Greenhouse

Our house is gradually getting sorted, though it's taking a long time - Stephen, Olli and I moved in in 1999, though my parents had lived here since 1959. This is the house where I grew up, and although I've lived in other houses, I was delighted to be able to buy it from my parents and move back here, as I've always liked it. It was built in 1896 and I like the high ceilings and spacious feel to it, and I've always thought it a friendly and welcoming house, and tried to keep it that way.

My parents had a house built in the garden of the old house, where my mother still lives, and this has worked out very well.

One of the things that came with our house was the old greenhouse.

The Communist used to grow tomatoes every year, and very good they were too - several different varieties. He also grew annuals from seed - they lived in the greenhouse until they were big enough to be planted out - and vegetables, such as green beans.

Of recent years, however, my mother has used it as a shed to keep tools and suchlike in.

The tools used to be kept in the garage, but since it's really not easy to open, and covered in ivy, and very picturesque but really not really safe as a building any more, they have recently been kept in the greenhouse.

Looking out of our office window a week or so ago, I saw the garden and thought - - it looks great (and this is a testament to my mother's sterling work with it - about a third of an acre and she works on it constantly). Great. Apart from the greenhouse. Which is the Last Great Eyesore, now we've got rid of firstly the ancient caravan and secondly Gareth's ancient and very dead car.

It occurred to me that we don't now need a greenhouse - I love the garden but I don't think I'm ever going to go in for growing tomatoes.

What we need is a shed. And a nice new wooden shed would look far better than a battered old greenhouse.

Since the Communist died on December 8th I have worked non-stop - I know it's been my way of dealing with it. So it would be good to spend some of the money I have earned on The Communist Memorial Shed.

He always loved the garden, and he would be delighted by this, I know.

So very soon, our friend John Coombes - artist, film-maker, television games-show designer, writer, public speaker and, in our house, workbench-builder, office-redesigner, shelves-creator and staircase-restorer - will be adding Greenhouse-Remover and Shed-Constructor to his ever-growing list of job titles. Hurrah!