• Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.

    We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team

Witton By Shirley Kent Detective Novel set in 1945 now for sale on AMAZON....

HumbleBrummie

proper brummie kid

At last it is on Amazon !
Hello Brumies it is Shirley Kent here introducing my book WITTON. Witton is a fictional detective story set in Witton Aston in 1945. The enclosed pictures show the book. Inside I thank the Forum members for their help on several factual questions I asked. Checking on my own memory and being offered much more. This site is a wonderful place. I am hoping members may like a retro detective novel set in the area. It was a labour of love for me. But not without a lot of work. Just key in WITTON Shirley Kent to find the book. It is £10.99 post paid in UK. I have also put up a youtube film advertising it. I sing the 1944 classic 'Sentimental Journey' I don't think I can put a link in here. But again if you go to Youtube key in WITTON Shirley Kent to find it. As yet I don't have a publisher but looking out for one. Bless you all. Shirley

 

Attachments

  • FRONT.jpg
    FRONT.jpg
    164.2 KB · Views: 13
  • hhhh_edited-1 copy_edited-1.jpg
    hhhh_edited-1 copy_edited-1.jpg
    301.9 KB · Views: 13
Congratulations, that looks great :)

I should have recognised your name, I remember Ghost, Charlie Grima is an old friend of mine!
Thank you..., Charlie is great. Love him. Love all The Ghost boys. Our album a collectible now ! over a thousand to buy. Many thanks for getting in touch.
 
The illustration on the rear of the book looks like an impression of a photograph that has appeared on the Forum a couple of times. A rainy evening by the phone box outside the Aston Hotel.
 

At last it is on Amazon !
Hello Brumies it is Shirley Kent here introducing my book WITTON. Witton is a fictional detective story set in Witton Aston in 1945. The enclosed pictures show the book. Inside I thank the Forum members for their help on several factual questions I asked. Checking on my own memory and being offered much more. This site is a wonderful place. I am hoping members may like a retro detective novel set in the area. It was a labour of love for me. But not without a lot of work. Just key in WITTON Shirley Kent to find the book. It is £10.99 post paid in UK. I have also put up a youtube film advertising it. I sing the 1944 classic 'Sentimental Journey' I don't think I can put a link in here. But again if you go to Youtube key in WITTON Shirley Kent to find it. As yet I don't have a publisher but looking out for one. Bless you all. Shirley

Thank You Richard for the Appreciate ..
 
The illustration on the rear of the book looks like an impression of a photograph that has appeared on the Forum a couple of times. A rainy evening by the phone box outside the Aston Hotel.
It is a Keith Berry photograph...wonderful shot. I doctored it for the cover and back. I credit Keith in the opening pages of the book. I also thank The Forum members for their help as an aid to my own memory. And a police Heritage Officer I had read the book and gave some vital factual information.
 
Congratulations Shirley, hope it sells well. Will you be uploading an ebook option please?
It will be on Kindle.... I will be sorting that in next two days. Paperback £9.99 on Amazon and Ebay. Will let you know when on Kindle. Many Thanks Shirley
 
I have reposted the Keith Berry picture that was on the forum. I was born in Aston and lived in the area for many years, so the first chapters brought back many memories.

The Aston Hotel was the first pub I went in alone to buy a pint at about the age of 17. It was at lunchtime in the summer and an elderly barmaid took ages to pull a pint, she could only move the pump handle an inch or two and the pint was as flat as a pancake. Calling in a few times over the years you try to remember the interior of the bar and the lounges, but only now I realize that the exterior is so impressive. I remember on a couple of occasions reaching the Aston after queuing far up Wilton Road for semi-final tickets. How long will it take to get to the Holte ?

I remember going into that phone box a few times as a kid. What was the name of the Newsagent near the next corner ?

Jack walks down under the railway bridge….My mother was born in Manor Road just before the bridge, and during the war the house two doors away suffered a hit. Just before the bridge on the other side of the road was an entry where you could sneak up and watch the steam locomotives. I seem to remember seeing the Pines Express a few times ?

At this rate I should finish by Xmas.

6DE7A98A-173D-485E-BBE7-9CCD59242FBD.jpeg
 
Last edited:
I have reposted the Keith Berry picture that was on the forum. I was born in Aston and lived in the area for many years, so the first chapters brought back many memories.

The Aston Hotel was the first pub I went in alone to buy a pint at about the age of 17. It was at lunchtime in the summer and an elderly barmaid took ages to pull a pint, she could only move the pump handle an inch or two and the pint was as flat as a pancake. Calling in a few times over the years you try to remember the interior of the bar and the lounges, but only now I realize that the exterior is so impressive. I remember on a couple of occasions reaching the Aston after queuing far up Wilton Road for semi-final tickets. How long will it take to get to the Holte ?

I remember going into that phone box a few times as a kid. What was the name of the Newsagent near the next corner ?

Jack walks down under the railway bridge….My mother was born in Manor Road just before the bridge, and during the war the house two doors away suffered a hit. Just before the bridge on the other side of the road was an entry where you could sneak up and watch the steam locomotives. I seem to remember seeing the Pines Express a few times ?

At this rate I should finish by Xmas.

View attachment 171669
My adopted Mom and Dad lived in Manor Road for a while, as did my Birth Mother. I knew Witton well as my Dad's Mother lived in Witton Road. The Keith Berry photograph is iconic. I had to take out the modern street lighting for the cover of the book. As I think he took it in the 1960s. It was a great place in our day.
 
I remember the Bookie in Manor Road, Charlie Woodward ? You could drop a bet with the money wrapped up inside it into a wooden box just inside the gate.
 
Map from...http://www.alangodfreymaps.co.uk/
Map only goes to Clifton Road...not down to Six Ways. But covers Witton and a lot more.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top