Cambridge Coincidences Collection

My parents, who lived in London, were on holiday in Hong Kong. While my mother was waiting in the hotel lobby for my father, a man came over to her and started a conversation. He asked where she lived and when told it was London, he said that she must know his cousin who worked in London!! It transpired that his cousin worked for my father and was dumbfounded to be introduced to him.

1) In 1962 I was called up to my National Service and initially I was posted to the Royal Signals Reg. at Catterick Garrison, N.Yorks. After the initial 13 weeks square bashing and aptitude tests I was transferred to the Corp of Royal Military Police, Inkerman Barracks Woking. Seven of us made the transfer by train and underground arriving at the barracks after 5.pm. We were taken to a dormitory and told to pick a bed space, put our Army kit on the bed and go to the cookhouse for something to eat.At this time the bed next to mine was vacant. After tea we returned to the dormitory and I found that there was a youth sitting on the bed next to me. he was wearing the insigna of the Royal Artillery. As you do, I asked him his name and as soon as he spoke I could tell that he was a fellow"Geordie" ( born on Tyneside). He introduced himself as Norman E and I told him my name, Ken.L I had not met this lad before and as we got to know each other, and become good friends we began talking about our homes and girlfriends. He had attended Gateshead Grammar School and I mentioned that my girlfriend(later my wife) also went there. He asked me her name and I told him Anne T.

I've come across many coincidences through the years, but this one may be the most startling. While on a solo trek through Nepal back in 1982, I became very ill and bumped into a young German, a medical student named Ranier, who helped me down out of the mountains so I could find medical help. We wound up talking along the way, and when he asked me what I did, I mentioned (among other things) that I was currently writing a book about "synchronicity." He had never heard the term before, so I explained to him the notion of "meaningful coincidence." Though he was skeptical of the idea, he admitted he’d experienced some pretty amazing coincidences himself. When I asked, "Like what?", he proceeded to tell me the following story: 

Back in Germany several years earlier, a friend of his asked if he’d like to travel to America with him for a week, to Los Angeles, all expenses paid. Apparently, the friend's girlfriend just backed out of the trip they had been planning, and rather than travel by himself he decided to ask Ranier if he wanted to use the ticket, to keep him company. So the two of them flew to L.A.

Several years ago in the days of car log books my husband andI were in the cotswolds on holiday a town called Broadway I visited the ladies and my husband waited for me on a bench He was joined by another gentleman waiting for his wife and the conversation went like this Hello said my husband and so they got chatting The gentleman said he came from north wales and my husband said he came from Co Durham( not many people would know the small town of Bishop Auckland) Oh said the gentleman Do you know a town called Bishop Auckland yes said my husband that is where I actually come from Do you know any doctors in Bishop Auckland he asked A few replied my husband why? Well I bought a car and it had once belonged to a Dr Dawes from Bishop Auckland do you know him? My husband replied you are talking to him I am Dr Dawes