Childless Parents Newsletter, Autumn 2020

Newsletter for Childless Parents | www.tcf.org.uk 11 I know how that sounds, and honestly I am not completely crazy, but the death of a child is a profound loss that you never get over and you hold on to anything that might actually help you get up every day. Oliver and I were late getting into LOM. We bought the series 1 box set shortly before series 2 was broadcast and watched it over a few days. We were both hooked. He was 11, almost 12 and loved the car chases, the Gene Hunt one liners, the Ray and Chris double act. Although he wasn’t happy that Gene Hunt supported City, in fact he was quite annoyed being a Manchester United supporter. We were addicted, and sat down each week to watch the next episode, laughing and talking about it. We loved the final episode of series 2, seeing Sam come back to 1973. I don’t think either of us had a clue as to how it would end but were really pleased to see the Cortina drive into the sunset with Sam, Gene, Ray, Chris and Annie. We bought series 2 box set as soon as it was available and that was what we watched when we got the chance. We couldn’t get enough. The same happened when Ashes to Ashes came out. I think we were both cautious as we weren’t sure how the dynamic would work swapping Sam for Alex. Before the end of episode one I knew I was going to love it, especially when Gene, Ray and Chris turned up with their guns in a speedboat with tower bridge behind them. We laughed at Ray looking smug and trying hard to look cool. I think I would have fainted too when Gene Hunt climbed out of the Quattro at the start of the episode. Fantastic. Oliver always was a person to be a bit wary of anything new but it didn’t take long for him to become a fan. We were gutted when it finished and kept hoping it would be revived, but we still had 5 series to watch, which we did from time to time. It was our “thing”. Something we could share, which when you have a teenager is not always easy to find. When Oliver died I stopped watching. It was too painful to watch alone, but I would catch an episode here and there. Funnily enough though last year I started watching again. I missed it, I was ready to watch it for both of us. And then it was on IPlayer, and Drama and all of a sudden the hype was back. Especially with the announcement that there will be a new one. That is also tough as I would love to share it with Oliver, love to talk to him about it, love to watch it with him. I know he would be almost 25 now and unlikely to still be living at home, but I like to think we would still have shared it. I also like to think that he would have joined in on the tweet along each Wednesday. I am loving sharing thoughts, quotes and stories and getting the behind the scenes gossip from the wonderful people involved in the 5 series. I do have a few tears each week wishing he was sitting next to me, but in the current lockdown situation it is a distraction and I hope he is watching too. Thank you Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes. Kirstie