Starship Free began as a concept of freedom when Mark D Bishop, as a pupil in a private English school in the 1960s, was feeling the effects of long-term physical and emotional confinement. It represented an escape that in his imagination created a world of travel, writing, love and martial arts. The 50 years of poetry that this Anthology represents, chart the course of how he acted out these dreams. While travelling, living, researching, training and working in various lands for 50 years, Mark D Bishop felt inspired to write poetry that he felt he would one day publish. This work then, recording his life's adventures in poetry, is the reality of his childhood daydreams. To the reader, the work represents a fascinating and mind-opening experience; be they arm-chair traveller or adventurer themselves, 'Starship Free: An Anthology' is a reassuring travel companion and an uplifting friend

Time moves on, cultures change with the twists of history and secret arts are lost. To understand the essence of karate, kobudo and te is to read and digest this work. To devour the mysteries of the secret principles it records is to dwell in a former time, only then will the reader know the true meanings of what the masters passed on. This book was a classic of the 20th century and, with the passing of time, is now considered to be an historic record for the modern era; both a time capsule and an integrated tool of knowledge transmission. Also featuring contributions from the latest breed of expert researchers, this Expanded Third Edition keeps the original version alive in its entirety, while bringing the Okinawan karate world up to date, as it expands into an ever-increasing international world. Be warned though, it also answers questions that have not been asked until now and topics that could not have been discussed, while expanding on newly debatable issues. This is what the masters were really saying

Explosively direct: Always one to stand his ground for technical reality and historical fact, this work reflects the quality and sheer scale of information in the author's previous works. Poignant questions are asked, debates are raised and down-to-earth, enlightening answers are given. Much of what is considered to be tradition by many a karate-ka is shown to be not necessarily the case. If you think the closed-fist punch is standard fair, read the facts. If you have been taught that karate is an ancient Japanese art founded on violence, reconsider the fiction. If you think karate training is for self-development, absorb the wisdom. If you seek the truth about zen, enjoy the magic. Packed with until now undisclosed information, this book leads the way for the mature karate-ka to discover those hidden treasures that lie beneath the surface. Fifty years of training will give any teacher insights and Mark D Bishop has more than most to offer. Read, absorb, be enriched & uncover your true self, through karate

Zen Bodywork Dynamics is a natural, martial-arts-based, hands-on method of helping to restore health in a holistic way. It corresponds with other martial-arts training, which it is seen as complementing - whatever the style. Thumbs, hands, elbows and feet, etc. are used to apply pressure and relieve pent-up stress in the format of: Relax, Release & Let Go. Many trainees have benefitted from its wisdom, as have thousands of members of the public - the book is highly recommended.

Progression is a positive trait, as long as one keeps in touch with the past and has a staple backdrop to focus or fall back on. Although the Revised Expanded Third Edition contains all the wording and photographs that are reproduced in both the first edition, as well as this Revised and Expanded Second Edition, it comparatively represents a step into what was, for these latter two books, the future. The year 2019, in which I am writing this foreword, represents respectively 30 years and 20 years into the future since the publication of these two books, so I think this faithful reproduction of the Master Version by Q&I Publications is well timed. For some readers it might bring about nostalgia, for others it might be an eye-opener into a world that is not always truthfully represented, due to commercial or other reasons. For the teachers who I interviewed and have been embodied herein, I hope this Master Version will remain a testament into how they wished to be represented for time immemorial.

Ancestry is a dual aspect entity, both private and public. It is private because it is personal. It is public because the stories of the ancestors need to be told. This work deals with both these aspects, while recording the facts for the family researcher and putting across the stories and lives that shaped the ancestors and how they saw and understood the world around them. One should never be ashamed of one's ancestors, for we have no more a right to judge them than they have to judge us. Yes, they really do live among us and they really do affect us from beyond the grave, not only with the material goods they leave us, but also with the karma that is passed down to us. It is our job, the living, to deal with this karma, to dig out the hidden aspects of our ancestors' lives that society and culture would not allow them to express. Seen through her eyes, Volume IV is the life & ancestry, the somewhat sad story, of that 19th-century matriarch of the Parr family, dear Florence -bless her tender heart.

Following on from Ancestral Chains DNA Part I, this work takes the reader a step further along the intrigue of the Family Tree. Viewing Victorian life through the mind-set of great-grandmother, Kate, the stage is set in a posh Georgian terrace in Lewes that serves as the Sussex Probate Office. Money matters are inevitable, but madness and attempted murder play out the scenes of life, as a large family adapt to the sudden incarceration of their father. Clockmakers, the Tolkiens and the creator of Lorna Doone in Teddington, all play their roles in the Battersby family saga. There is mischief and innuendo too, as when the early 19th century grocer from Isleworth is buried with 2 of his 3 wives; the headstone even today forming a paving stone in the church path, regularly walked over by worshippers. A search & locate mission for a great uncle lost in the Battlefield at Passchendaele in 1917 is launched; love was not lost on his finance though because his elder brother took on the cause.

Like the phases of the moon, fortunes wax & wane. From humble beginnings in Lacock; from hard-working agricultural labourer stock in Avon, to mining and engineering, the Fortune family flourished as it spread throughout the globe. From gold digging in NZ, to administration in Hong Kong, the Fortunes worked far & wide. The inevitability of war sorted the men from the boys & the Fortunes were there; but sometimes at a terrible price. Not only did great-grandfather, John Alfred Fortune, lose cousins though; his own mother was to disappear in very mysterious circumstances. Was it murder? Did she run off with Sailor Sam to the antipodes, or was she just not able to deal with family life? But what she left behind was an urge to travel in John Alfred Fortune, an urge to help others and a benevolent attitude to those who worked for him. In his short life he served the aorta of England, the River Thames as Conservancy Engineer, but did the River serve him? However one views it, his legacy, his monument, is that River.

In this work, the reader is directed to Claydon village in rural Suffolk. Here the Morgan family of the author's memory lived, worked and propagated. Life was generally good with some up-and-downs, as these Morgans were descended from the minor gentry of Suffolk who originally hailed from Ipswich. Yet the Morgan Bloodline in the 19th and 20th centuries was ruled by trades people; the butchers & blacksmiths of the village, each with his business at the other end of town. Butcher by trade, but not by temperament and sporting the name Winfred Edward Mosart Morgan, this great-grandfather had had much trauma in his early life, but was fun to be with. Even then, he would never admit that he and the Morgan blacksmith family down the lane were distant cousins. Musical flair was in the church-going family who were integral to village life, but tragedy was never far away, as attested by the Henry Moore sculpture that graced their local church before strangely being moved to nearby Barham. Oh yes, there was money, too!

Fanciful stories of rags-to-riches are fascinating. Yet, when such is part & parcel of one's ancestry, it becomes real. Having known physical hardship in the back-to-backs of Birmingham, great-grandfather Allden determined never to be poor again. An inherent ability in mental arithmetic was to play a major role in the family Commission Agent business; but did the gamble pay off? The Industrial Revolution is never far away in Birmingham & the Black Country, where the Alldens played their part in firing up and arming the nation. Jockeying around was also a major pastime and a money earner for the boys. Complex family relationships also set the scene when it was better to keep Mum; but lose her they did. A fun-loving Step-Mum & private education stepped in, but did the Alldens find their middle-class roots again. From whence did they hail & why had they fallen? Ancestry is but a game of Snakes & Ladders, so did the Alldens win in the end? Also, is there more of the Allden in the author than he cares to admit?