A Cast-Iron Will

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She alleges that Fred was mentally fragile and under the influence of others when he disinherited her, but admits she could not prove it. TV steeplejack Fred Dibnah, whose wife, Sheila, claimed that his will was altered to exclude her while he was was mentally fragile and under the influence of others. Leon Powsney, who has turned Fred’s home in Radcliffe Road, The Haulgh, into a heritage centre, said: “It was amazing and very emotional. They can never save enough to pay for their own care in old age, and will have to fall back on whatever their local authority can provide.

Widow Sheila’s delight as life with Fred turns into a drama Widow Sheila’s delight as life with Fred turns into a drama

Under this law, in the words of the original district judge, Melita “owed her daughter the ordinary family obligations of a mother towards her only child who was an independent adult”. Mrs Dibnah also backed a campaign by Leon Powsney, who has turned the couple’s former Radcliffe Road house into a heritage centre, to bring the engine home. She and the estate eventually reached a settlement, so her case – like most cases – never reached court. Besides, Melita was now unhappy that her fifth grandchild had been named after Nicholas’s mother, who she didn’t like either. Melita demanded, and received, a written letter of apology from her daughter, but the rift between them was too wide.Nicholas and Heather got married without telling her mother, and in 1983 gave birth to her first grandchild, which became the occasion for their first reconciliation.

Sheila Dibnah - 2QT Sheila Dibnah - 2QT

Generally the people who come to see me are middle-aged children whose mum or dad has remarried … and the middle-aged children are very worried about that inheritance going elsewhere. Melita disapproved of Nicholas, believing he wasn’t good enough for her daughter, but Heather refused to come back and there was nothing her mother could do to make her. She gave her detailed memoirs she had kept during her marriage to Fred, with a view to putting together a book. It was a little bit scary at times because he was so good at portraying Fred’s mannerisms and his character. In March 1984, when things were still very strained between them, Melita took the ultimate sanction available to a parent: she formally disinherited Heather and wrote her out of her will.For the next eight years, Sheila worked with Fred as his business and publicity manager and accompanied him across the country on his public appearances.