He specialises in writing about the good old days, but now the Lincolnshire Echo’s Gossiper columnist Peter Brown is revisiting that past himself after becoming a dad – almost 31 years after his first experience of fatherhood.
His partner Lynn Train (29) gave birth to Elizabeth Mary – Beth for short – at Lincoln County Hospital just a few weeks before his daughter from his previous marriage, Karen-Louise, the mother of his four grandchildren, celebrates her 31st birthday.
Peter (55) joined the Echo 34 years ago and has been responsible for the Gossiper page for the past 15 years.
Being a dad again is suiting Peter as he now reveals, in an article first published in the Echo.

It’s back to those dirty nappies and sleepless nights again.

Yes, I have become a dad once more.

Our baby was born at Lincoln County Hospital and it’s a girl, weighing in at 6lb 14oz. We are calling her Elizabeth Mary or Beth for short.

My partner, Lynn Train, and baby Beth are both doing well.

Me? I’m not so sure!

It was an experience I shall never forget.

It’s not the first time I have become a father. My daughter Karen-Louise is just a month or so away from her 31st birthday, and between my first and second born are four grandchildren.

Now, you might suppose that, even in this ever-changing world, the birth of a baby would stay pretty much the same as it ever was.

But it’s not so.

Since I last went through all of this, back in 1969, the whole business of having babies has changed completely.

For instance now, thanks to the pregnancy test kits you can buy over the counter, you know almost from the word go whether there is a baby on the way.

Whereas in the past, you had to wait perhaps three months before you knew for certain.

But although you have got longer to prepare, it still ends up being a bit of a race against time in the end – as I discovered.

The biggest change today is that prospective dads are involved far more than they used to be.

There was a time when you would deliver your loved one to the hospital and wait in another room while the tests were being carried out.

Now you are in there with your partner, seeing it all happen.

You get to hear the baby’s heartbeat and, thanks to the scans that they do in hospital these days, you can see pictures or your child and even buy souvenir copies of the images of the unborn baby, which you can send off to friends and relatives.

There are midwives appointments that you can join in and a wonderful invention called ante-natal classes.

This is where you learn the art of breathing.

Now, I have been doing this on a fairly regular basis for more than 55 years, but it’s surprising the tips you can still pick up – though I must admit I found the sight of more than a dozen mums-to-be sitting propped up against a hospital wall blowing bubbles just a little bit strange.

I am still not quite sure why they are asked to do it, but it seems important so I certainly wouldn’t try to discourage anyone.

I enjoyed the relaxation class so much that I could feel myself starting to fall asleep.

But then, it was a very warm evening.

It seems to me that the number of books and magazines available on pregnancy have multiplied many fold over the last 31 years.

But it all gets a bit confusing because they don’t always say the same thing.

You are now encouraged to draw up something called a birth plan, setting out exactly what you want your midwife to do when the big day arrives.

I can’t remember this happening back in the 1960s.

And there is something called Braxton Hicks (or Brixton Hacks as we quickly renamed it in our house).

I am sure these false contractions must have been around forever, but I can’t remember coming across the name before.

But perhaps the biggest change of all is that right from the start it is decided you are going to be there at the birth.

There was a time when this idea was the exception rather than the rule.

The dad-to-be would pace obediently up and down the corridor, listening through the closed door for the first signs of a cry to herald his baby’s entry into the world.

Now you are there watching it all happen. And not just watching because I discovered I had a part to play as well – albeit a menial one.

I was what they call the birth partner. Impressed?

Never one to revel in anything vaguely unpleasant, I had thought I would be there standing in a distant corner of the room intently studying the wallpaper when it was all going on.

But it was not to be.

Like most dads these days I was right there supporting my partner during the long hours of labour.

I was part of a medical team. Well, all right, more accurately I was lending support, mopping brow and ensuring there was always water to sip but it was a wonderful experience and I can see now just why so many fathers want to be there.

At present I am off on what they call paternity leave, which is another thing they didn’t have first time around.

And I am getting used to parenthood once again. The only snag is, if I wait another 31 years before the next baby, I am going to be well into my mid-80s!

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