Blog | Outskirts: Living Life on the Edge of the Green Belt - talk by John Grindrod

Outskirts: Living Life on the Edge of the Green Belt - talk by John Grindrod

Back in 2015, writer and blogger John Grindrod entertained us with his talk ‘10 Buildings that Changed Post-War Britain’, based on his book, Concretopia. John now has another book out – Outskirts: Living Life on the Edge of the Green Belt and we shall be delighted to welcome him back for what will, we are sure, be another fascinating presentation.

Partly autobiographical and partly an account of how the green belt was developed from concept to reality, the book tells us about the impact the green belt has had both on John's life and family and on our built environment nationally.

As the dust jacket tells us:

“Coined by National Trust co-founder Octavia Hill at the end of the nineteenth century, the phrase 'Green Belt' originally formed part of an impassioned plea to protect the countryside. By the late 1950s, those idealistic Victorian notions had developed into something more complex and divisive. Green Belts became part of the landscape and psyche of post-war Britain, but would lead to conflicts at every level of society - between conservationists and developers, town and country, politicians and people, nimbys and the forces of progress.

“Growing up on 'the last road in London' on an estate at the edge of the woods, John Grindrod had a childhood that mirrored these tensions. His family, too, seemed caught between two worlds: a wheelchair-bound mother who glowed in the dark; a father who was traumatised by chicken and was eventually done in by an episode of Only Fools and Horses; two brothers - one sporty, one agoraphobic - and an unremarkable boy on the edge of it all discovering something magical.

“The first book to tell the story of Britain's Green Belts, Outskirts is at once a fascinating social history, a stirring evocation of the natural world, and a poignant tale of growing up in a place, and within a family, like no other.”

After the talk, there will be a chance to network over a complimentary drink and John will be on hand to sign books and answer questions. Richard Knowles from Rickaro Books in Horbury will also be there with a supply of John’s books to buy.

Doors for this event open at 7.00 pm and the talk will start at 7.30. Admission is £6 per person full price and £5 concessions including members of Wakefield Civic Society.

Tickets can be ordered by post (please send a cheque made payable to ‘Wakefield Civic Society’ for the number of tickets you want to Wakefield Civic Society, Room 3, Town Hall, Wood Street, Wakefield, WF1 3WT.

Or why not order on-line via our Eventbrite page (and this time, there’s no booking fee!).