Beckenham tales

Coach and company

A little seasonal story inspired by that well-known Christmas tale of miserly comeuppance. Be warned and don't be a yuletide Scrooge

Changes

A chance encounter with a weird looking guy in a flowery shirt at a free pop concert

Beckenham boy

A Limerick

Trapped in the Park

Having fallen asleep in the afternoon, Pete finds he is locked in the Beckenham Recreation Ground

A quiet night in the George Inn

Feeling a little unsettled, something was not quite right and it wasn't the beer.

Beneath a tranquil sky

A quiet conversation.

Marion Patrick is an artist you probably never heard of. Unless you have visited the Bethlem Museum of the Mind in Beckenham, a London suburb bordering Kent to the south east of England, you are unlikely to have seen her work. Patrick was a one-time resident at the Bethlem Royal Hospital, set in expansive leafy grounds just outside of the town.

Crowning moment

Now, that's what I call a coronation

Of phones and photographs

Above photo taken in Norwood Country Park lake which borders on Beckenham.

Enough of the resets

Being told to reset your password can be quite irritating, stressful and frustrating. More so for me...

A macabre profession

For me the eerie silence of the secluded sepulchre was a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of the wicked world outside.

Learning to fly

When a young lad turns up at Biggin Hill Airport in Kent for a flying lesson, he gets more than he bargained for.

A new friend comes to stay

Thanks for reading these stories of life in the Kent/London hamlet of Beckenham.

Other Short stories

Two's company

A married couple take a friend on a weekend trip to an isolated cabin in the snow. A story of betrayal and revenge.

The Plumes of Enceladus

Deep within the cloudy mass of Saturn’s E ring is no place to discover your Ship Nav is failing. Particularly if you are accelerating toward an icy world below.

Enough of the Resets

Being told to reset your password can be quite irritating, stressful and frustrating. More so for me...

From little Acorns

As the night duty pilot of Ingenuity Mars Helicopter reviewed the previous day's flight data, he knew something was not quite as it should be.

A Distant Dream of Love and Loss

Sedna awakes from a long period in stasis, suspended animation, expecting to be in the final part of her approach to the Comet Chawla. Instead, she finds she has already landed but what has happened to the Sun? Where is she? Or, more to the point, WHEN is she? 

A Time for Empathy

Deep Space Transport Vessel Endurance was a happy ship but one in which a strange psychological phenomenon had emerged.

Joker Jones and the Asteroid

Some people call him a space cowboy! A lone prospector sets out to mine a field of gold - way out in the asteroid belt.

Spooky, sorcery and supernatural

A macabre profession

For me the eerie silence of the secluded sepulchre was a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of the wicked world outside.

A plague of imps

A sword, a sorceress, a swordsmith, a professor, a servant, a winged serpent, a child, a spy, soldiers, peasants, a plague of imps, and a nice cup of tea.

Learning to fly

When a young lad turns up at Biggin Hill Airport in Kent for a flying lesson, he is not expecting his flying machine to be a broomstick!

Learning to fly: part two ~ Learning to fly: part three

Dark Clouds Gather

A tale of witchcraft and a battle against dark forces in the provincial town of Guildford. Suburban sorcery at its best.

Part two ~ Part three

The aquarium

Boy meets girl on a random visit to an aquarium. All goes well until boy discovers that girl is not quite what she seems.

Other

Haiku by Raymond G. Taylor

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Raymond G. Taylor is an author based in the Kent suburbs of London. At one time a business press journalist, Ray has launched and run a media company, been general manager of a retail finance business and, more recently, was an officer in a tough London prison. He is currently a part-time, partially retired government security adviser and policy official.

As an author, Ray is best known for his wide range of short stories which range from heart breaking romance to classic adventure tales, witchcraft, supernatural, historical, mythological, spooky, dark, brooding, funny. His work is always intriguing and engaging whatever the genre. Taylor writes with authenticity and true feeling. Reading his work you will feel you are, not just reading a story, but living it.

© Raymond G. Taylor, 2020-2024, all rights reserved. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work.

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