She was born in Lower Glyn Gwyn Street, Trethomas, the home of Louisa & Christopher Shattock in March,1929

John & Thelma 1953 . . .Group with Harold, Esther & Esther's father on right . . . Anne & Joyce

Anne Gosling March 1939 Cardiff .

Anne, of dubious voice!, in Rumney Girls Choir, ~1950?. 5th from left, front row. Article in Cardiff Times.

 

She married Graham Muir in 1960. They had 2 children, Ian Muir 1961 & Susan J Muir1963.

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Group photo - Walter Gosling to left of tiny lady . . . . . . Hester Gosling, Graham, Anne & Harold Gosling

Children & grandchild & grandniece of Harold Gosling

Thora, John & Lesley Raeburn, granddaut of Frederick Gosling, Thelma & Karen, daughter of Thelma.

Places where Harold Gosling lived & worked.

Recollections by Anne Muir, daughter of Harold.

My Father was one of the most generous, kindest, of men. Anybody in trouble or need, they only had to come to him, and he would help them out. We lived in a small village called Rumney Village, where everybody knew each other. Christmas time my Father   hired the village hall, employed caterers, invited all the old people of the village to a Christmas dinner, also got the lord Mayor of Cardiff to attend. This was done to give all the old folks something to look forward to. My Father footed the bill for the whole lot and, for any old people to sick to attend, he sent a Christmas hamper . Needless to say the old folks in the village thought he could do no wrong. This was done for very many Christmases. Then the village started to grow, and my Father found it to difficult to continue, - the village hall could not hold all the old folks- but he still, in a smaller way, looked after many of them at Christmas time.

Anne Gosling c 1943 presenting the Anne Gosling Challenge Cup at the Rumney Eisteddford, mother to the left, father 2nd from right.

I am very proud of the fact that my Father was one of the founder members of the Tenovus charity, which is now a very big concern, raising millions for cancer research. One of my Fathers friends was in Cardiff Royal Infirmary, and my Father and some of his friends went to visit him. They found that he was feeling very bored, and finding the days rather long. They decided to club together and buy a radio system for the hospital, which was a help to all the patients. They then decided to do more projects for charity, and, as they were a group of ten friends, decided to call themselves Ten of us, so the name Tenovus was born. They went on to raise money for lots of charitable concerns. Sunshine Home for the Blind being one of them. Princess Margaret came along to open it and my Father was in the line up.

Graham and I went up to the Wye Valley with my Father, {this was before we were married} to have a fresh salmon tea. We were in the Anchor Hotel in Tintern Abbey; while we were enjoying our food, a coach load of pensioners arrived, my father asked the waiter what they were having to eat, he said sandwiches, my Father said, no they are not, give them all a fresh salmon tea. That’s what he was like. The old folks never knew who paid for there meal, but they all went away very happy.

When I was a teenager, and I needed new clothes, my father took me shopping, and he said he knew what suited me best. I was taken to quite an up market fashion store, owned by friends of my Father who were Jewish people. He used to get me to try on lots of different outfits, then he would pick what he thought were the best ones, and I would come home with arms full of clothes. Gosh I was really spoilt; even after I was married he would still buy me the odd outfit, when I used to go home to stay.

My Father started off as a backer in Bedwas, nr Trethomas, This was where he met my Mother, who was manager of the shop. From there he went into partnership with my uncle Bert {Albert}. They had a small bakery in Cardiff; from there he opened a small bakery in Rummey Village. Then in the mid 1930s he had a very large bakery built, just off Wentloog Road Rumney. It is still there to this day, but has been turned into industrial units.

There was another side to my Father: he was a great womanizer, and had many mistresses. This did not do good things for family life, and at one time one of his mistresses blackmailed him and he lost a lot of money over that. Life used to get very complicated!. Another bad point was that he was an addicted gambler, and on the morning of the day he died, he got my sister to put a bet on a horse for him - needless to say it lost!

He was at one time a very rich man, but due to gambling lost most of his money, leaving very little.

Recollections by Ian Muir, grandson of Harold.

"Kids...Kids" my Grandfather would say playfully as my sister and I were encouraged into the back of Gramps Rover.  He was like the Rover in many ways, not a modern car but still not out of place either.  It was a big powerful machine with stinky leather seats a walnut dashboard that occasionally broadcast radio four often through a haze of cigarette smoke.  Gramps was never far from another cigarette but a child doesn't pass judgement on that, it just seemed a natural part of the confident powerful businessman that my Gramps appeared to be.
 
We were going to see Earnie who ran a cafe in Newport.  Gramps would drive fast so we were soon sat at our table enjoying a large milk-shake and probably an icecream at the same time.  Gramps was generous and emptied his pockets of loose change onto the table so that my sister and I could play the slot machines.  He then disappeared out the back with Earnie to conduct his business with his old Italian friend.
 
Gramps had a cheeky, mischievous smile that seemed to say he was very fond of us.  However, I can't remember ever having a conversation, perhaps because I was just a stupid shy boy not interested in small talk and perhaps because powerful mature men just didn't do that with young children.  But we did communicate.  Sometimes Gramps would be sat in his large armchair, with his giant radio to his right and his large telly in front, broadcasting the day's racing.  Out of nowhere a toffee would fly through the air and land in my lap, "Kids" he would say.  When I was a bit older he would throw a pound note at me and tell me to go down the road to the chippy.  When I was a bit older still, he would give me a five pound note to go up the road to put a bet on a horse for him.  All of this action was commanded from the big armchair which was equiped with a pot for collecting his cigarette ash; it had a spinning lid that use to whirl and clatter all afternoon.
 
When I was a young boy I played in Gramps' garden.  He had a large magnifying glass for "spotting form" in the back pages of his newspaper.  But for me it was a weapon, a laser out of a science fiction story, that I could use to destroy the armies of ants that were attacking my Gramps' garden. Gramps had an alliance with my Grandmother over the ants and my use of the magnifying glass seemed perfectly acceptable behaviour.
 
When I was an older boy I worked in Gramps garden.  Light work involved feeding the fish that he kept in a large concrete pond and heavier work came with a fork digging potatoes for him.  Sometimes he appeared out of the back door to check on my efforts.  He would walk up the concrete paths, a little unsteadily, wearing a smart pair of trousers held up by braces over a clean white shirt.  As he approaced I could see all the yellow stains on his nails.  He would smile and perhaps warn me of egg and chips.  When I had finished he would give me five pounds.  
 
 Five pounds was a lot of money.
 

2011 Goslings Reunited - thanks to Gosling Bear, 2 eldest children of Harold, Thora & Thelma, meet up with long lost Frederick's granddaughter Lesley & her husband, who have travelled from Melbourne to Cardiff for the ocasion.