Frank Watkinson Timeline
- 1953 Born June 26 in Peterborough, a city 25 miles from Huntingdon where he lives now . Peterborough is known for its massive cathedral.
- 1962 Dad died due to a work related accident
- 1964 Mum died due to cancer. Frank and his six siblings went to live with different relatives. An aunt adopted two of his brothers to somebody else.
- 1969 Returned Home At 16 years old, Frank returned to his mothers house to live with his older brothers. He purchased his first guitar.
- School: Frank hated school "every minute of it". In 1962, at the age of nine, Frank experienced a formative moment when, after excelling in exams at his new school and earning second place, he was denied the prize. Teachers deemed it unfair to award him over a student who had attended the school all year, teaching him an early lesson about the unpredictability of merit and recognition. (Story) After one year, he dropped out of an electrical trade school.
- Work History: Apprentice electrician (briefly) Worked in retail (selling electrical goods) Worked in various factory jobs Grill chef at roadside diner ("Little Chef") - worked night shifts (8 PM to 8 AM) Worked for a telephone company for 36 years before retiring
- 1973 Married: Frank met Frances while working as a grill chef at Little Chef. Frances was a waitress.
- Children: Two daughters
- Grandchildren: 4 granddaughters, 1 grandson, 24, works retail.
- Dogs/Cats: Shih Tzu named Marshall. Two cats.
- Health: Frank has had Diabetes for 35 years. "Diabetes is bad enough, but I also have the usual aches and pains — a bad back, aching knees, and shoulders. Living in Fenland, where it’s damp most of the time, doesn’t help. It’s a bit like swamp land, and it’s common for people here to have arthritis or rheumatism. Summers can be humid, but they’re rare." Frank has smoked since he was 14 years old.
- Music History: "I haven't really got any musical history. Basically, what you see on YouTube is it." Original Song List
- 2015 Launches YouTube Channel
- 2016 Original "Getting old song" - 4.6K views, 4:53 *
- 2017 Original When i was a boy" - 2.6K views, 3:46 *, "Buster" - 1.3K views, 4:34 ""Buster" was a turning point. I realized I didn't need a different chord for every line. I could use the same couple of chords and focus on the melody differently. It made songwriting much easier for me."
- 2018 Original "Time" - 3.6K views, 4:06 *
- 2019 Original "Miss you" - 297K views, 5:17 *
- 2020 Original "Getting old song" (revisited) - 39K views, 4:50 * Buster Reworked" - 4.1K views,
- 2020 'Snuff' Cover by American heavy metal band Slipknot. "I think my subscribers went up at least 200,000 after that one." (RNZ) Views: 5+ Million
- 2020 Goodieboy Indie Artist of the Year
- 2021 Original "This could be my last song" - 3.9M views, 4:53 *
- 2021 American Songwriter Song Contest with “This Could Be My Last Song”
- 2022 Receives YouTube Silver Plaque 100,000 Subscribers
- 2022 Original Ghosts 24K views, 4:21) *
- 2023 Original Just my way of saying goodbye (36K views, 4:25) *
- 2024 Receives YouTube Golden Plaque 1 Million Subscribers
* Years Most Viewed: Original Song
Note: As of December 6, 2024, Frank reviewed this page and commented, "Looks Good To Me." Whenever the page is updated, it is sent to Frank for review.
