009 I began with a digital Canon point and shoot because I needed immediate results to put on my blogs which began this year. I soon bought my second hand Canon EOS 5D Mark II. I have used it every day since 2009. I keep it on automatic.

I don’t even know how to use my cellphone camera.

Derrick’s favourite photographs

Set out below are six of Derrick’s favourite photographs and a bit about them. Derrick did point out that choosing favourite photographs was a difficult task.

What Derrick says about this photograph: «This was taken with my Grandfather’s second hand box brownie in our maisonette garden in 1957. It is of my mother and sister, Jacqueline in the first garden I ever tended. I chose it for the memories but also because it is an example of how the camera can see more than the photographer. Our downstairs neighbour appears at his window – only seen when I came to print the picture.»

What Derrick says: «Here is one from 1968. I printed in A3 size and it hangs opposite the loo seat downstairs. This was a scene from a very happy holiday. Only later did I see the potential for a visual pun.»

What Derrick says: «This little girl was the bride’s niece at a friend’s wedding. She was out on her feet at the end of the day. I don’t generally sell pictures, but I have sold one or two of this one.»

What Derrick says: «This is a crop from a portrait of our daughter. I printed it in our kitchen at Streatham. The size was A3+. It was in the hall at Newark, but got lost in the subsequent move. (first picture)
Here is another crop of a portrait. I like the focus on hands and foot and the flow of the dress. (second picture)»

What Derrick says: «I am sure you can imagine I have many photographs of Jackie spanning the decades. This celebrates our becoming reunited after almost 40 years apart.»

Review of Perceptions by Ivor Steven and Derrick Knight

I am a fan of Ivor Steven’s poetry and also of Derrick Knight’s photography so this combined collection of poetry and photography is a real treat.

Ivor depicts everyday events and life through a lens of beautiful and uplifting words which is a marvelous talent. Derrick captures everyday life in an unusual and special way. I really enjoyed these combinations.

A few examples of the poetry with descriptions of the accompanying photographs:

Sunset couple on bench – a gorgeous photograph of the sun setting over water and flooding the world with golden light with a silhouette of a loving couple on a bench.

The words: A Rainbow Dance
«At the end of the rainbow
We shall dance and glow
On nature’s golden plateau»

Autumn woodland – a wonderful photograph of a wooded area during autumn which the trees are a variety of yellows, greens and auburns. There is a large bush, in shades of beige, in the forefront.

An extract from Connected:
«up there
under draconian dark clouds
I see a blue moon rising
gracefully shrouding the horizon»

Ferns and grasses – a glorious picture of ferns and grasses adorned in shades of green and yellow, dancing in the sunlight.

Extract from The Ancient Fern Survives:
«selfish, unopened minds remain numbed
False eyelashes are heavy and closed
Botoxed lips are silent and sealed
And elephant ears have been pegged out of sight»

This book is a special combination of visual and literary delights.

Purchase Perceptions, A collaboration of poems and photographs from Ivor Steven and Derrick Knight from Amazon USA here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1387487302/

And from Amazon UK here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Perceptions-Ivor-Steven/dp/1387487302/

About Robbie Cheadle

South African author, photographer, and artist, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated seventeen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, written and illustrated four poetry books and written and illustrated one celebration of cake and fondant art book with recipes. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.

Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.

You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/

Social Media Links

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/robbiecheadle.bsky.social
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVyFo_OJLPqFa9ZhHnCfHUA
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15584446.Robbie_Cheadle
TSL Publications: https://tslbooks.uk/product-tag/robbie-cheadle/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Robbie-Cheadle/author/B01N9J62GQ
Unsplash profile: https://unsplash.com/@r_cheadle