A retired police officer and National Trust volunteer has turned his passion for history into a reference book about a Dorset author, compiling nine unpublished stories.

Reg Pengelly, 70, from Dorchester, spent 34 years in the police force before working as a safeguarding lead with the NHS and other companies for 13 years. 

He then decided on a career in voluntary work.

He said: “When you get to the point of retirement, you think, can I afford it- but the bigger challenge is 'what do you do to fill a day?'.”

Mr Pengelly became a National Trust tour guide one summer at Clouds Hill, the former home of T.E. Lawrence.

It was there that his passion for history blossomed, and during the winter when Clouds Hill was closed, Mr Pengelly began to give tours at Thomas Hardy’s Dorset homes.

Mr Pengelly has now released a reference guide for all of Hardy’s novels and stories, titled Thomas Hardy PDQ, which National Trust volunteers have used at Max Gate.

Dorset Echo:

Part of this book has compiled nine of Hardy’s unpublished short stories into a collection for the first time. 

During his later years, Hardy started compiling short stories into four collections, however nine novels were missed, according to Mr Pengelly.

Authors in the Victorian period would often serialise their novels periodically in the newspapers which were often creative ways of rewriting work.

These nine novels were published overseas in American magazines, but were ‘sat around in the ether for a long time,’ until Mr Pengelly was researching the works on the internet.

He said: “It was like going down a rabbit hole. I found one, then another one and eventually dug up all nine."

Mr Pengelly said that the nine short stories have been published in his book for the first time, adding that he was proud that people now have access to them. 

The book was written during lockdown after Mr Pengelly found more free time on his hands after reading through Hardy's complete works. 

He said: “To be a tour guide you have to learn a lot of stuff, and I enjoyed the process and got into Hardy more and more. The more I read, the more I see his influences, inspirations and understand what makes him tick- he’s such a thoroughly interesting character.”

“As he went on he became more critical of the class system, which alienated him but that made him attack it more."

Mr Pengelly admitted there might be other short stories, but it’s unlikely.

Speaking about gaps in his research and the future, Mr Pengelly said that one of the novels written in 1894, The Spectre of the Real, co-written with Florence Fenneke ‘doesn’t look right.’

He said: “I feel as though it is missing a paragraph as it has a funny ending. The book ends in suicide but it’s not clear as to why the man chose to take his own life. There is more work to be done.”

The book is available for sale online from Amazon, and can also be purchased from Dorchester's Waterstones book shop on the high street.