I’m Britain’s nosiest neighbour – I know when couples have had a row & have been called intrusive, but I’m not bothered
NOTICING a neighbour’s car was in the driveway one lunchtime, Emma Parsons-Reid took out her phone and began writing a message.
“Is he back from working away?” she asked the owner’s wife. “I couldn’t help notice your driveway was busier than usual.”
It was just one of many observations Britain’s self-confessed nosiest neighbour sends to her street’s WhatsApp group over the course of a day.
They range from messages about naughty children climbing over fences, unusual vehicles making U-turns and bins left out to scruffy hedges, lights kept on, people leaving for work earlier than usual and neighbours who are down in the dumps.
There is nothing the 54-year-old won’t comment on.
This week is all about the Platinum Jubilee. Emma is organising a street party and has given everyone very specific roles.
Read more on neighbours
Like a sergeant major, she insists they stick to them or they will incur her wrath.
She says: “I’ve been extremely bossy and set up a committee.
“There’s music and a gazebo. There’s someone in charge of the raffle. She was booked to go on holiday but I put a lot of pressure on her so she cancelled.
“Another person is in charge of pony rides, while someone else is in charge of baking.”
Most read in Fabulous
Her street group — which she makes newcomers join as soon as they arrive — is called Desperate Housewives, named after the US programme featuring Teri Hatcher and Eva Longoria.
‘NOTHING GETS PAST ME’
The show featured seemingly ordinary suburban families living on a lane with a dark underbelly.
What Emma really liked about it was not the drama but how close they all were.
While Emma might seem annoying, what drives her is a desire to make the Cardiff street beautiful and help her neighbours.
She is not the only one. A recent Fabulous poll revealed one in five people would vacuum their lawn to keep it nice, something Emma supports.
She says: “Street pride is so important to me. That’s why I send so many messages in the group — so we can have a cul-de-sac that looks lovely.
“When I send a message which says, ‘I’m planning a tip run this week in case anyone wants to tag along. There’s some stuff that looks like it could do with being chucked away’, I’m not just being annoying. I genuinely want to make the road beautiful.
“I’ll update the group a few times a day with all the pressing news. If a car is blocking the street, I’ll let people know. It’s a subtle hint to tell them to move it — and it almost always works.
“If someone’s garden doesn’t look up to scratch I’ll not message them directly but send a generic one about ‘street pride’.
“I’ll even offer extra plants if someone’s garden looks bare.”
Her nosiness is not restricted to WhatsApp. Waking at 7am, Emma goes outside and does a daily examination of the street. She says: “I’ll check the cars, see who is home, who hasn’t come home and who is on an early start.
I’ll update the group a few times a day with all the pressing news. If a car is blocking the street I’ll let people know. It’s a subtle hint to tell them to move it, and it almost always works.
“When there’s a light on in a house that isn’t usually beaming, I know something is up — perhaps a row? If milk has been left outside or bins haven’t been taken out, I’ll make a note to check if the situation has changed later in the day.
“If someone’s front garden is a mess, I add it to my to-do list and if kids are mucking about, I give them a hard stare.
“I like to think I’m a mother hen checking on her chicks and nothing gets past me. However, ‘busybody’ may be more accurate. I’m the ultimate nosy neighbour — and I don’t try to hide it.
“I wear the title like a badge of honour and it’s earned me the name of Street Mother.”
She says her neighbours appreciate her efforts — despite more than two-thirds of Fabulous readers admitting they have had rows with neighbours over parking.
Emma’s husband, retired chemical engineer Kevin, 61, humours her, whereas many of her neighbours call her “the meerkat” because she bobs up so quickly.
She is adamant her nosiness has improved the area, making it a community hub. On one occasion Emma hid in a BUSH to catch local kids climbing over a wall - which led to them stopping. Emma says: “New neighbours are initially a bit surprised by my questions about their children, sleeping habits and history. They’ve been called intrusive but I’m not bothered.
“I just really need to know where they’ve come from and what they’ve got planned for the street. I want it to look a certain way.
“Since I semi-retired from my job as a civil servant in 2015, my community mindedness has really kicked up a notch.” Last year Emma’s kindness shone through when three people on her street died in quick succession.
She says: “I ensured I visited their family with flowers, food and other help.
“It was because of my nosiness I noticed that one widowed lady was up early, so I messaged her.
“She told me she was grateful for my interference because it showed I cared and was there for her.”
Emma adds: “If there is gossip in the street, I’m the first to know.
“I’m always the one people come to for the real dirt. Every street needs a nosy neighbour like me.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Read More on The Sun
“I don’t consider it a bad thing. It’s a superpower.”
- Emma is an ambassador for The Big Lunch, an annual day for communities to come together run by the Eden Community Project.
ARE YOU A NOSY PARKER TOO?
ANSWER these questions honestly to see if you are a nosy neighbour . . .
- Do you always know if your neighbours are on holiday?
- Do you know the makes and models of your neighbours’ cars and vans?
- Have you got your local councillors and PCSOs on speed dial?
- Is Nextdoor your favourite app – and do you name-and-shame neighbours on the site?
- Are you a “top member” on your neighbourhood Facebook group?
- Does the idea of a street party fill you with excitement?
- If you see your neighbour in their front garden, do you stop to talk to them?
- Do you peep through people’s curtains to see what they are up to?
- Do you turn down the TV to listen to neighbours?
“YES” ANSWERS: 1 to 2 – You are OK. 2 to 6 – Oh-no, it’s borderline. 6 or above – Sorry, you are nosy!