Thank you all so much for your replies to my e-mail. I must admit I was surprised to find so many when I logged on - you are all very kind!
I don't think I am probably as learned as the rest of you with regards to all things "light". My interest probably stems from trips to Ireland taken several times a year from when I was very young. (My mum is Irish so we were backwards and forwards across the Irish sea regularly!)
The Skerries light house off Anglesea would herald the start of the "adventure" for me each trip. I loved that first glance of it as we sailed west.
I am equally fascinated by lightvessels which were plentiful in the English channel for many years. Like all our Lighthouses sadly they are now fully automated, however i still enjoy listening to their Weather reports which are given regularly on BBC Radio 4 during our "shipping forecast" I don't know whether you have anything quite like that in the US. It is quite a tradition in our house to listen to the late night shipping bulletin. This provides details of weather, sea conditions, visibilty etc from all the sea areas around the British coastline and stretching as far as North east Iceland, Scandanavia,Biscay and Trafalgar.
There is a wonderful British artist named Peter Collyer who has painted all these sea areas in a book called "Rain later, Good" and his understanding and sympathetic illustration of the sea areas (and some truly gorgeous lighthouses)is a joy to behold.
As fas as collecting models, I don't think my little collection would be quite as "grand" as most of yours. I tend to buy all types of bits and pieces -probably some are more expensive than others but on the whole they are quite cheap and cheerful. I live about 40 minutes drive to the Norfolk coast and maybe an hour out to the Suffolk coast. There are quite a few little places to pick things up but I am sure if i really started looking I could search for pieces that are "special". Todd, you mentioned that you loved Fastnet Rock -I travelled to west Cork and down to Mizen head to view the Weather station. From the mIzen Peninsula you could see Fastnet - it truly is amazing.
Another good one is the Needles off the Isle of Wight and also there is a stunning view of the Light at Beachy Head in Sussex worth seeing. The only thing is that it is a terrible spot for suicides so in the wrong weather it can be a bit depressing!!
Can I just say before I close this message that what a coincidence!!! Nana who left a reply to my last, comes from Brandon in Florida -and I live in Brandon, Suffolk!So HELLO from one Brandon to another.
Anyway, thanks again to all who left messages and look forward to more "LIght chat" soon.

Take care, and May your God go with you.


Fiona.

Hi Fiona,

Now we have three things in common....towns, lighthouses and Irish relatives. My relatives immigrated from there in the 1800's. One day I'll find out where they were from and go to visit.

The forum group is very friendly and are more than willing to answer any of your questions and you surely can help us with English and Irish lighthouses.

Nana (Derith Bennett)

Welcome Fiona, and thanks for your follow-up bio/note.

Lighthouses seem to draw folks together from all over the world. Isn't the Internet simply grand!

__
/im

Welcome to the forums Fiona. As a newbie myself to lighthouses and collecting I really appreciate your above comments about the Irish Lights. Again WELCOME. Look forward to hearing your comments in future posts.

Hi Fiona- welcome to the forum!

Have you had the opportunity to see many of the Scottish LH? I have a friend from Scotland who told me about visiting Muckle Flugga when he was in the RAF and stationed near there in the Shetlands. There certainly are many miles of beautiful coastline and lots of elegant LH to go along with it! I have only visited Europe once, and that was in 1978- would love to come back some day!

Glad to have you aboard-

chris g

Welcome to the forums Fiona. I look forward to hearing more about your lighthouse experiences, and to possibly meeting you one day at a Harbour Light Event!
Pam

Just a few lines of thanks for the welcome, rather delayed due to a visit to the local hospital. (Legs not as young as they once were).
Anyway thank you all for the replies. I am the MD of a company with a lighthouse logo and Beacon Water Treatments for a name. I started the company in 1982 when I had hair and have been losing it ever since!!. My main interest has in the past (due to working) been in reading about lights and visiting them when possible. I have only recently taken up collecting. I hope to get around to more to start a serious photo album but we shall see whether running a company allows me the time. In the meanwhile I shall follow the forums and items in HL with interest. Regards to you all.

Hi DH, hope you`re feeling better and welcome to the Forum.
terry

Hi Derek and welcome aboard. So glad you have come to join us. There are many forum members with a wealth of information regarding lighthousing. If you have any questions, please feel free to post them as I'm sure you will get a quick answer. We also welcome your comments.

Tim - Keeping the flame lit...

Hi Derek - with the influx of UK members on these forums, we may need to schedule a special chat day and time that meets your needs.

My mother's father was a Harvey from England - James Harvey, a descendent of the Harvey who discovered how blood circulates in the body.

We might be shirtail relatives.