Imagine this happening here. 

A court in Malaga, Spain has ordered a man to pay his ex wife, Ivana Moral, the equivalent of over £180,000 in respect of 25 years of unpaid housework.

In her ruling, Judge Laura Ruiz Alaminos calculated the figure based on the annual minimum wage during the couple’s 25 year marriage during which the wife had spent almost all her time looking after the couple’s 2 daughters.

In addition the ex husband has also been ordered to pay his former wife a pension equivalent to more than £400 a month, and a monthly child care allowance £356 and £533 for his two daughters now aged 20 and 14. 

The couple’s marriage was governed by a separation of property agreement, which specified that whatever each party earned was theirs alone, with them only sharing possessions.

The arrangement would have left his ex wife with no access to any of the wealth acquired through years of partnership.

Her ex-husband who is expected to appeal the decision, has built a successful gym business and also now owns a 70-hectare olive oil farm worth over £3.5m.

So he’s not short of a bob or two!

In the second hour of today’s programme, Margaret Mills took us back to a very blustery day in Southend, back in March 1842 when the town was “visited by a tremendous storm”.

And of course, ships at sea, bore the brunt of the storm.

No less than six vessels were driven ashore suffering considerable damage, many being completely destroyed, after being dashed against the wharfs and piles on the pier.

Eight ships were reportedly wrecked and out of a total of 15 casualties, which included a woman and child, at least 6 men were sailors from Leigh-on-Sea.

Damage was estimated at over £10,000 –  a huge sum in 1842!

You can listen again here to what Margaret had to say about this catastrophe: –

Right well I’m now going to “blow” out of here, but not with such force.

I hope to have your company again next week,
Scott