Betty’s parents kept the “Old Bell” Her mother ran the pub, which sold only beer, cider and soft drinks, no spirits. Like many country pubs it had its comical moments. There were times when the policeman would come to check on closing time, only to be invited in for a drink or two. Closing time became elastic, and once he fell off his bike when riding home.
Betty’s father worked on farms, and later when they left the pub, became bailiff at Church Farm. He was a Much Cowarne man, and was a special constable like Bob Wood the village blacksmith who lived at Smiths Green., and who enjoyed a drink at the Bell.
Joan’s mother had seen one of Mathon’s ghosts in one our old houses and the experience had been so frightening that she was very reluctant to talk about it. Betty and Joan Botfield were friends and Joan often had a lift in the Mellings family car on her way to work.