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Memories of Christmas past: Preparing for Christmas

By ivor »

Why do the memories of Christmas past always seem more enjoyable than the expectations of Christmas present?

Could it be because Christmas is a magical time of year for Children or is because its a time when families get together?

When I look back on the Christmases when yours truly was a child they were indeed magical.

Of course things were different then and I was a young man with what I thought was a bright future ahead of me.

With a large guest list a typical Christmas at Bigun Hall was a grandiose affair that required an awful lot of effort.

The Christmas preparations actually started well before the big day indeed the first sign of Christmas was seen in the kitchen with the baking of the base for the Christmas cake.

Not only was there the main cake to bake but the most important guests were also given their own miniature cake and Christmas pudding to take home. Of course all the cakes were mixed and decorated by hand to a traditional recipe.

The Christmas puddings and mincemeat used to be made in the large porcelain bowl that also doubled up as a bath for the youngsters indeed I doubt if there are many who can say their Christmas pudding was made in what used to be their bath!

A few days before the 25th my father would receive a call from a local wholesaler informing him that the first delivery of real trees had arrived and asking him to visit the yard to select one.

It was a honour to be invited to choose a tree before they went on public sale and showed the importance with which the family were held.

Only the best tree would do and it often took a long while to choose a suitable specimen which would be delivered later that day in a van.

Looking back there was so much to do in the main house.

Every year a small bar would be set up in the grey drawing room filled with alcoholic beverages and several choice bottles from the wine cellar.

My father was a keen amateur winemaker and Christmas was used to showcase some of his latest concoctions some of which were rather potent.

The turkeys came fresh from Hoppers Farm in Great Kingshill and most enjoyable they were too. Usually we had two turkeys, one for Christmas day and another on Boxing day. They were the largest size that would fit in the oven and often weighed in excess of 20lb each.

With many guests expected some of the unused bedrooms at the Hall would be drafted into service and the feather mattresses aired with an electric bed warmer.

The main drawing room and dining room would be decorated with wonderful garlands made from tissue paper. On the 23rd the tree would be potted up into a large red clay pot and brought indoors.

When you think about it wasn't Christmas an awful lot of work?

Christmas still is a lot of work and maybe those of us who are invited to spend time with others should reflect on all the hard work that has gone into making our time so enjoyable?

Do you have any memories of Christmas that you would like to share with us?

What do you think?

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Comments(125)

fishyfingers says...
8:25pm Tue 13 Dec 11

but you made poor Tiny Tim work on Christmas day didnt you?

ivor says...
8:27pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of fishyfingers at 8:25pm
~
Who is Tiny Tim?

ivor says...
8:27pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of fishyfingers at 8:25pm
~
Who is Tiny Tim?

helloivor says...
8:36pm Tue 13 Dec 11

ivor, have you never read Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol...
I thought that Charles Dickens would be one of your childhood friends, according to my best estimate of your age...

(Tiny Tim is the clerk's son)

ivor says...
8:39pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of helloivor at 8:36pm
~
Indeed I have just found out!
~
I can assure you that I would never have made Tiny Tim work on Christmas day.
~
Why do people think that I am some kind of Ogre? What did I do to give them that impression?

ivor says...
8:39pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of helloivor at 8:36pm
~
Indeed I have just found out!
~
I can assure you that I would never have made Tiny Tim work on Christmas day.
~
Why do people think that I am some kind of Ogre? What did I do to give them that impression?

Alberto The Great says...
9:45pm Tue 13 Dec 11

QUOTE: "A few days before the 25th my father would receive a call from a local wholesaler informing him that the first delivery of real trees had arrived and asking him to visit the yard to select one."

What were the alternative trees back then???

QUOTE: "It was a honour to be invited to choose a tree before they went on public sale and showed the importance with which the family were held."

Strange, as no records exist of such a family in this county.

QUOTE: "What do you think? "
I think this is yet another fantasy story, much like many others, created by the BFP team....

ivor says...
10:05pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:45pm
~
Oh dear. Oh dear. Oh dear.
~
Why do you have to question everything that I say?
~
Well, there were no alternatives to the real trees back then but I used the word “real” to make it quite clear as modern day readers may have no knowledge of the fact that artificial trees were not that widespread all those years ago.
~
Well, I can assure you that I do exist and the fact that the young Ivor and my good father were given the pick of the crop just shows how respected we were.
~
With regards to your third comment, I think you are wrong with that assumption....

Alberto The Great says...
10:12pm Tue 13 Dec 11

QUOTE: "the first delivery of real trees had arrived"

I think that statement is fairly clear Ivor. Which would indicate that it's a fabricated statement.

QUOTE: "Well, I can assure you that I do exist and the fact that the young Ivor and my good father were given the pick of the crop just shows how respected we were."

This doesn't explain how a "well respected" family doesn't appear in any records of Buckinghamshire. Yet another Fabrication.

QUOTE: "With regards to your third comment, I think you are wrong with that assumption.."

You "think" I am wrong??? You're obviously doubting your own existence Ivor...

ivor says...
10:17pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:12pm
~
No. It does not indicate that it was a fabricated statement indeed it was not a fabricated statement.
~
I can assure you that my family has been in Buckinghamshire for many hundreds of years. There is no need to doubt this fact.
~
I can also assure you that I am not wrong.
~
I don't know why you keep questing me so after all I thought you were my friend?
~
By the way HAPPY CHRISTMAS to you!

ivor says...
10:17pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:12pm
~
No. It does not indicate that it was a fabricated statement indeed it was not a fabricated statement.
~
I can assure you that my family has been in Buckinghamshire for many hundreds of years. There is no need to doubt this fact.
~
I can also assure you that I am not wrong.
~
I don't know why you keep questing me so after all I thought you were my friend?
~
By the way HAPPY CHRISTMAS to you!

Alberto The Great says...
10:23pm Tue 13 Dec 11

I have NEVER claimed to be your friend. This is obviously something else you have imagined.

If the Bigun family has been in Buckinghamshire for many hundreds of years, why do no records show the existence of such a family? Me thinks you tell many lies, and this is yet another one.

Hence, you need to be challenged whenever you write diatribe that purports to be factual.

Liar Liar Liar

ivor says...
10:28pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:23pm
~
Oh, and I thought you were my friend.
~
I can assure you there have been Biguns in Wycombe for hundreds of years. If the Biguns do not exist then how could I have written about a past Christmas at Bigun Hall?
~
You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog.

Alberto The Great says...
10:40pm Tue 13 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:23pm
~
Oh, and I thought you were my friend.
~
I can assure you there have been Biguns in Wycombe for hundreds of years. If the Biguns do not exist then how could I have written about a past Christmas at Bigun Hall?
~
You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog.
Re the comments of ivor at 10:28pm
~
How pathetic....
How unconvincing...
How unoriginal...

ivor says...
10:44pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:40pm
~
But my comments were true.
~
I don't see why you would want to doubt what I say indeed do you not think that Christmas past was better than the prospect of Christmas present?
~
Do you not appreciate all the hard work put in by others so the few can enjoy Christmas?

Alberto The Great says...
11:05pm Tue 13 Dec 11

QUOTE: "Do you not appreciate all the hard work put in by others so the few can enjoy Christmas?"

Your pomposity knows no bounds.

Your comments were not true.

ivor says...
11:09pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 11:05pm
~
I can assure you and all the readers the my comments were correct.
~
I don't think I am pompous am I?

Alberto The Great says...
11:15pm Tue 13 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 11:05pm
~
I can assure you and all the readers the my comments were correct.
~
I don't think I am pompous am I?
You can assure me and all the readers of absolutely nothing Ivor.

Yes, you are pompous, but you have decided to write in that manner in order to provoke.

ivor says...
11:43pm Tue 13 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 11:15pm
~
Well, it seems that nothing I can say will placate you.
~
I note however that it is only you who doubts my word and so far on this blog nobody else has complained. Does that not speak volumes?

A VOTER says...
9:07am Wed 14 Dec 11

Most of us doubt your word. After all, most of what you write is fiction and twaddle.

Maybe we're all bored of you now.

gotanybiscuits? says...
9:58am Wed 14 Dec 11

A VOTER wrote:
Most of us doubt your word. After all, most of what you write is fiction and twaddle. Maybe we're all bored of you now.
The very notion of The Biguns, of Bigun Hall, speaks volumes for generations of inbred pomposity.
End of the line now, though?

Boris1 says...
11:10am Wed 14 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:45pm ~ Oh dear. Oh dear. Oh dear. ~ Why do you have to question everything that I say? ~ Well, there were no alternatives to the real trees back then but I used the word “real” to make it quite clear as modern day readers may have no knowledge of the fact that artificial trees were not that widespread all those years ago. ~ Well, I can assure you that I do exist and the fact that the young Ivor and my good father were given the pick of the crop just shows how respected we were. ~ With regards to your third comment, I think you are wrong with that assumption....
Because what ever you say is pure dribble.

This blog has actually annoyed me. I mean this all sounds wonderfull, something great xmas movies are made but then i realise its just Ivor's lies and his fantasy.

Ivor ok your blogs are funny and they do what there intened to do which annoy people and get evetyone moaning but its christmas you pr!ck stop feeding us with your ****. You actually make my blood boil. Your nothing but a sad, fat perverted old man who like to tell storys to get him self through his sad life.

Merry christmas fcuker and a sh1ty new year.

Boris1 says...
11:16am Wed 14 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:23pm ~ Oh, and I thought you were my friend. ~ I can assure you there have been Biguns in Wycombe for hundreds of years. If the Biguns do not exist then how could I have written about a past Christmas at Bigun Hall? ~ You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog.
What do you mean how can i write about christmas at the bigun hall if i don't exist...because you come up with lies igor thats how.

I feel bad for calling you such bad things ( which i mean by the way) but then you say things like.... You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog. and then i know its all a joke. Fair play to you ogor you've kept it going this long so why not keep it up. You do what you set out to do every time.

A VOTER says...
11:18am Wed 14 Dec 11

I'm with Boris1 on this...
Everything he says is spot on...

Boris1 says...
11:18am Wed 14 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 11:15pm ~ Well, it seems that nothing I can say will placate you. ~ I note however that it is only you who doubts my word and so far on this blog nobody else has complained. Does that not speak volumes?
I think your find half of the buck free press readers doubt it you tw@t but unlike me there trying there best not to rise to it and comment. I however have been weak today.

Boris1 says...
11:23am Wed 14 Dec 11

A VOTER wrote:
I'm with Boris1 on this... Everything he says is spot on...
Thankyou.

I know a lot of people will think what im saying is out of order but its not im just playing a long with igor. I know he wont get offended because this is what he wants. He'll laugh as he reads it and come up with a even more dribble to wind me and everyone up even more.

Oh my god have i become Igor. A sad negetive old man.

I can assure you though i don't get pictures of woman out of magazines and store them in my shed for "shredding"

fishyfingers says...
7:12pm Wed 14 Dec 11

are you giving up smoking for new year ivor

fishyfingers says...
7:12pm Wed 14 Dec 11

are you giving up smoking for new year ivor

Edna_Welthorpe_ says...
10:21pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Boris1 wrote:
ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:45pm ~ Oh dear. Oh dear. Oh dear. ~ Why do you have to question everything that I say? ~ Well, there were no alternatives to the real trees back then but I used the word “real” to make it quite clear as modern day readers may have no knowledge of the fact that artificial trees were not that widespread all those years ago. ~ Well, I can assure you that I do exist and the fact that the young Ivor and my good father were given the pick of the crop just shows how respected we were. ~ With regards to your third comment, I think you are wrong with that assumption....
Because what ever you say is pure dribble.

This blog has actually annoyed me. I mean this all sounds wonderfull, something great xmas movies are made but then i realise its just Ivor's lies and his fantasy.

Ivor ok your blogs are funny and they do what there intened to do which annoy people and get evetyone moaning but its christmas you pr!ck stop feeding us with your ****. You actually make my blood boil. Your nothing but a sad, fat perverted old man who like to tell storys to get him self through his sad life.

Merry christmas fcuker and a sh1ty new year.
What an unpleasant you are.

Edna_Welthorpe_ says...
10:28pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Thank you Ivor for this much longed-for blog.
.
Seems like you spent a lot of time below stairs to know precisely what went on in the kitchen. What sort of presents did you get?
.
More memories of Bigun Hall are in order.
.
I awoke to coal if I was good and charcoal if I was bad.
.
This is just a flying visit... and now I must fly.

Edna_Welthorpe_ says...
10:29pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Thank you Ivor for this much longed-for blog.
.
Seems like you spent a lot of time below stairs to know precisely what went on in the kitchen. What sort of presents did you get?
.
More memories of Bigun Hall are in order.
.
I awoke to coal if I was good and charcoal if I was bad.
.
This is just a flying visit... and now I must fly.

ivor says...
10:34pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of A VOTER at 9:07am
~
But every word in this blog is true.
~
I think there are a lot of people who are not bored with me....

ivor says...
10:34pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of gotanybiscuits? at 9:58am
~
I can't help it if I came from a privileged family.
~
As you say it is the end of the line unless I can find a wife very soon.
~
What a terrible shame to think that all that went before me may come to an abrupt end very soon. Oh dear....

ivor says...
10:35pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:10am
~
I think you should apologise for the last sentence in your comment as it was not a very pleasant thing to say.

ivor says...
10:35pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:16am
~
I can assure you that everything in this blog is true.

ivor says...
10:35pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of A VOTER at 11:18am
~
Why do you despise me so much?
~
What did I do to you?

ivor says...
10:35pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:18am
~
Well, I think I am in tune with the silent majority and so long as they are on my side then I am bound to win through....

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:23am
~
I am anything but sad and negative....

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:23am
~
I am anything but sad and negative....

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:23am
~
I am anything but sad and negative....

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 11:23am
~
I am anything but sad and negative....

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of fishyfingers at 7:12pm
~
Thank you for your valued comment.

ivor says...
10:36pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of fishyfingers at 7:12pm
~
Thank you for your valued comment.

ivor says...
10:37pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Edna_Welthorpe_ at 10:21pm
~
Thank you for your support. It was a very unpleasant thing that Boris1 said about me but I shall forgive him....

ivor says...
10:37pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Edna_Welthorpe_ at 10:21pm
~
Thank you for your support. It was a very unpleasant thing that Boris1 said about me but I shall forgive him....

ivor says...
10:37pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Edna_Welthorpe_ at 10:21pm
~
Thank you for your support. It was a very unpleasant thing that Boris1 said about me but I shall forgive him....

ivor says...
10:38pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Edna_Welthorpe_ at 10:29pm
~
I was going to cover the presents and Christmas Day in next Tuesday's bog but I am having second thoughts considering the pasting that I have received over this blog....
~
Would any of the other readers like more reminiscences of a typical Christmas at Bigun Hall?
~
I hope you drop by my blog again soon!

Morag says...
11:15pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Sorry, Ivor - as you say Christmas is an awful lot of work and I haven't had time for our midweek chat. I have been very busy shopping and cooking in preparation for my guests.
~
Did your mother do all the cooking or did she have "help"?
~
Where was the Christmas tree yard - perhaps some of the other readers will remember it? I used to live near a Christmas tree plantation and ours used to come from there. Although I do remember going to the market at Aylesbury one year and the excitement of getting one there. It wasn't in Market Square but there used to be another one (or maybe it was an extension of it?) where Friars Square is now. My memory is hazy - perhaps someone can help me out?
~
You said "I was going to cover the presents and Christmas Day in next Tuesday's bog"..... is that a prelude to the annual blog from the bog? Surely there is somewhere more comfy you could write it, what with such a big house and everything?
~
And yes, I would like more reminiscences but would like to hear more about your family rather than the presents. Did you have any sibllings? How many of you gathered for Christmas? Who were all the guests that came to stay? Did you all go to church?

ivor says...
11:46pm Wed 14 Dec 11

Re the comments of Morag at 11:15pm
~
Hello Morag, I'm sorry to hear that you have been lumbered with all the work for Christmas indeed that was the very topic of this blog!
~
I don't think the other readers will remember the yeard where we viewed the trees as was it was not open to the general public and we were very privileged to be allowed to choose our tree before everyone else.
~
Indeed I will be writing a “blog from the bog” and it will be at my usual time of 3pm on Christmas Day. I was going to do the next in my reminiscence series next Tuesday but I am having second thoughts now.
~
Unfortunately I did not have any brothers or sisters, I am the last of the Bigun line and unless I can have Children myself soon I fear the Biguns will be no more.
~
There were quite a few of us gathered for Christmas however visitors used to drop in for a chat and to exchange presents then leave so not everyone stayed for the main lunch. If I decide to write my blog on what happened on a typical Christmas Day then I will cover all these points.

Morag says...
2:30pm Thu 15 Dec 11

I know it was late last night, but still some unanswered questions!
.
“Did your mother do all the cooking or did she have "help"?”
.
“Did you all go to church?”
.
You say that there were quite a few of you for Christmas and the guest bedrooms were aired … but who were all these people? I come from a small family and it was always just the four of us for Christmas so I am fascinated by these large gatherings :-)
.
Oh, and I still want to know about this Christmas Tree yard that only your family had access to. Surely if it is a local business then we will have heard of it? Might trigger some more memories…

Edna_Welthorpe_ says...
5:19pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Morag wrote:
I know it was late last night, but still some unanswered questions!
.
“Did your mother do all the cooking or did she have "help"?”
.
“Did you all go to church?”
.
You say that there were quite a few of you for Christmas and the guest bedrooms were aired … but who were all these people? I come from a small family and it was always just the four of us for Christmas so I am fascinated by these large gatherings :-)
.
Oh, and I still want to know about this Christmas Tree yard that only your family had access to. Surely if it is a local business then we will have heard of it? Might trigger some more memories…
I'm surprised Bigun Hall didn't have its own reserve of home-grown Christmas trees. This yard does sound VERY sketchy, are you sure you're not mis-remembering it, Ivor? Do you remember what the trees were dressed with? I recall vividly starring into Christmas trees as a child thinking they were most beautiful things and why didn't we have them all year round? Of course, I didn't have to sweep the pine needles.
.
I'm very intrigued about the staff of Bigun Hall. I recall a previous blog about breakfasts in which you mention you had third helpings of a 'full English' served in a dining room.
.
& I'd be very interested to know which Church the Biguns went to, and whether Ivor still attends or has any religious beliefs. Heck, that would be an interesting and endlessly controversial blog.
.
On a sombre note, it makes me sad, especially at this jovial time of year, that an already lonely and vulnerable man desperately trying to reach out to the world must spend his crepuscular evenings reading and replying to what is essentially hate mail on here. I implore other posters to lighten up or shut up if all they have to offer is the character assassination of an essentially harmless man stoically facing the end of one of Wycombe's silent great families.

alterego says...
6:28pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Who is Tiny Tim? Philistine!

Alberto The Great says...
6:51pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Edna_Welthorpe is great!

Edna, your skill with the pen is far greater than my own. You manage to cut through so much with your sublime wit. I admire you.

OK, ‘tis the season of good will to all men, and possibly fictional characters too. So I will stop my tirade of pointing out flaws in these embellished works of fiction, I will stop pointing out the lies, I will cease challenging the mendacities and falsehoods. Until 2012.

So Ivor… Knock your sock off… Let’s have a belter of a story about Bigun Hall, and the Bigun family at Christmas. But please don’t let us down. Make sure it includes the maximum amount of seasonal poppycock and hogwash… Include all the usual references to imaginary events, places and people. Make this seasonal blog the most overstated one of 2011…

Morag says...
7:45pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Alberto The Great wrote:
Edna_Welthorpe is great! Edna, your skill with the pen is far greater than my own. You manage to cut through so much with your sublime wit. I admire you. OK, ‘tis the season of good will to all men, and possibly fictional characters too. So I will stop my tirade of pointing out flaws in these embellished works of fiction, I will stop pointing out the lies, I will cease challenging the mendacities and falsehoods. Until 2012. So Ivor… Knock your sock off… Let’s have a belter of a story about Bigun Hall, and the Bigun family at Christmas. But please don’t let us down. Make sure it includes the maximum amount of seasonal poppycock and hogwash… Include all the usual references to imaginary events, places and people. Make this seasonal blog the most overstated one of 2011…
Has Ivor only got one leg then? That would explain the walking disorder.
~
Alberto, you remind me of someone, hmmm....

Alberto The Great says...
8:27pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Morag - You remind me of someone too...

hmmmm.....

Morag says...
11:29pm Thu 15 Dec 11

Alberto The Great wrote:
Morag - You remind me of someone too... hmmmm.....
Thought so :-)

Alberto The Great says...
12:42am Fri 16 Dec 11

Morag wrote:
Alberto The Great wrote:
Morag - You remind me of someone too... hmmmm.....
Thought so :-)
But was it me?

Boris1 says...
9:21am Fri 16 Dec 11

Ivors lack of responce goes to show again how full of hot air he is. The minute someone finds the floor in his fantasy blogs he quickly writes another one. He does this week after week. Not once ever has he answered a question when someone catchs him out all he says it i think your find im right and you can trust my words hahahahahaha. Erm no thats not what people ask, you tw@t.

I'm sorry to the readers who had to read my nasty comments and i take it back....who am i kidding i meant it. Ivor is full of sh1t and you all know it.

I know he wont reply to this as he quickly moved on to another blog or he's in his shed with his cut out knocking one out.

Have a good day

Lawrence Linehan says...
4:07pm Fri 16 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:23pm ~ Oh, and I thought you were my friend. ~ I can assure you there have been Biguns in Wycombe for hundreds of years. If the Biguns do not exist then how could I have written about a past Christmas at Bigun Hall? ~ You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog.
The Bucks Record Society has published the 1798 Muster Roll for the County of Bucks – this is a list of able bodied males in the county between the ages of 15 and 60 capable of acting in a military capacity. The names are listed by parish and occupation within it. Which page and which parish shows the existence of Biguns?

Lawrence Linehan says...
4:13pm Fri 16 Dec 11

Alberto The Great wrote:
Morag - You remind me of someone too... hmmmm.....
Hmmmmm.....

ivor says...
12:06am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Morag at 2:30pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
Of course it took more then one person to prepare all the food. My wonderful mother used to supervise and give out the orders while the “do-ers” did all the doing.
~
Some of us went to church while some did not.
~
The guests were mostly members of my family however neighbours, friends and business associates of my father used to call over the festive season from Christmas Eve onwards.
~
The yard where the Christmas trees were displayed was private and only open to a select few before the trees were sent to go on sale.

ivor says...
12:06am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Morag at 2:30pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
Of course it took more then one person to prepare all the food. My wonderful mother used to supervise and give out the orders while the “do-ers” did all the doing.
~
Some of us went to church while some did not.
~
The guests were mostly members of my family however neighbours, friends and business associates of my father used to call over the festive season from Christmas Eve onwards.
~
The yard where the Christmas trees were displayed was private and only open to a select few before the trees were sent to go on sale.

ivor says...
12:06am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Morag at 2:30pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
Of course it took more then one person to prepare all the food. My wonderful mother used to supervise and give out the orders while the “do-ers” did all the doing.
~
Some of us went to church while some did not.
~
The guests were mostly members of my family however neighbours, friends and business associates of my father used to call over the festive season from Christmas Eve onwards.
~
The yard where the Christmas trees were displayed was private and only open to a select few before the trees were sent to go on sale.

ivor says...
12:07am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Edna_Welthorpe_ at 5:19pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
Indeed we do have a few Christmas trees on the Bigun Hall estate however we used to buy a cut tree in rather then destroy one of our home grown trees.
~
I still have the old Christmas Tree dressings in a box in one of the disused bedrooms at the Hall. They were lovely glass baubles, proper lights and lovely silver tinsel.
~
Indeed I was lucky enough to enjoy a “full English” in the dining room. How privileged I was....
~
The Biguns have been associated with several churches over the years, and they played a key role in at least two prominent Churches still standing today.
~
I am not worried if certain readers decide to write awful replies to my blog, I guess we should feel pity for them....

ivor says...
12:07am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of alterego at 6:28pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
I can't help it if I don't know who Tiny Tim was indeed it just shows how my educational standards have deteriorated.

ivor says...
12:08am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 6:51pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
I can assure you that I am not a fictional character!
~
Yes, maybe I will write that blog about a typical Christmas at Bigun Hall, I will see....

ivor says...
12:08am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Morag at 7:45pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
No, I still have both my legs!
~
Who do you think Alberto is? KentP possibly?

ivor says...
12:08am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:27pm
~
But who could Morag be?

Alberto The Great says...
12:08am Sat 17 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Morag at 2:30pm on Thu 15 Dec 11
~
Of course it took more then one person to prepare all the food. My wonderful mother used to supervise and give out the orders while the “do-ers” did all the doing.
~
Some of us went to church while some did not.
~
The guests were mostly members of my family however neighbours, friends and business associates of my father used to call over the festive season from Christmas Eve onwards.
~
The yard where the Christmas trees were displayed was private and only open to a select few before the trees were sent to go on sale.
I was tempted, but I resisted...

ivor says...
12:08am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Boris1 at 9:21am
~
I did not respond last night because I was busy.

ivor says...
12:09am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:07pm
~
Where can I download the 1798 Muster Roll?
~
Around that time I believe that my ancestor Heeza Bigun was in residency at the Hall....

ivor says...
12:22am Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 12:08am
~
Tempted to do what?

Alberto The Great says...
10:29am Sat 17 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 12:08am
~
Tempted to do what?
Tempted to respond...

ivor says...
4:42pm Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:29am
~
Well, respond then. But make sure that you do not use rude words or say anything too offend me....

Sanders the Telephone Butler says...
5:01pm Sat 17 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:07pm ~ Where can I download the 1798 Muster Roll? ~ Around that time I believe that my ancestor Heeza Bigun was in residency at the Hall....
Ha the man who thinks the word SEX! 'besmirches the purity of his blog' is doing dirty double meanings again.

ivor says...
5:03pm Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Sanders the Telephone Butler at 5:01pm
~
Oh dear, we haven't seen that terrible three letter word for quite a while now.
~
Once again my pure and decent blog has been defiled now the word has re-appeared....

Sanders the Telephone Butler says...
5:07pm Sat 17 Dec 11

SEX!
SEX!
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(HOW'S ABOUT THAT FOR A BIT OF DEFILEMENT?)

Sanders the Telephone Butler says...
5:08pm Sat 17 Dec 11

Your blog is stiff (no pun intended) with dirt, sniggers and dirty double meanings.

ivor says...
5:10pm Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Sanders the Telephone Butler at 5:07pm
~
Oh, you naughty person!
~
Once was bad enough but many times is just too much. I may well need a lay down to recover....

ivor says...
5:10pm Sat 17 Dec 11

Re the comments of Sanders the Telephone Butler at 5:08pm
~
I can assure you that my blog is intended to be clean an pure, I can't help it if people read in meaning that were never intended....

Lawrence Linehan says...
4:25pm Sun 18 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:07pm ~ Where can I download the 1798 Muster Roll? ~ Around that time I believe that my ancestor Heeza Bigun was in residency at the Hall....
It's available in book form in Wycombe Reference Library - you must have been there when diligently researching your building blogs.

ivor says...
8:08pm Sun 18 Dec 11

Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:25pm
~
Thank you for that information, I shall take a look.
~
I have visited the Reference Library a couple of times recently however most of the facts and research for my “buildings of Wycombe” blogs comes from the library at Bigun Hall which is extensively stocked with many rare and highly valuable works on the history of Wycombe some of which are nearly 200 years old.

Alberto The Great says...
9:36pm Sun 18 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:25pm
~
Thank you for that information, I shall take a look.
~
I have visited the Reference Library a couple of times recently however most of the facts and research for my “buildings of Wycombe” blogs comes from the library at Bigun Hall which is extensively stocked with many rare and highly valuable works on the history of Wycombe some of which are nearly 200 years old.
OK... My resistance is gone...

What a complete load of utter bullsh*t and b*ll*cks.

Ivor, you are a w@nker of the highest order.

ivor says...
10:11pm Sun 18 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:36pm
~
Bit its true! I have visited the reference library several times recently and Bigun Hall has an extensive catalogue of rare and valuable works some of which are nearly 200 years old and to replace them would cost many thousands of pounds. I have books in my collection that even the British Library does not have!
~
Why do you doubt me?

Lawrence Linehan says...
1:28pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 4:25pm
~
Thank you for that information, I shall take a look.
~
I have visited the Reference Library a couple of times recently however most of the facts and research for my “buildings of Wycombe” blogs comes from the library at Bigun Hall which is extensively stocked with many rare and highly valuable works on the history of Wycombe some of which are nearly 200 years old.
Can you give us the titles of some of these works?

Alberto The Great says...
1:53pm Mon 19 Dec 11

He will find a limp reason not to answer...

ImpeturbableLawrence says...
6:52pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 12:08am
~
Tempted to do what?
RESPOND moron.

ivor says...
8:06pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 1:28pm
~
I would prefer not to after all if it got around that I had some of these books no doubt I would be put under pressure to given them over to the nation!

ivor says...
8:06pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 1:53pm
~
I never come up with limp reasons!

ivor says...
8:06pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of ImpeturbableLawrence at 6:52pm
~
Yes, I gather that now!

ivor says...
8:07pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of ImpeturbableLawrence at 6:52pm
~
Yes, I gather that now!

Alberto The Great says...
8:08pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Lawrence Linehan at 1:28pm
~
I would prefer not to after all if it got around that I had some of these books no doubt I would be put under pressure to given them over to the nation!
Limp Reason

Alberto The Great says...
8:09pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 1:53pm
~
I never come up with limp reasons!
But I can assure you that you have just given a very limp reason.

ivor says...
8:10pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:08pm
~
Not at all! I am beginning to wish that I had never mentioned the books in the library at Bigun Hall. Sometimes its best to keep thing under wraps rather than spouting on about them.

ivor says...
8:10pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:08pm
~
Not at all! I am beginning to wish that I had never mentioned the books in the library at Bigun Hall. Sometimes its best to keep thing under wraps rather than spouting on about them.

Alberto The Great says...
8:12pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:08pm
~
Not at all! I am beginning to wish that I had never mentioned the books in the library at Bigun Hall. Sometimes its best to keep thing under wraps rather than spouting on about them.
I very much doubt that you ever wish that you had never mentioned any of the fiction that you spout here.

ivor says...
8:14pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:12pm
~
Well, I regret mentioning the library and I can assure you that nothing I write on here is fiction.

Alberto The Great says...
8:16pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:12pm
~
Well, I regret mentioning the library and I can assure you that nothing I write on here is fiction.
I can assure you that the majority of what you write here, outside of the "Buildings of Wycombe" is pure fiction, touted off as true events. Therefore, as always, it's all lies.

I can assure you that my statements are accurate and true.

gotanybiscuits? says...
8:22pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Well, technically, it's typing.
Is it not?

Alberto The Great says...
8:23pm Mon 19 Dec 11

gotanybiscuits? wrote:
Well, technically, it's typing.
Is it not?
LOVL :-D

ivor says...
8:25pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:16pm
~
But all my blogs are based on fact and real events.
~
I can assure you that my statements are accurate and true too!

ivor says...
8:25pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:16pm
~
But all my blogs are based on fact and real events.
~
I can assure you that my statements are accurate and true too!

ivor says...
8:25pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:16pm
~
But all my blogs are based on fact and real events.
~
I can assure you that my statements are accurate and true too!

ivor says...
8:25pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of gotanybiscuits? at 8:22pm
~
Typing is one of the things that I am good at but my fingers are not as nimble not as when I was a youngster.

Alberto The Great says...
8:35pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:16pm
~
But all my blogs are based on fact and real events.
~
I can assure you that my statements are accurate and true too!
That's a contradiction...

Just how can your statements be accurate and true "too!"???

Only one of us can be accurate and true on this topic, and has already been proven countless times, you tell lies, you twist the truth, and fabricate events.

Essentially, you are a pathological liar.

I can assure you that this is true.

ivor says...
8:37pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:35pm
~
I am beginning to get the feeling that you don't like me....

Alberto The Great says...
8:44pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:35pm
~
I am beginning to get the feeling that you don't like me....
Originally, I gave you the benefit of doubt, given all the open protestations by others against you.

However, the others seem to have been correct in almost everything they have said.

ivor says...
9:00pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:44pm
~
Well, I fear you are wrong there. Lots of people hold a different view to you.

Alberto The Great says...
9:13pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:44pm
~
Well, I fear you are wrong there. Lots of people hold a different view to you.
Well, I "know" that you are wrong.

The majority of readers hold the same view as myself... Otherwise, let's hear them speak up for you....

I awiat the sound of silence....

Alberto The Great says...
9:15pm Mon 19 Dec 11

I await the sound of silence...

ivor says...
9:35pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:13pm
~
Why would they speak up just because you ask them too besides most of my support comes from the silent majority and by their very name they are silent!

ivor says...
9:36pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:15pm
~
How can you hear the sound of silence when communication on this forum is by written word and not by sound?

Alberto The Great says...
9:45pm Mon 19 Dec 11

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:13pm
~
Why would they speak up just because you ask them too besides most of my support comes from the silent majority and by their very name they are silent!
OK... Let's wait for the torrent of support from your supporters.....

I feel that they will remain silent...

Alberto The Great says...
9:47pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Or....

Maybe you should write a blog, asking for "ALL" your supporters to come fourth and say how much they admire or believe in you...

ivor says...
9:47pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:45pm
~
As I said the silent majority will indeed remain silent.
~
I wonder how many readers support your views? Maybe they should speak up too? Somehow I fear you may be lacking in support....

ivor says...
9:48pm Mon 19 Dec 11

Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:47pm
~
Well, I would not want to trouble my supporters especially at this busy time of year....

gotanybiscuits? says...
7:18am Tue 20 Dec 11

hello darkness, my old friend.
....................
....................
..............

Wycombe Wonderer says...
4:14pm Tue 20 Dec 11

Ivor, you're a genius. The pied piper of this blog space, luring the gullable along with your harmless fictions. I have no problem at all with tales of perfect christmasses, but feel quite sorry for the angry and aggressive respondants. Alberto and Boris, et al, take a chill-pill. Go back and read some Dickens and remind yourself that a bit of Christmas fiction never did anybody any harm.

A VOTER says...
4:25pm Tue 20 Dec 11

Wycombe Wonderer wrote:
Ivor, you're a genius. The pied piper of this blog space, luring the gullable along with your harmless fictions. I have no problem at all with tales of perfect christmasses, but feel quite sorry for the angry and aggressive respondants. Alberto and Boris, et al, take a chill-pill. Go back and read some Dickens and remind yourself that a bit of Christmas fiction never did anybody any harm.
I think you're missing the point Mr Wonderer...

Yes, we all know it's fiction, "EXCEPT IVOR".

Ivor constantly claims that it's all 100% truth. As long as he continues with that stupid claim, the longer he will be taken to task over it.

All he has to do is own up to it being fiction - which he never has, and probably never will.

Therefore, he treats his audience like retarded imbeciles, which frankly, I find offensive...

Wycombe Wonderer says...
5:37pm Tue 20 Dec 11

A VOTER wrote:
Wycombe Wonderer wrote: Ivor, you're a genius. The pied piper of this blog space, luring the gullable along with your harmless fictions. I have no problem at all with tales of perfect christmasses, but feel quite sorry for the angry and aggressive respondants. Alberto and Boris, et al, take a chill-pill. Go back and read some Dickens and remind yourself that a bit of Christmas fiction never did anybody any harm.
I think you're missing the point Mr Wonderer... Yes, we all know it's fiction, "EXCEPT IVOR". Ivor constantly claims that it's all 100% truth. As long as he continues with that stupid claim, the longer he will be taken to task over it. All he has to do is own up to it being fiction - which he never has, and probably never will. Therefore, he treats his audience like retarded imbeciles, which frankly, I find offensive...
Actually, you're right. I'm infuriated too. Of all the things that's happened in the world this year, Ivor's tall-stories are the ones that really get me fired up.

Yes, I know, that guy in Norway killed a few people, and the government in Syria have slaughtered a few thousand; similar numbers were cut down in Libya; people were shot on the streets in Egypt, etc. I admit this has been quite a year, what with thousands swept away in Japan, hundreds killed in war zones (luckily all a safe distance from us), and all manner of criminal atrocity all over the place. But back home in the UK in 2011, leaving aside the riots, the phone hacking, the few dozen murders, the hundreds of sexual assaults, the recession-driven poverty, and all that tedious triviality, Ivor's twee blog about Christmas and his, quite frankly, enraging insistence that it's true, 'Ivor Bigun' really is the true Axis of Evil.

OK, so we may not be able to speak to him face to face (which would be awfully awkward embarrassing) but that won't stop us queuing up on here to vent spleen at his disgracefully tongue-in-cheek defence of his hatred-inciting blog masquerading as harmless semi-fiction.

You're absolutely right to be offended. Let nobody rest until Ivor and his imagination have been crucified, just in time for Christmas.

I'm so angry now I'm almost at the point of logging off!

gotanybiscuits? says...
7:25am Wed 21 Dec 11

@WW
I felt much better after I logged-off earlier.
.
Did you mean 'Excess of Evil', instead of 'Axis of Evil'??
Just asking, as Igor has such problems with his "spell-checker" continually adding totally inappropriate words on his behalf.......

Lawrence Linehan says...
6:27pm Wed 21 Dec 11

Lawrence Linehan wrote:
ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 10:23pm ~ Oh, and I thought you were my friend. ~ I can assure you there have been Biguns in Wycombe for hundreds of years. If the Biguns do not exist then how could I have written about a past Christmas at Bigun Hall? ~ You can most definitely rely on the honesty, sincerity and integrity of my blog.
The Bucks Record Society has published the 1798 Muster Roll for the County of Bucks – this is a list of able bodied males in the county between the ages of 15 and 60 capable of acting in a military capacity. The names are listed by parish and occupation within it. Which page and which parish shows the existence of Biguns?
You still haven't answered my question - Which page and which parish in the 1798 Muster Roll shows the existence of Biguns?

Lawrence Linehan says...
10:48am Sun 25 Dec 11

Alberto The Great wrote:
ivor wrote: Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 8:44pm ~ Well, I fear you are wrong there. Lots of people hold a different view to you.
Well, I "know" that you are wrong. The majority of readers hold the same view as myself... Otherwise, let's hear them speak up for you.... I awiat the sound of silence....
Yeah Lorraine - sorry - 'Lorraine'.

Sanders the Telephone Butler says...
12:10am Wed 28 Dec 11

Wycombe Wonderer wrote:
A VOTER wrote:
Wycombe Wonderer wrote: Ivor, you're a genius. The pied piper of this blog space, luring the gullable along with your harmless fictions. I have no problem at all with tales of perfect christmasses, but feel quite sorry for the angry and aggressive respondants. Alberto and Boris, et al, take a chill-pill. Go back and read some Dickens and remind yourself that a bit of Christmas fiction never did anybody any harm.
I think you're missing the point Mr Wonderer... Yes, we all know it's fiction, "EXCEPT IVOR". Ivor constantly claims that it's all 100% truth. As long as he continues with that stupid claim, the longer he will be taken to task over it. All he has to do is own up to it being fiction - which he never has, and probably never will. Therefore, he treats his audience like retarded imbeciles, which frankly, I find offensive...
Actually, you're right. I'm infuriated too. Of all the things that's happened in the world this year, Ivor's tall-stories are the ones that really get me fired up. Yes, I know, that guy in Norway killed a few people, and the government in Syria have slaughtered a few thousand; similar numbers were cut down in Libya; people were shot on the streets in Egypt, etc. I admit this has been quite a year, what with thousands swept away in Japan, hundreds killed in war zones (luckily all a safe distance from us), and all manner of criminal atrocity all over the place. But back home in the UK in 2011, leaving aside the riots, the phone hacking, the few dozen murders, the hundreds of sexual assaults, the recession-driven poverty, and all that tedious triviality, Ivor's twee blog about Christmas and his, quite frankly, enraging insistence that it's true, 'Ivor Bigun' really is the true Axis of Evil. OK, so we may not be able to speak to him face to face (which would be awfully awkward embarrassing) but that won't stop us queuing up on here to vent spleen at his disgracefully tongue-in-cheek defence of his hatred-inciting blog masquerading as harmless semi-fiction. You're absolutely right to be offended. Let nobody rest until Ivor and his imagination have been crucified, just in time for Christmas. I'm so angry now I'm almost at the point of logging off!
What I don't like about the ending of Christmas is the way that really unpleasant things said to igor - like encouragements to commit hara kiri - no longer seem so shocking - or ata ll shocking - outside the festive season.”

Lawrence Linehan says...
10:19pm Sun 1 Jan 12

ivor wrote:
Re the comments of Alberto The Great at 9:45pm
~
As I said the silent majority will indeed remain silent.
~
I wonder how many readers support your views? Maybe they should speak up too? Somehow I fear you may be lacking in support....
I support the views of Alberto and I am sure I speak for the silent majority when I do so - we all HATE you evil igor!


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The perfect wife and mother, Rebecca runs a home, a bad temper and is working on her novel. She enjoys photography, playing the piano and likes almost anything that's out of fashion and uncool. She lives in Amersham with her husband and youngest child (aged ten). Her eldest, now 27, lives and works in Buckinghamshire.

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