Expat Radio: Interview with Val Williams talking about a “Pickled Past”

Val Williams has become almost a household name in Mijas and along the coast. Born in Malta and losing her father in WWII when Aircraft Carrier he was serving on was sunk at the beginning of the war. She has been a force of nature ever since. After growing up in rural Wales, she took her first job in Birmingham in a bank which her mother thought would be a job for life.

Val didn’t want to spend 5 minutes there let alone a lifetime. Instead she went to college to study domestic science which she developed into the Restaurant trade. Having shaken the stuffy world of Golf and conned by a fake Prince she continued to build better and bigger. Her first husband died in the swimming pool and despite suspicions, her alibi held up.

Her book, “A Pickled Past” tells the story of her life in her own inimitable style and leaves secrets in the closet. She moved to Spain in 1985 and soon after got involved with the Salon Varietes Theatre. She ran the Lew Hoad centre for several years and then branched out on her own with a children’s restaurant which also fell on hard times when a Brothel was opened next door.

But Val has become even better known when she set up the Simply Surviving Group during the Covid lockdowns, raising money to help support businesses, charities, and I would have to say very well supported by the EWN. Small events to bring business to struggling restaurants turned into large events and the determination to make things work is a reflection of her whole philosophy of life: never take “No” for an answer.

The complete interview can be heard on You Tube by typing Expat Radio Val Williams

Clicking here 

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