Being brought up in Yorkshire myself, I’m thrilled to introduce you to Jo Priestley and her Women of Old Yorkshire series. Over to Jo:
As the title of the series suggests, old Yorkshire is the setting for all my six historical fiction books from the Victorian era onwards. The Fifty Lost Christmases of Dolly Hunter is set later, from the 1970s to the present day, and it’s more the ‘real’ Yorkshire than perhaps the picturesque villages we’re known for. Dolly’s tale is set in a fictional town called Wakeley in West Yorkshire which was once the pinnacle of the north, but the town is now failing daily.
The main reason for the setting is familiarity; the houses, the people, even the smells of a place you know well can allow us the opportunity to bring it to vivid life. For instance, my favourite smell is a burning coal fire and I remember the scent greeting me on my way home as a child when row upon row of houses belched smoke into the sky. What a sight and smell it was to behold and how I miss it.
I waited four years after writing this book to publish as it’s fifty years this year since my town suffered the tragedy of an industrial accident. I was only five at the time, but the after-effects reverberated around us for years to come, and it put us on the map for the wrong reasons. I wanted to write about the strength and character of the people of that time, but also the incredible kindness and solidarity they showed one another. The ‘stranger’ Harriet who comes to the town with her young daughter in tow to try and help is from the outskirts of Leeds and the house is based on the one where my grandmother lived for nearly forty years. It was a beautiful testament to Victorian architecture before it was only recently demolished, and I admit to shedding a tear or two.
I think there’s also beauty to be seen in humble houses that are cherished and Dolly’s home is a “diamond twinkling amongst a stack of coal” as the town she’s lived in all her life is literally crumbling around her. Yet home is home whether conventionally beautiful or otherwise, and we know it’s the feeling it gives us more than anything else.
I wanted to write a Christmas tale that has a sprinkling of grit and a dash of darkness for good measure as I describe it. The town is struggling, and opportunities are being lost for the people day by day. The copper works, which had been the lynchpin of Wakeley, relocated in the 1990s in order to survive but the townsfolk were too stubborn and set in their ways to grasp what was there for the taking because they felt betrayed. They now live each day regretting the decision. It’s been a slow decay, so people barely notice how difficult life has become because they’ve grown used to it. It takes someone to roll in from out of town to point out the harsh realities of the situation.
Then there’s the Victorian tin church in the nearby woodland which is part of the book. I came across a ‘flatpack’ church which was intended to be temporary, but somehow stayed the course. Dolly tends the local church with Ralph who lives on the same row, and they went to school together. I liked the idea of a snowy woodland church at Christmastime. There’s plenty of the cosiness of Christmas to be found albeit in a more unusual setting. Dolly’s tale is a study of place as much as human nature and for me a Yorkshire Christmas with Yorkshire people is all I’ve ever known … I’d love to be able to share the magic with you.
BUY THE BOOKAbout Jo Priestley
Jo is a Yorkshire author committed to writing historical fiction based on real livesand real people. She grew up with tales by the fireside poignantly told by her grandmother in her crumbling but grand house on the outskirts of Leeds, creating the perfect atmosphere. Jo has been a professional business writer all her career, and now she would like to share the fictional stories that have been waiting in the wings until the time was right. She is a proud member of the Society of Authors.
After eight years of writing, six novels have been published in 2023 and she’s recently made a start on her seventh. The books are of women who all have their own individual tale of love, life and friendship to tell, and are set in and around Bronte Country. Jo considers the raising of five strong, kind-hearted daughters to adulthood her greatest achievement. Now she would like to commit herself in much the same vein to her passion for storytelling.
Find Jo:
TikTok Username: @women_of_old_yorkshire
Website Link: https://womenofoldyorkshire.com/
