Steve Baskerville-Muscutt ran Fred’s Bookshop for over 20 years, now he’s retiring.

 Initially, Steve Baskerville-Muscutt was planning to be an architect, but took a restaurant job in the Lake district during a recession in the late 60s.

Steve fell in love with Ambleside, when he arrived at The Mountain Grill, and moved to draw, walk and embrace life in the Lake District, meeting Pam, his partner of almost 50 years in 1975.

Steve took on the cooking and management of Harvest Vegetarian Restaurant for Derek Hook and Gillian Kelly, the first vegetarian restaurant in Ambleside, which saw visits from various celebrities, Victoria Wood, Julie Walters and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin.

In 1985 Steve returned to his love of art and opened a business supplying artwork, calligraphed menus and graphics services, was elected into The Lake Artists Society and expanded into 'Watermark Gallery' below Zeffirelli’s.

Steve stepped back into the hectic cooking life again, and stayed with 'Harvest' for five years before leaving for a “quieter” life and joining Fred’s Bookshop.

Steve said: “I had always bought my books and vinyl at Fred's Bookshop and when a part-time vacancy arose, I applied, succeeded and embraced the prospect of becoming a bookseller.

“Fred retired in 2001 and I acquired the business. We extended and enlarged the children's books and teen fiction over the years and have introduced a dedicated crime fiction section as well as giving more depth to classics.  I love to discover new authors as well as reintroducing older classics'

“Fred's Bookshop has weathered many challenges over the years, but survived thanks to the benevolence of Fred Holdsworth we survived.

“The public seems to have rediscovered and embraced reading, putting us and other Independent bookshops on a sound footing for the future.

“I am leaving the bookshop in the capable hands of Su Hall, my manager of some ten years. Fresh ideas, new energy, to steer 'Fred's Bookshop' into the future.

“I have lived, worked and had businesses in Ambleside for over fifty years and I have to say it has been a glorious fifty year 'holiday.'

“Now It's time for me to move on, I'm retiring now age 72 after 30 glorious and interesting years.”