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About me: The Walsall based company Jabez Cliff & Co is in my blood, I am one of the 6th generation to have worked for the company founded by my forebear in the eighteenth century. My talks are all 'stand alone' and I don't require any particular equipment.,

About my talks: My talks last approx 45 minutes but I am happy to extend them if required to do so. The talks are illustrated with computer graphics and in some cases I bring along objects of interest. I am prepared to travel anywhere in the UK subject to expenses

My Talks

The History of Jabez Cliff & Co The Walsall based company of Jabez Cliff have been established for seven generations. They are holders of the Royal Warrant as Saddlers and Loriners to Her Majesty the Queen The Cliff Family can trace their   association with the leather industry back to George Cliff a Boot maker who left Stafford in 1750 to seek his fortune in Walsall. His son George Cliff became an apprentice bridle maker in October 1793. The family business suffered early bereavements when father and sons died within 3 months leaving a widow, daughter and future son-in-law to run the business. So successful were they that larger premises were required and the expanding company acquired one of Walsall’s major  saddlery  firms. I In the following years they have supplied the MOD with equipment - specialised items for war and ceremonial items including the funeral  of Princess Diana and in2011 the wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton.The company has diversified  into Footballs, Luggage, Leather goods and Golf Bags all carrying the Cliff name. They have supplied footballs for The World Cup, Olympic Games and the F A Cup Final  Why, during the Falklands War didd we have to refer to our archives? How did we help the Royal Navy with its first submarine?        The 7th Generation of the Cliff family is now in charge - I was one of the 6th generation

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The Ghosts of Jabez Cliff & Co

Take a Victorian factory, a business  that had been situated in the same premises for 118 years and 5 generations of employees, put them all together and you have a recipe for ghosts. There have been fourteen witnessed sightings
When I started work in 1966 employees would relate old Ghost stories about the factory in an  effort to scare me. At the time I was a sceptic -   in one ear out the  other - but nearly 40 years on and thats all changed.
A brief meeting with a member of a BBC film crew whilst recording an episode of Dalziel And Pascoe changed my cavalier attitude towards the persistant legends of ghostly activity and sightings. The crew member said he was psychic and had seen a mother and child sitting on the stairs in one room and two men in another. He described one of these characters to me and the following morning, when I related his experiences to an old employee, he promptly told me that the person described was an employee who had died in the 1930’s. That started the ball rolling and some time later, we had visits from Most Haunted.  Why couldn’t they film?
What did the engineer from the Burglary Company say?  He had fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.
This is an actual account of living and working with ghost’s including an attack that I personally witnessed. All the stories have been corroborated from at least two sources.
Sad news the factory (photographed above) was destroyed by fire on 15th August 2011.

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A History of Walsall
WHY WAS WALSALL REGARDED AS THE SADDLERY CAPITAL OF THE WORLD?

Early Origins
What wealth lay below the Ground ?
Early industry
The Black Country
Canal Problems
Industrial Revolution
Where was the towns first  Railway Station?
The Saddle Industry
Walsall Today
All will be revealed in this informative and light hearted talk

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Never a Dull Moment - Forty Years of Business Travel & Experiences

I am the 6th generation to work in the family business of Jabez Cliff & Co Saddlers and Loriners to Queen Elizabeth II. In forty years  of foreign  business travel throughout 25 countries I have learnt to be prepared for the unexpected

Fire in an aircraft at 35000ft when  returning from Mexico
A wheel dropping off a taxi in India
Diving into a swimming pool  in my street clothes  to save a child from drowning.in the USA  
  Being driven by a one eyed  taxi driver in Lisbon
Meeting  members of the Royal Family
Working with leading equestrian riders both here and abroad
My grandfather’s problem  Moscow 1917 Russian Revolution
Not to mention my cousin's problem with a coffin!

I retiredin 2011 and this is a light hearted and sometimes nostalgic tale

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Leather - its Versatility and Uses

I was a Director Of Jabez Cliff & Co one of the world’s foremost saddler. I spent my early years working in tanneries both here and in France to enable me to follow in my grandfather's footsteps as the rough leather buyer 
From the Neolithic Age to the modern day leather has been used - initially for clothing and since then its versatility knows no bounds. How is leather tanned? What is a Currier? Do you have a query about a leather item? What is the most unusual item that has been made in leather? You won’t believe it I didn’t, I had to Google it!
Customers leather problems and Old wives tales. A selection of unusual skins will be available for your perusal.

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From Master Spy to Weakest Link
I have been a contestant in various Television Quizz shows and Game shows:-
Master Spy with William Franklin
Generation Game with Bruce Forsythe
Who Wants to be a Millionaire with Chris Tarrant
Weakest Link with Anne Robinson

This talk gives my audiance an insight, in a very light hearted way, into what happens behind the scenes 
One of only nine people asked to return for a second show of Weakest Link - Why ?
Just a single phone call to Who Wants to be a Millionaire gets me on the programme - How?
What is Bruce Forsythe really like?
Book the talk and all will be revealed
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