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My Books

Hi, I'm Lisa Horner.  I have two books published by Amberley Publishing, the first book was published in 2014 and is called 'Basildon Through Time,' the second book published in August 2019 is called 'Lost Basildon.'  Both of these books are mainly pictorial with between 60 to 90 words on each page but sometimes more.

Back in 2007 I was a researcher for the 'Basildon Heritage Trail' and I composed a blog with a lot of my research for the project.  The blog is called Basildon's Heritage Trail.  Part of my research also contributed to Basildon, Our Heritage by Frances Clamp.

Basildon Through Time
From the Stone Age to the exciting era of post-war architectural experimentation, Basildon is a town brimming with exciting historical gems just waiting to be explored. Beorhtel’s Dun, as Basildon was originally called, got its name from a Saxon man who owned the hilly country to the north of Holy Cross church. While agriculture was the town’s main industry for many centuries, the invention of the railway and two world wars soon changed all that.

During the post-war building boom, Basildon was earmarked for a makeover as a New Town, and the Basildon we see today came to be. From old town to new, Basildon has undergone some incredible changes over the last century. Basildon Through Time explores the town’s history and recent transformation, drawing on the Basildon Borough Heritage Group’s extensive collection of images.

I enjoyed interviewing people and finding amazing unseen photographs contributed by these people.  Basildon Through Time looks at where a building/person was and what it is there now, this is demonstrated by the then and now pictures on every page.  I also includes an infographic timeline I'd developed.  There was a lot of travelling to various sites in the Basildon area for this and I spent quite a bit of time with the Basildon Borough Heritage Society who contributed the majority of the old photographs.  I interviewed people like Michael Marchant, former projectionist for the old Radion cinema in Laindon that stood where the library stands now.  Also, Michelle Jeakins, Marilyn Battista, Tim Williams, Ann Rugg, Peter Robinson and Nina Humphrey, Penny Betteridge and Amanda Farley.  Also, Lisa Ford, Gary Clark, Wendy King, Gary Stolworthy and Andrew Adams.  The interviews took on various forms from face to face or by Messenger through Facebook or by email.  Some professional photographs were contributed by Peter Reynolds and Tim Williams. 


 Lost Basildon
Originally a collection of villages in Essex, Basildon was developed as a New Town after World War 2 in 1949. The last 70 years have seen incredible changes in Basildon. New residents started to move in during the 1950s as the first homes were completed and alongside the new housing, the town attracted businesses to relocate to its industrial parks, many of them household names such as Ford, Gordons Gin and GEC Marconi, as well as leading the way in new retailing with the largest covered shopping centre in Europe at the time when built in the 1980s. Alongside the modern face of Basildon, further regeneration of the town is planned, and the town retains traces of its historical past, as well as green, open spaces.
Lost Basildon presents a portrait of this town in Essex and a way of life that has radically changed or disappeared today, showing not just the buildings, streets and industries that have gone or changed, but also a way of life. This fascinating photographic history of lost Basildon will appeal to all those who live in the town or know it well, as well as those who remember it from previous decades.

I also met and interviewed some wonderful people by various means including Geraldine Evans whose family had ran The Barge for seven decades.  Others who contributed were, Peter Sloper, Tom King, Roy Davis, Pat Mundy and Joy Barrett.  Also, Joyce Whitelock, David Coubrough, Tim Williams again and John Topson.  Also, Paul Nagle, Geoff Martin-Smith, Steve Chelton, Matthew Lane and Vin Harrop again.  John Skelton, Sue Ryder Paget, Ian Clarke and Frank Newton also the Essex Records Office.  I also got quite a lot of photographs from the Basildon Borough Heritage Society and contributed to their charity, they have been a registered charity for some while now.

Since Lost Basildon has been published I have attended three radio interviews so far.  I was joined by Geraldine Evans, Tom King and Roy Davis for the interview or chat, you might say, at Gateway 97.8 FM.  The first radio interview was at Basildon Hospital Radio and the most recent was for Phoenix 98FM.

https://www.lisajhorner.com/
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