The Fred Dibnah Story

by Fred Dibnah (Author), Don Haworth (Author), Fred Dibnah (Author), Don Haworth (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  1996

  $3.26

  Born in 1938 into an England which in his view has been going downhill ever since, Fred Dibnah has always been one to do things properly, whether climbing hundreds of feet to clean, repair or even destroy his beloved chimneys, or taking 14 years to restore his 1912 steamroller to its original glory. In this book he shares his experiences as a steeplejack, his love of machinery of all types, and his forthright views on life in general.

• Used

  Hardcover
  2009

  $3.26

  'I can't think of any part of my childhood when I was not fascinated by steeplejacks. I'd seen them dancing through the rolling smoke at the chimney top or hanging at the end of a rope in a bosun's chair, blowing about like a cork in the wind'. When Fred Dibnah debuted on television in 1979, British audiences immediately embraced a new cultural icon: a steeplejack from Bolton who fell in love with England's decaying industrial landscape and an exhaustive storyteller whose charm and wit was matched only by his down-to-earth manner. The Producer of that first film, Don Haworth, would go on to make nineteen films about this unlikely celebrity and true British eccentric. Did You Like That? collects the best stories from these films: colourful tales told by Fred himself, recounting key moments in his life, his experiences as a steeplejack, his fascination with machinery, his work as an engineer, craftsman, artist, inventor and steam enthusiast, and his forthright views on life in general. Told with true Northern grit, Did You Like That? is the story of a man who never shied away from a hair-raising challenge, and the closest thing to Fred's autobiography we're likely to get. This is Fred's story, in his own words.