Ernie Cleator

Ernie was brought up in Laxey in the 1940’s and has lived a full and interesting life. He talks of his earliest memory - seeing the planes from RAF Jurby in the sky above on training flights. He also talks of local folklore, haunted houses in Laxey, shops in the village and characters including the old lady at the end of the road who would ‘put the evil eye on you’. Ernie remembers going with his mother, a Quine from Laxey, to sweep the crossroads after someone had ‘crossed’ her and talks of her unusual superstitions and stories that she passed on to him, sadly she died when he was 11. Ernie was also a founder member of the Isle of Man Family History Society and is still on the committee as Chairman in 2018, he talks of the early days of the Society and the wonderful volunteers that carried out the hugely important ‘monumental inscriptions’ Island wide project. Ernie was always found as a child wherever the mischief was and this didn’t change as he got older! A natural storyteller, his stories of life in Laxey and of his time working and making mischief as a conductor on the electric railway make for entertaining listening.

Interviews

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• Interview with Ernie Cleator