Penning history in paradise: Adrian & Dawn Leyland’s Spanish story

Adrian & Dawn Leyland Bridge are writers and historians from the UK and have recently finished their 8^th history book. The Euro Weekly News recently caught up with this writing duo to find out about their life in Spain.

Life in Spain: An Interview with Adrian & Dawn Leyland Bridge

‘We’ve been living in Spain, permanently, since July 8, 2020, with our chocolate-coloured labrador dog Ralph. We’ve been living in Puerto de Mazarron during all our time here,’ they explained.

‘As a married couple, we’ve been regular visitors to Spain. Before this, Adrian regularly visited Spain (as a child). – His first visit to Murcia and La Manga took place nearly 50 years ago. he worked in Andorra and northern Spain as a teenager, and his great-great-grandfather was actually a Spaniard, born in 1812. This ancestor moved from Spain to England and spent the rest of his life working in the cotton mills of Manchester. So, to some degree, by moving to live in Spain permanently, we feel we are completing a long family circle!’

Pros and Cons of Living in Spain

‘Obviously, we both love the climate. The standard of living here is (for us) much better than in the UK, and – at least in our experience – the local Spanish people have been warm, welcoming, and friendly. We are also engrossed by the architecture and long history of the Costa Calida, Murcia, and Spain as a whole, and we’ve enjoyed writing a number of articles on the history of the area. Finally, we’re very partial to tapas, and have just completed the 2024 Ayuntamiento de Mazarron’s Ruta de la Tapas,’ they added when discussing what they love about Spain.

We asked Adrian and Dawn if there was anything about living in Spain that they don’t like they said ‘Very few things really! Here in the port, the high kerbs, undulating pavements, and broken pavement tiles can cause problems, – Dawn shattered her left ankle in a fall from one such high curb in 2022, which necessitated a long stay in St Lucia Hospital. A minority of Spanish dog owners/walkers can also be difficult. – Dogs are regularly let out of the house, off the lead, even in the centre of town, in a way that hasn’t really been seen in the UK for decades.’

And when asked what they miss the most about living in the UK Adrian told us he misses an English bookshop and Dawn misses Staffordshire oatcakes.

Historians in Spain: Looking to the Past and the Future

Looking to the future Adrian and Dawn have much excitement on the horizon ‘For both of us – travelling more widely within Spain itself, along with trips further afield to India and the Middle East. We’ve just signed a contract for our 9th book with our UK publishers, which is a ‘true crimes’ book, but it would be nice to get to 10 (with a bestselling hardback)!!’

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