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Walter Wright at Yew Tree Farm

IT was only thanks to a series of mishaps that Walter Wright was able to chronicle his life at Yew Tree Farm. In fact it was three accidents that allowed him to pen - well pencil - From Corncrake to Combine while he struggled to work on the farm in Mere.

"During the winter months, they weren't as busy on the farm and my son John got some help and I wasn't doing as much.

"So I used to sit in this chair and write. The ends of my fingers are too big for computer buttons so when I've been writing this book, I've been using a pen and it's got a little rubber on the end - that, plus my memory, was everything I needed," said Walter.

Around six years ago, the first accident happened when Walter was cleaning out the septic tank and dropped a concrete slab on his toe.

And the second delay occurred shortly after when he had to have a knee replacement because of an old condition caused when he was trying to break in a horse at 14.

But during this downtime in hospital, he started jotting down his memories based on more than 60 years of being a farmer and this process continued when he got back home.

They say bad things come in threes and this was certainly the case for the 77-year-old who slipped and fell at the end of last April.

"I broke my hipbone and got taken into Macclesfield Hospital. They patched me up and I could walk on it within two days but I wasn't very mobile.

"So I finished the book off in that period," Walter added.

In fact, Walter had a long held ambition to write a book since his youth when he used to listen to plays on the wireless.

"There wasn't TV in those days and there used to be plays on a Sunday night such as the Forsyte Saga," he said.

"I thought I could write about that family but in the end I never did anything about it."

But what eventually materialised was something much more charming and insightful.

Walter was born at Yew Tree Farm, which has been home to his family for more than 80 years. This was a time when people travelled along the A556 in a horse and cart.

He started milking cows when he was 10 and started picking and planting potatoes when he was even younger.

Walter said: "I was born into farming but I did have a choice. My mother thought that I should be a bank manager or something like that.

"She thought it would be a lot easier life than farming but it wasn't for me."

As well as a farmer, Walter was mayor of Macclesfield between 2000 and 2001 (occasionally turning up to meetings on his tractor), a borough councillor for 28 years and a member of the Knutsford Young Farmers' Club for nearly 60 years.

All that meant there was plenty to write about.

His book, From Corncrake to Combine - a reference to a ground-nesting bird that is endangered because of the impact of mechanised farming - encapsulates his childhood years, life during and after the Second World War, a multitude of colourful country characters and changing times on the farm as technology has taken its toll.

"We're a funny breed farmers. A lot of people think I am daft for still liking working on a farm, but I take great pleasure from it. In fact, it takes precedence over the writing." Walter Wright

"It's family reading," said Walter.

"To me, that's how life was. Ok, I can write about sex and violence and all this and the other but that wasn't what I was going for.

"I wanted to put humour into the book and explain how people were and describe some of the characters associated with that time.

"It's funny because I can remember what I did back that far but I can't tell you what I did yesterday - that's old age for you.

"I don't actually know who will read the book but I like to think people in the area will enjoy it.

"It's not serious stuff. Nobody's going to feel elated after it but it's something you can curl up on a sofa with and leave this world for a short spell."

One of the most vivid chapters is The War Years in which Walter describes the impact of the Second World War.

And in the opening page, Walter describes how his friend Harry Jones suggested they should all jump in Lymm Dam to escape what was coming.

He said: "I was only eight when the war broke and, at that age, you don't really understand what's happening.

"If I remember right, it was Sunday morning and Neville Chamberlain, the prime minister, had declared war on Germany.

"We knew the country was gearing up for war because of what was happening in Europe but it was like the old English thing - you don't do anything until you've got to.

"The First World War was supposed to be the war to end all wars so people were very fearful of another war and it turned out they were right because there was no bombing in the First World War.

"We even got involved in air raids - mainly planes that had missed Manchester or planes that had got mechanically damaged and dropped bombs in the countryside."

Two things Walter is delighted about since completing the book are the photos that were included - many of which he did not even know existed - and the foreword written by former BBC war correspondent and Tatton MP Martin Bell, which felt like an endorsement of his hard work.

Now Walter has retired and lives with his wife Kathleen in Meadow View, a cottage connected to the farm.

Nevertheless, he still likes to muck in with the day-to-day farm chores whenever he gets a chance.

"We're a funny breed, farmers," said Walter.

"A lot of people think I'm daft for still liking working on the farm but I take great pleasure from it.

"In fact, it takes precedence over the writing because it's something I've always been brought up with.

"The funny thing about farming is that it has evolved. There are bigger machines that you have to accommodate.

"Farmers are still making a living but there are fewer of them doing it while other farmers have diversified into other trades.

"You can remain small but you're more of a hobby farmer and will have to find a niche in the market.

"And I believe in another 60 years, there will still be the characters and the humour there."

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