Historical, RAF, Scotland, World War6 Comments

The First Air Raid on Mainland Britain in WW2

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

Wartime Memories No.3 German bomber of the period – (Heinkel He 111 H) CHRONOLOGICAL SEQUENCE OF THE EARLY LUFTWAFFE AIR RAIDS *This shows a deliberate change in German bombing policy, from attacking air defences to trying to demoralizing the civilian population. DATES OF AIR RAIDS ON EDINBURGH DURING WW2 WHAT I REMEMBER When, as a 5 year old, I was ‘helping’ my father to apply criss-crosses of Scrim (adhesive tape) to the windows of our North facing second floor tenement flat in the Bonnington area of Leith. (Scrim tape applied to the inside of a window was used to protect … Continue reading The First Air Raid on Mainland Britain in WW2

Historical, RAF, Scotland, Wartime Memories12 Comments

I was there!

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

Wartime Memories 2 History records that, for a period of eight months, from September 7th 1940 until May 11th 1941, Nazi Germany subjected Great Britain to a campaign of, intense bombing: Blitzkrieg. During which time the Luftwaffe carried out continuous air raids on London and other strategic targets across the length and breadth of the U.K. What is not so well known though is that almost 11 months before that, on 16th October 1939, the first air raid on the U.K. had already taken place and that it had happened in Scotland. * 1.1 THE INCIDENT I came into this … Continue reading I was there!

General, Historical, Old Edinburgh, RAF, Scotland, Wartime Memories, World War12 Comments

Guns Galore!

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

Wartime Memories No.1 Not long after the end of the Second World War, under the starlit sky of an early autumn morning, a chuffing, puffing old railway engine, enveloped in a cloud of steam, shunted a clanking train of open topped freight wagons into the railway siding just to the North of Bonnington Toll in Edinburgh. With the wagon’s brakes secured, the engine steamed off to get on with its next task, leaving the sidings deserted, eerily silent and hidden from view behind the high random rubble stone wall that borders Newhaven Road. Later, with the sun creeping over the … Continue reading Guns Galore!

General, Historical, Old Edinburgh12 Comments

An introduction to stereo photography

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

The Edinburgh Life Magazine is currently publishing a series of black and white Aerial Photographs taken in 1930 and comparing them to a series of my colour photos taken, from the same point of view, in 1993. This is the third and final post supplementing these articles. The information provided and opinions expressed here are the author’s personal interpretation of the featured events he has accessed. It must also be recognised that modern research methods are continuously finding and re-interpreting new older information. 1930 Edinburgh photograph on the left, and the same location photographed in 1993. TYPES OF IN-FLIGHT PHOTOGRAPHIC … Continue reading An introduction to stereo photography

Historical, Old Edinburgh, Scotland, Stenlake Books, Uncategorized5 Comments

Old EDINBURGH views from above

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

THE BACKSTORY TO My book – Featured in the Edinburgh Life magazine September/October 2024 Old EDINBURGH: Views from above – Published in 2002 by Stenlake Publishing – http://www.stenlake.co.uk. – Whose editor said that, “Of all the books we have published this one is one of my favourites.” THE 1930 BLACK AND WHITE OBLIQUES In the late 1980’s a quantity of glass plate negatives were found in a Lothian Regional Council building that had formerly housed the offices of the City of Edinburgh Corporation. It was evident that they were fairly old. The images were clearly recognizable as being views of … Continue reading Old EDINBURGH views from above

General, Historical, Scotland5 Comments

Magazine contributions

Change Therapy

Over the last few years, I have contributed a number of articles to Edinburgh’s most prestigious magazine, The Edinburgh Life. 1 The subjects of my articles in this bi-monthly magazine are of a historical nature, specifically areas that I have a keen interest in; old Edinburgh and Leith and Aerial Photography. My first published book was called Old Edinburgh; Views from above – A series of oblique air photos of Edinburgh taken in 1930. Then I went on to publish 3 fictional paperbacks about Sailing in the West of Scotland. These days, as I approach my 90th birthday, in October … Continue reading Magazine contributions

General, Historical8 Comments

Photography rises to new heights!

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

The Edinburgh Life Magazine is currently publishing a series of  black and white Aerial Photographs taken in 1930  and comparing them to a series of my colour photos taken, from the same view point, in 1993 .With this in mind  I offer the following post as a snapshot introduction to the history of Aerial Photography. – Johnny Jones. MAN’S FIRST FLIGHT It was in October 1783 that human beings took the first manned flight. This was done in a tethered hot air balloon i.e. anchored to the ground by ropes. However it was not until, a month later, 21st November … Continue reading Photography rises to new heights!

General, Golf, Historical3 Comments

Dispatch Trophy 1890

Change Therapy

THE BIRTH OF ‘THE BRAIDS’ AND THE DISPATCH TROPHY **Johnny Jones discovers some photographic golfing treasures** A few years ago, while leafing through some old photograph albums piled up on a battered chair in an antique shop, three pages of sepia photographs, showing crowds of people watching golfers, caught the author’s eye. The photographs were all quarter-plate size and apart from the pencilled date of 1890 there were no other identifying marks. However, I did recognise the distinctive clubhouse at the Braid Hills Golf Course, Edinburgh, Scotland and given the number of spectators, it was obvious these photos had been … Continue reading Dispatch Trophy 1890

A Storm in Any Port, Golf, Historical3 Comments

Update

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

No rest for me in this part of the world! The plan was to take things a wee bit easier and enjoy watching the seasons go by from our balcony, while enjoying the simple things in life, like daytime TV and trying to complete the newspaper crossword. Over the past few years, I have been encouraged by my wife, Ann, to tidy out the cupboard which houses hundreds of old photographs, which have been passed to me over the last 80 odd years, and some of these photos have been shared with Peter Bourhill, who owns Edinburgh’s premier magazine, the … Continue reading Update

Historical, Scotland, Uncategorized15 Comments

The Bridge of Sighs – Edinburgh

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

[*Supporting information on my article EDINBURGH’S BRIDGE OF SIGHS in the November/December2022 edition of the Edinburgh Life magazine* by Johnny Jones/ Jack Jones/John A Jones] Hidden and Enigmatic Statue I was born in 1934 and as a child every time my family walked over the Dean Bridge, my father would lift me up to let me see ‘The Little Sailor Boy’. He would tell me that the statue had been put there in memory of a sailor who had committed suicide by jumping off the bridge and that it had been put there to act as a warning to others … Continue reading The Bridge of Sighs – Edinburgh

Golf, Scotland4 Comments

I’ve given up Golf – 4 of 4

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

Now that I have accepted that my last chance of getting a hole in one has gone, all that is left for me to do is clear out my locker, hand in the key and make way for one of the younger, fitter members. However my playing partners and I have managed to spend a good portion of this last year out in the fresh air enjoying the camaraderie of playing the game that has, for so many years, been an important part of our lives. As a non-playing member I can still meet up with and enjoy the company … Continue reading I’ve given up Golf – 4 of 4

Golf, Scotland1 Comment

I’ve given up Golf – 3 of 4

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

I, like my partners, now find that staying on an even keel to play a shot has – bit by bit – become a lottery. Our stance has narrowed significantly, a shoulder turn is almost non-existent, keeping the left arm straight is a no go position, with the inevitable result that we have lost our confidence to strike the ball cleanly. Consequently, the ball no longer flies as far as it once did, to the embarrassing extent that, any of the ground-staff working more than 150 yards ahead of us, now know that our tee shots offer no threat to … Continue reading I’ve given up Golf – 3 of 4

Golf, Scotland1 Comment

I’ve given up Golf – 2 of 4

Johnny Jones - Nonagenarian Author

Most golf books are written with the intention of helping players to get to the top of their game, but here from personal experience I can now reveal what happens to golfers who have gone over their peak, slid down the slippery slope and arrived at the bottom. In thinking back to our decision, we must have felt then that the writing was already on the wall as, during this past year, our gradual descent from grace has become more and more apparent. In some ways our decline was exacerbated by the course closures brought about by Covid, and we … Continue reading I’ve given up Golf – 2 of 4