 This is an autobiographical sequel to _Wide-Eyed and Legless (1993) (TV)_ (qv). Following the death of his first wife, Diana, Deric has now married the writer Aileen Armitage and is living in Huddersfield. His eccentric mother, who has a well-honed but distinctly off-beat way with words, is gradually declining in health due to old age. Then a stroke cruelly robs her of her greatest gift: her power of speech.