Mr Straw's House, Worksop, Notts

Ever since I became a member of the National Trust and received my first handbook, I've been dying to visit Mr Straw's House in Worksop. And today, after 3 years of inertia, I booked a tour and enjoyed a fascinating exploration of a house (unimposing from the outside, a clutter of memorabilia on the inside) lost in time.

Located at No 7 Blyth Grove, it really does belong to a world where time has stood still. The chime of a grandfather clock echoes down the dark hallway but other than that the house stands silent and although it was home to Willam Straw until 1985, it never saw a TV set, radio, gramophone or telephone. The family piano is hidden away in his mother's bedroom, a room untouched since the day she died in 1939.

William Straw senior ran a thriving grocery and seed business in Worksop, his younger son Walter joining him in the business while William junior left to teach in London where he made a considerable fortune by investing in Marks & Spencer shares.

William senior, wife Florence and son Walter moved into Blyth Grove in 1905. Florence decorated it in the style of the day, dark and heavy wallpaper, patterned carpets, dado rails holding portraits and paintings in ornate wooden frames.

They lived a quiet, well-ordered life until the day in 1932 when Walter's father died suddenly at the age of 68. In their grief, the family decided nothing would be changed. A calendar hangs in the dining room, the year is 1932. Father's pipe and tobacco pouch still hang beside the fireplace, and in the hall, his hats and coats remain on their pegs.

William came home the year before his mother's death in 1939. Afterwards he ran the house while Walter cycled into town every day to open up the shop. They followed a rigid routine for 40 years, careful to the point of parsimony with their money, never throwing anything away, hoarding an eclectic mix of possessions which now give a fascinating insight to their lives.

William died in 1990 at the age of 92 and with no heir, he bequeathed the house to the National Trust. Many people assume that William was a recluse who didn't leave Worksop. But an exhibition on view at the house sheds a different slant on his life.

Before returning to Worksop in 1938 he lived in London for 20 years teaching English at a business college. He was based at The City of London College - now London Guildhall University - although the building that William worked in was destroyed by a bomb in 1940. He had quite a social life, including theatre trips and meals out and lived in a number of lodging houses in East London. Before that he served as a signaller in the Leicester Regiment during the First World War.

Once back in Worksop, he was on the Local Footpaths Committee, a big movement of the 1950s seeking to bring public rights of way back into use, and also the local museums and libraries committee. He also published a book about and raised funds for St John's Church in Worksop.

Among the items on display is William's childhood Scout uniform, his teacher's gown and accessories and books showing his passion for gardening. Documents in the archive indicate he removed Worksop Council as one of the beneficiaries of his will, apparently because he was cross with them for removing trees around the town. As a result he had a change of heart about leaving the council money to spend on the maintenance of public spaces.

It was a momentous moment in 1991 when National Trust officials arrived to make the first assessment of the house. They soon realised the rooms hadn't changed for more than 60 years. A decision was made to leave it exactly as they found it to give the public a unique insight into family life between the wars.

Everything in the house becomes more and more fragile every day and nowadays, visitors are really only allowed to poke their heads around the doors of each room to view a snapshot of this family's life. What made it more meaningful for me was the fact that this was a display of modern social history, a history that my grandparents were very much a part of and I felt connected to the place for that reason.

On the table in the front room lay a Worksop Guardian, deposited in a way which suggested the owner had just popped out to make a cup of tea before returning for a good read. You couldn't get very close but I hope I've captured, through the monochroming, the antiquity of the piece as well as the sense that all this is a history our generation still has links with.

The house was very dark and without the use of a flash, it was very hard to capture decent shots without a high ISO setting and longer exposures which left alot of the pictures I took rather to grainy for display, but I hope you like this one!