Ann Richardson’s most popular book, The Granny Who Stands on Her Head, offers a series of reflections on growing older. Subscribe to her free Substack newsletter, where she writes fortnightly on any subject that captures her imagination. Ann lives in London, England with her husband of sixty years. Please visit her website for information on all her books: http://annrichardson.co.uk.

Latest Posts By Ann Richardson

4 days ago

Do You Receive Reminders of Your Mortality?

It was an ordinary Thursday evening just after 7 p.m. And, as on every Thursday evening at that time, my choir was warming up for its two-hour rehearsal to come. All eyes were on the conductor, including mine. But one of the tenors was very slightly late and was just coming into the room. A […]

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1 week ago

I Hated Giving and Receiving Gifts… Until I Got This Surprise

Actually, that’s not quite true. I dislike almost all presents, whatever the time of year. I don’t much like giving them, and I certainly don’t like getting them. It has been ever thus. It is wonderful to give presents to children. You generally know from their parents…

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4 weeks ago

Becoming a Grandmother: 6 Things New Grannies Are Concerned About

So, you have become a grandmother! Congratulations! How are you feeling about it? Excited? Apprehensive? Not ready to see yourself as a grandma? Join the club. Many of us feel that way at first. Just after my second grandson was born, I decided to write…

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1 month ago

On Assumptions: Things Aren’t Always What They Seem

We don’t think about it much, but we go through our daily lives with a huge range of assumptions about what is going on around us. At least I do. And I expect you do, too. You’re in the supermarket and a mother is yelling at a little boy…

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2 months ago

Dealing with the Small Irritations in Life

I am struggling with an old roll of scotch tape. The end has been lost, so I am trying to dig out the thin membrane of tape to allow me to get it working again. I get a small bit and then, instead of a large useable piece, I find myself with a narrow strip…

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2 months ago

Let Me Share Two Moments of Pure Joy

What brings us happiness? There are so many things that money will buy – a foreign cruise, a new car with all mod cons or lots of bling. You can have all that. I recently had two moments of pure joy, which cost not a cent. Each made me a very happy woman…

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2 months ago

The Very Odd Story of the Cat in the Shower

It was a very ordinary night. I was undertaking a very ordinary activity. I had gone into the bathroom to get my pyjamas, which were hanging on the back of the door. My mind was completely elsewhere, as minds can be when you’re doing a routine task…

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2 months ago

Should We Praise Niceness?

In the modern world – and probably the ancient world for that matter – a lot of weight is given to worldly achievements. We want to become rich, important and famous and we want our children to accomplish these things, too…

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3 months ago

How Important Are Your Neighbours as You Reach the Mark of 60?

My very friendly next-door neighbours moved back to the US. In many ways, it was not a surprise, as they were always going to be visitors in London – here because of the husband’s job. Yet it came as both a shock and a loss…

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3 months ago

The Great Hospital Escape (True Story)

My husband had been in hospital for three days, having had a partial knee replacement operation on the morning of the first day. Everything had gone as planned, he was very happy with the surgery not to mention the kindliness and competence…

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