Harlow is 70: Why I Came Here

THIS short piece is dedicated to Kathleen Casey (nee O’Halloran). My mother left her farm in the village of Barefield, County Clare, Republic of Ireland on a cold morning back in 1949. She went to follow her sister Maureen (Hole nee O’Halloran) into the nursing…

FOUR years ago, the Danish Broadcasting Company teamed up with Your Harlow as part of a news item on how Brexit was coming along in the country. They were very pleased when we told them we knew a Dane living here. When we took them…

THE word legendary gets bandied about a bit much these days. So who says that Harlow cyclist Vin Denson is a legend? Well, Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Chris Boardman to name just a few. Vin, now aged 87, was the first British professional to take…

A BLUE plaque has been unveiled at St Mary’s church in Little Parndon in memory of West Indian slave Hester Woodley. In a moving service, Reverend Jokey Poyntz managed to bring together many themes in Hester’s life and legacy. Not only from the eighteenth centre…

THE visit by The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh in October 1957 was quite extensive and felt like a tour of Harlow. As the Harlow Gazette reported, there was a great welcome for the royal couple. The largest crowds were at the Market Square…

Review: Harlow Playhouse: Harlow75 by Matipo Arts IF you wanted to see what a celebration, in the truest sense of the word, of Harlow’s 75 years, should look like, then this was it. This was an hour of fun, pride, joy and laughter held in…

HATFIELD Heath residents are continuing their battle to prevent the demolition of a number of Prisoners of War Camps in the area. A new application has been lodged with Uttlesford District Council for the demolition of 10 of the POW Camp 116 buildings for the…

IT is 78 years since D Day on June 6th, 1944. This is not an anniversary year. The next one will be the eightieth anniversary in 2024. And we are all now aware that there are fewer and fewer veterans. But putting that aside for…

AS we publish our extensive coverage of how Harlow celebrated The Queens Platinum Jubilee, we are impressed how different each celebration was. Westfield is an example. There was not only a community feel but also a celebration of all residents across the ages. Amongst those…

A FEW years ago, YH stumbled across this film of street parties and celebrations in the Great Brays area of Harlow back in June 1977. It looked like a wonderful day and is a little window into how things were celebrated. For many, they or…

THE SCULPTOR Gerda Rubenstein has passed away at the age of 90. Gerda Rubenstein’s work has graced Harlow for many decades. http://www.gerdarubinstein.com/background/ A spokesperson for the Harlow Arts Trust said: We were very saddened to hear that Gerda Rubinstein passed away on Friday 25th March 2022.…

A BOOK that highlights the journey of Irish people from the land of their birth to Harlow has just been re-published. Catherine Dunne’s book: “An Unconsidered People” was first published in 2002. However, last year her publisher told her the book had seen sales increase…

AS we move well into 2022 there’s many things that we can look forward to and there’s two significant events this year that Harlow Council will be helping the Harlow community to celebrate – The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and Harlow’s 75th birthday. Harlow Council is…

FIVE years ago, we interviewed seventy people, asking them the question: “Why did you come to Harlow?” We have plans for a project to mark Harlow’s 75th anniversary (so watch this space). The vital thing about getting people on record is that, sadly, they won’t…

THE latest update of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography was published on Thursday 10 March 2022 and added biographies of 243 men and women who left their mark on the UK, and who died in the year 2018. · Shanghai-born electrical engineer and physicist Sir Charles Kao won the…

HILDA Kelleher, age 88 passed away peacefully on 2nd March at Heffle Court Care Home, Heathfield, East Sussex. A truly wonderful Mum and great family person – warm and witty, sociable and strong, and a good friend. Beloved wife of Des (RIP), and Mother of…