Web Page 806

FIRST PICTURE: The Buster Comic











SECOND PICTURE:

A Reunion Of The Portsdown Divisional Rover Crew At Scoutlands In Farlington. L To R: Davy Johns, Me, Dave Bartlett, Tom Holland, Muddy Clay, Roy Johns




















Firstly with thanks to Haley Storey take a look at this Youtube link, film of Portsmouth in the 50’s and 60’s. Let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bimvoo2CrWQ&feature=youtu.be&a




And a new school friend has just joined us Sandra Churchyard.


THE GOOD OLD DAYS



Now this is really going to make you feel old! Did you realize that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the 60’s So I thought that I would take a look at what was happening in 1960 fifty years ago!

Lets start with TV. A new comedy series started ‘Sykes and...’
In August 1960 the cameras first entered 24 Sebastopol Terrace. Eric Sykes playing the a proud work-shy bachelor with childish tendencies and Hattie Jacques was his timid spinster sister Hattie! The series was actually called Sykes Versus TV but each week featured a subtitle which began with 'Sykes and ....'. It was written by Eric and Johnny Speight who created Alf Garnett. After 59 episodes the show ended in 1965, but in 1972 returned in colour for another 68 shows, but Eric and Hattie had moved two doors down to Number 28. The series ended in 1979 with a programme to celebrate twenty years of the series in 'The BBC Honours Sykes'.

Another newcomer to our screens was ‘Candid Camera.’ The concept of hidden camera television was born in the USA and Allen Funt set the ball rolling by secretly taping his army buddies complaints and broadcasting them on Armed Forces Radio. In 1948 'Candid Microphone' was born and five years later it moved to TV as 'Candid Camera'. In 1960 the show arrived in England and a young star Bob Monkhouse launched the series on an unsuspecting public.

The one programme we all remember is ‘Jukebox Jury’ but few people know that it actually began on US Television in 1948 starring DJ Peter Potter. It came to the UK in 1959, presented by David Jacobs, but only became a 'hit' itself in 1960. One of the highlights of the show was when The Beatles appeared on December 7th 1963. They rated songs by artists including Billy Fury, Elvis Presley and The Swinging Blue Jeans - all of which became hits. On the night, seven of the Beatles' predictions were right and three were wrong.

Now to the big screen. Firstly ‘Psycho’, famous for that scene in the shower. Criminal Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) stumbles across the motel with the least used guest book - The Bates Motel. At the front desk is Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) who seems to have an unnatural obsession with taxidermy and his mother. Of course crime doesn't pay and Marion meets a particularly sticky end - Hitchcock used gallons of chocolate syrup instead of blood, as Norman cuts up Marion with the carving knife, all to the sound of screeching violins. Psycho was badly remade by Gus Van Sant in 1998, but his opportunity to indulge in a vast chocolate-fest was scuppered by advances in film technology (i.e. it was in colour).

The ‘Magnificent Seven’ was an epic Western but was a remake of Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai just swap 17th Century Japan for 19th Century Mexico and pick cinema's most sinister baddie to lead some of the decade's top male leads and you've had a sure fire hit! Steve McQueen, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, and Robert Vaughn were amongst the crew, led by Yul Brynner. The desperate villagers of a Mexican outpost, constantly under attack by bandits, hire the seven gunslingers to sort out the invaders once and for all. Mix the whole thing up with a Oscar Nominated soundtrack from Elmer Bernstein and you've got a classic movie.

‘Spartacus’ was a real epic saga in which rebellious slave Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) leads a revolt against the Roman Empire, and it has become one of the most famous and controversial action pictures of all time- strangely not because of the violence but because of fears that it had 'homosexual overtones'. The original version included a scene where Laurence Olivier attempts to seduce Tony Curtis. When the Production Code Administration and the Legion of Decency objected, the scene was cut. This scene was put back in for the 1991 restoration, but since the soundtrack had been lost and Olivier had died, Curtis and Anthony Hopkins had to dub in the dialogue. A couple of other interesting points of trivia are that the sound of the crowd cheering "Spartacus!" was recorded at a Spartans American Football game rather than in Rome, and that Stanley Kubrick spent a quarter of the entire Spartacus shoot directing a single battle sequence.
I will only take a quick look a one single artist of this period,Lonnie Donegan, the man who launched skiffle. He even released an album called 'Lonnie Donegan, King of Skiffle'. He is best remembered for his hits 'Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavour (On The Bedpost Overnight)?' and 1960's 'My Old Man's a Dustman', although he clocked up more than thirty hits between 1958 and 1962. He was born Anthony but changed his name to Lonnie as a tribute to bluesman Lonnie Johnson. Among the many bands who cited the influence of Lonnie Donegan's music on theirs was The Beatles. John Lennon's 'The Quarrymen', which Paul McCartney joined, were a skiffle group. Lonnie Donegan died in November 2002, at the age of 71 whilst on tour.

Fashion is a funny thing who would have thought that ‘Doc Martens’ would become a fashion accessory? When German Dr Maertens injured his foot in a ski-ing holiday he could not have imagined that the orthopaedic shoe he designed for himself would still be going today, let alone become a boot of rebellion. In 1958, the Grigg family acquired rights to the air cushioned sole and started making boots at their factory in Wollaston. The first boot was produced on the 1st April 1960, and so was christened the 1460. The 1460, in black and later cherry red, was popular with postmen and policemen and then the 'mods' began to adopt them in the mid-60s. They became notorious when the steel-toe capped variety was used to inflict harm on football fans and rival gangs. There are 70,000 possible varieties of Doc Martens, starting at 3-eye and rising to a 20-eye boot. Elton John wore an enormous pair in the rock opera movie 'Tommy'.

The other side of the coin was the Beatnik: Quaintly described as a member of the Beat generation who was a nonconformist in dress and behaviour. One of the big hits of 1960 was the carry over of late 50's Beatnik fashion, which also influenced design later in the decade.
The Beatnik message was 'Be Cool, man!' The look was flat shoes for women, sandals for men and beret's became the must have fashion item for everyone. In 1960 Adam Faith starred in the cult film "Beat Girl", the story of a teenager who falls in with a beatnik crowd. It helped confirm the beatnik style as major fashion trend of the period.

And for the kids Etch-a-Sketch, basically it's was just big bag of dust with two magnets and some knobs to twiddle to move them with. It was easy to get rid of the drawing too - a quick shake and you've got a clean slate again. But where did it come from? In the late 1950s Arthur Granjean invented L'Ecran Magique - the magic screen and after several years of being ignored by businessmen L'Ecran Magique was bought by an American toy firm and renamed Etch-a-Sketch and the first sets were produced in July 1960. Most people think the Etch-a-Sketch is filled with iron filings, but the filings are actually aluminium and all the filings were made in the same metallic powder plant in the USA.

I cannot let the 60’s pass by without mentioning Lego, coming from the Danish words 'LEg GOdt' meaning play well, Lego seems to have been around for ever - but not in Britain. It was seen at the Brighton Toy Fair for the first time in 1960 - and took Britain by storm, massively outselling the Loopyloop (whatever that was) which the pundits had thought was going to be the hit of the year. Lego model kits weren't available until the mid-sixties, but the bricks sold by the bucket load, and it is still going today. The British Association of Toy Retailers has named Lego as the toy of the century. In fact my 5 year old grandson has just been given his first set which meant that we had to climb up into the loft to retrieve his dad’s old Lego collection. I am no sure who has most fun with it father, son or grandson.

Lastly a new comic for 1960 was ‘Buster’, it may not be as famous as The Beano or The Dandy, but Buster still has a place in the hearts of men of a certain age. The first issue came out in May 1960, cost 4d and came with a free balloon bleeper as well as great stories featuring the Terrors Of Tornado Street, Turtle Boy, and Phantom Force Five. The Buster of the title was originally billed as the 'Son Of Andy Capp', as he was based on the Daily Mirror strip and his adventure always occupied the front page. Buster was a great success for many years merging with rival Whizzer and Chips it provided a home for characters including Bonehead, Faceache, and Dinah Mite.

Reading all of this I must be getting old!!!!


Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

You Write:

Sue writes:

Having read your blog on all the things our mothers did wrong, by modern standards and all the things we did which children are no longer allowed to do made me think.

I went to Sydney and climbed the bridge on 21st December 2009.
We were told - with reluctance - that the bridge ends and the bases for the bridge were built by the Scots.

We were told - reluctantly - that the bridge itself was built by the men of Middlesbrough. The steel shipped over by sea.

We were asked how many men we thought had died during the construction of the bridge.

They had no harnesses - which the workmen now have.
They had no safety net - which the workmen now have.

They had no communication devices - which the workmen now have.

They had no hard hats - which the workmen now have to wear

They had no safety clothing - which they now have to wear.

They had no steel toed boots - which they now have to wear.

They had limited tools

They worked in gales

They worked in rain

They worked in heat

They finished ahead of time

14 died in the workshops below.

The only safety requirement was rubber soled boots

2 fell to their deaths.


News and Views:
Yoko Ono has announced that she is writing her memoirs, including her years with late-husband John Lennon. She expects to finish in the next five years.

On this day 30th January 1960-1965

On 30/01/1960 the number one single was Why - Anthony Newley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 30/01/1961 the number one single was Are you Lonesome Tonight? - Elvis Presley and the number one album was GI Blues - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was No Hiding Place (AR) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Oral contraceptive made available in UK.

On 30/01/1962 the number one single was The Young Ones - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Blue Hawaii - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 30/01/1963 the number one single was Dance On - The Shadows and the number one album was Out of the Shadows - Shadows. The top rated TV show was The Prime Minister (All channels) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Composer Poulenc dies.

On 30/01/1964 the number one single was Needles & Pins - Searchers and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Labour Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 30/01/1965 the number one single was Go Now! - Moody Blues and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Churchill's funeral.

WEB PAGE NO 804

FIRST PICTURE: The service D to Farlington but where was it photographed ?










SECOND PICTURE: The original Southern Television logo.



A FEW MORE ODD MEMORIES

To start with that bus picture brought back some memories, I most certainly remember Portsmouth Corporation buses running to Farlington and turning at Forty Acres or Rectory Avenue, I cannot remember the number of the service but I am almost sure that it was not this particular service. I remember the 147 and 148 Dockyard Main gate to Leigh Park services passing through Drayton and Farlington but not the ‘D’ and of course I remember the Southdown 31 on the Brighton run, six hours from Portsmouth to Brighton – you really had to be dedicated to undertake that particular trip. What I found really interesting in the bus picture was the Rentaset advert on the bus side. This must date the picture to the mid 1950’s as this was the heyday of TV rentals. The other big name in this field was Radio Rentals. It seems strange now to be able to rent a radio, a washing machine or a TV set but I suppose for many people it was the added insurance of if one of these new fangled things broke down they were repaired for free. This was very noticeable when colour television was introduced and was very expensive to buy and to repair. We only ever rented a television set and this arrived in 1956, a magnificent piece of furniture with a 16” screen made by Sobell, but I have spoken of this before.

I also remember pay TV although I do not remember anyone I knew having it. This involved a television set with a pay meter on the side which acted rather like an electricity meter, ie the more you watched the more you paid. Other rental companies were Rediffusion and Granada and I am sure there were many other companies, Currys for example, who had a rental section for a while.

Whilst I was writing washing machines a couple of paragraph back I suddenly remembered that most households in the 1950’s boasted not one but two washing lines; one low one for clothes and pillowcases and one high one for sheets, blankets, towels and counterpanes. I think most of us in our own homes had washing lines attached to the back of our houses and a scaffold pole cemented into the ground at the garden end of the line. Both these lines were worked on the rope and pulley system but can you remember the consternation when the rope on the top line broke and wet sheets draped themselves all over the lawn and nearby bushes!!!! The other very valuable use that the high line came in for was as a flagpole especially during a game of pirates when your home made skull and cross bones could be hauled aloft to worn off all attackers. (the same went for the stars and stripes with the American 7th Cavalry, when the game was Cowboys and Indians!) Naturally these games were banned on washing days! Then, of course, on hot summers days we could drag an old sheet or tarpaulin over the line and peg it out as a tent for exploring the jungle or to be an Indian encampment.

And all this came to an end with the advent of the simple rotary or whirligig clothesline, which did away with washing lines completely; it just left a hole in the lawn. Shame!

Garden games were different after that we had to make dens and dig hole to make hidouts but that is yet another story.


DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

You Write:
Sue writes:-

Telling my friend, your story from Mrs Sinden, Joyce who seems to have known everyone famous -the Wedgewoods and all the pottery families etc - tells me she trained Donald`s sister to teach. She was a good actress too but other people were not fair to her and she gave up. Joyce now 87 has some wonderful tales to tell, including being one of the first to hear that WWII had ended. Part of the choir who recorded for the BBC during the war, they had just finished recording when the news came over an open microphone. They were locked in the room until 2am!

News and Views:
Ray Ennis, who has sung lead vocals for The Swinging Blue Jeans since they formed in the 1950’s has announced his retirement. The band, who were the first ever to play at The Cavern when it opened as a jazz club, and who gave The Beatles their first chance to appear there will make their final tour of the country early this year as part of the Solid Silver Sixties line-up, ending with what will be a concert in Liverpool on May 30th.

On this day 24th January 1960-1965
On 24/01/1960 the number one single was Why - Anthony Newley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was First Rome Synod.

On 24/01/1961 the number one single was Poetry in Motion - Johnny Tillotson and the number one album was Tottenham Hotspur. The top rated TV show was The Russ Conway Show (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £not very interesting and 13.25 were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Bootsie & Snudge (Granada).

On 24/01/1962 the number one single was The Young Ones - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Blue Hawaii - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Film Jules et Jim premieres in Paris.

On 24/01/1963 the number one single was Dance On - The Shadows and the number one album was Out of the Shadows - Shadows. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 24/01/1964 the number one single was Glad All Over - Dave Clark Five and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Steptoe & Son (BBC) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 24/01/1965 the number one single was Yeh Yeh - Georgie Fame and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Winston Churchill dies.

WEB PAGE NO 802

FIRST PICTURE: PETER HAIGH











SECOND PICTURE:

Shani Wallis s she appeared in Oliver








Firstly, with the able assistance of Steve and Philip I have been able to name all the boys in the picture entitled in the Woodwork Shop on the side bar.



Some names from the past you may well have forgotten!


Peter Haigh 1925 - 2001
Peter Haigh died aged 75 in 2001. He was a familiar and popular face on BBC television in the years after the War.He made his debut as an announcer in March 1952 when he stood in for McDonald Hobley. Before this he had been trying without luck for three years to get a post at the BBC, but his two-week trial at Alexandra Palace was an immediate success and he was asked to join the team of continuity announcers headed by McDonald Hobley, Sylvia Peters and Mary Malcolm. He was over six-foot tall and had a carefully trimmed moustache and beautifully modulated voice, he looked every inch the Guards officer that he had been before entering broadcasting. Newspapers columnists regularly referred to him as "Television's most eligible bachelor", a tag he forfeited when in 1957 he married Jill Adams, a Rank starlet.The previous year he had defected to ITV then the job as BBC’s chief staff announcer was offered him, but he had already started to make a good living as a freelance presenter and knew that if he accepted the BBC's offer he would not be able to continue with this additional work. He turned down the job and concentrated on activities such as compering Come Dancing, presenting television quizzes and introducing celebrity dinners at Guildhall in London. In 1956 he was voted best commentator of the year. He became perhaps most associated with Picture Parade, a weekly review of the film world which he co-presented with Derek Bond and which ran for many years.
With the coming of television he fitted perfectly into that persona of dinner jackets and clear enunciation. During the 1950s he earned and spent a great deal of money, but when the look of television began to change his career declined. His marriage broke up and he began drinking more than was good for him. In the mid-1960s he retired to Portugal, where he ran a harbour-side restaurant and bar. There he met his German-born second wife. In the 1980s they returned to Britain, where he hoped that he could resume his broadcasting career. But this did not happen. He made his final television appearance as the guest of Des Lynam on a short-lived series called It's My Pleasure, intended as a television equivalent of Desert Island Discs. Afterwards he worked occasionally for BBC Radio and did voice-overs for advertisements. He died in March 2001and was survived by his second wife, Inge, and by a daughter of his first marriage.
Elton Hayes. 1915 - 2001
Both his parents were actors and he made his first stage appearance aged nine. He wanted to be an actor, but he also learned the violin and the ukelele. In his teens, he won a scholarship to the Fay Compton School of Dramatic Arts. His first job was as assistant stage manager with the Old Stagers' Company at the Canterbury Theatre and he sang in his spare time at local social clubs.
He took up the guitar and the guitar would cause his later fame, accompanying himself while he sang old English folk songs and ballads he made an enviable reputation. Despite contracting rheumatic fever, which caused his fingers to stiffen, he continued playing. He joined the services during the war and a few days after returning to Britain from war service in India, he visited the BBC, still in uniform, to watch a broadcast of Children's Hour. He was recognised and was immediately taken on to write and perform a slot in the programme based on Edward Lear's Nonsense Rhymes. Soon after he was given a regular slot on "In Town Tonight". From then on he performed on radio and television frequently in Britain. On an eight week tour of North America, he made 113 appearances which he found very exhausting. But for most of us he was, and will always be, the singing minstral Alan-a-Dale in ‘The Tales of Robin Hood’. He was highly nervous before live performances and so retired from show business in the 1960s and, after studying at a agricultural college, became a farmer in Essex, breeding pedigree livestock. He took up carriage driving and became a member of the British Driving Society. After suffering a stroke in 1995, he had to give up his farm and moved to live with friends, who cared for him until his death. In 1942 he married Betty Inman, who died in 1982.
Shani Wallis
Shani Wallis was born in 1933 in Tottenham and made her name as an actress and singer, releasing several popular records in the 1950s. She made her first stage appearance at the age of four, and later studied at the RADA on a scholarship. Throughout he career she played many leading lady roles in the West End, but she is best known for the role of Nancy in the 1968 film production of Lionel Bart's musical Oliver! She is now a naturalized citizen of the United States, where she has lived for many years. She has appeared with Liberace, Jack Benny, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis and has been married to agent Bernie Rich since 1965; they have one child, Rebecca, and two granddaughters. She is also the sister of jazz drummer Leon Roy and is the Life President of The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America.

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

You Write:
Mary Writes: I do so agree with the article. I feel sorry for children today, as we had such freedom. I spent hours on Farlington Marshes and developed a real love of wildlife, which has never left me. I loved to climb trees, chalkpits, and slide on the ice, all very "elf&safety" today. I used to climb trees while my brother stood at the base of the tree holding my coat. Later my brother joined the RM reserves and got his para wings! I actually do not like heights these days! Also we used to walk everywhere. I still remember how we used to walk from Cosham Odion on a Saturday, save the bus fare and buy a cake in the bakers in Drayton.

News and Views:
The U.S. Postal Service announced its commemorative stamps for 2010. Gene Autry and Roy Rogers will be honoured as part of an American Cowboy series.

On this day 17th January 1960-1965

On 17/01/1960 the number one single was Why - Anthony Newley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was the price of large eggs cut to 3/- a dozen.

On 17/01/1961 the number one single was Poetry in Motion - Johnny Tillotson and the number one album was GI Blues - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 17/01/1962 the number one single was The Young Ones - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was The Young Ones - Cliff Richard. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Van Doren guilty in US quiz show fix.

On 17/01/1963 the number one single was The Next Time/Bachelor Boy - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was West Side Story Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 17/01/1964 the number one single was Glad All Over - Dave Clark Five and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Steptoe & Son (BBC) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 17/01/1965 the number one single was Yeh Yeh - Georgie Fame and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page No 800

FIRST PICTURE: MARILYN MUNRO EVERY TEENAGE BOYS FANTASY












SECOND PICTURE: A PLACE TO COOL OFF AFTER LOOKING AT THE FIRST PICTURE, HILSEA LIDO.


Firstly with the help of Steve and Tim I have now managed to name almost all of the pupils on the 27th picture down on the Blog Side Bar. Are you there?


CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL MY FRIENDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 1940s AND 1950s!




I have seen many of these remember when articles but I think this is one of the best! So I have localised it a little.

First, we survived being born to mothers who sometimes smoked and/or drank while they carried us and lived in houses made of, or full of asbestos. They took aspirin (my mother took Rennie by the cwt when she was carrying so I was told), ate blue cheese, raw egg products, loads of fatty bacon and pork, processed meat, tuna from a can and never thought of getting tested for diabetes or cervical cancer.

Then after that trauma, our baby cots were often second hand and repainted by Dad with bright coloured lead-based paints.

When we rode our bikes we rode on the road and not the pavement because we knew a policeman would tell us off if we did, we had no helmets or protective clothing. Later some of us took up hitchhiking without a thought of danger. As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags and we often rode in the front seats on Mum’s lap.
Take away food was limited to fish and chips, (in our case from Fishy Francis in Drayton) there were no pizza shops, McDonalds , KFC or Subway but there were Wimpey Bars if you could find them.
Even though all the shops closed at 5.30pm and didn't open on Sundays, somehow we didn't starve to death and Dad still got his DIY done!
We could collect old drink bottles and cash them in at the corner store and buy Toffees, Gobstoppers, Bubble Gum and some bangers to blow up the mud on Farlington Marshes with.
We ate sugar heavy cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks with loads of sugar in it, but we weren't overweight because.......WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!! We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us all day. And we were still O.K.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of old prams and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. Then come the winter we would build sledges to use on Portsdown Hill. We built tree houses and dens and played in the garden with Matchbox cars.
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo Wii , X-boxes, no video games at all, no 999 channels on SKY or cable, no video/dvd films, no mobile phones, no personal computers, no Internet WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, grazed and scratched ourselves, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. Only girls had pierced ears! We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever. You could only buy Easter Eggs and Hot Cross Buns at Easter time...We were given air guns and catapults for our 10th birthdays. We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them! Mum didn't have to go to work to help Dad make ends meet!
RUGBY and CRICKET had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!! Getting into the team was based on MERIT.
Our teachers used to hit us with canes and gym shoes, threw blackboard rubbers or chalk and bully always ruled the playground at school. The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!
Our parents didn't invent stupid names for their kids like 'Kiora' and 'Blade' and 'Ridge' and 'Vanilla'
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL ! And YOU are one of them! CONGRATULATIONS!
You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own good.
And while you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave their parents were.

PS –It might be an idea to foreword this to friends in big type because their eyes are not too good at their age.
Stay in touch and Take Care and how often did you say,’yes I remember that’?

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Someone told me the other day that back in the mid 1950’s when ‘Fish Figures’ were first put on the market the launch was delayed because it was decided to change the name of the product. I really do wonder just how long they would have lasted under the original name ‘Cod Pieces’ !!!!!

NEWS AND VIEWS:
Royal Mail will issue a series of stamps depicting legendary album covers. Among them are "Let It Bleed" from the Rolling Stones, Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells," David Bowie's "Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust" and the album known simply as "Led Zeppeliv IV."


ON THIS DAY 10th JANUARY 1960-1965
On 10/01/1960 the number one single was Why - Anthony Newley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Aswan Dam foundation stone laid.


On 10/01/1961 the number one single was I Love You - Cliff Richard & the Shadows The top rated TV show was Emergency Ward 10 (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 was Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV).


On 10/01/1962 the number one single was Moon River - Danny Williams and the number one album was Blue Hawaii - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Avalanche buries 16 villages in Peru.


On 10/01/1963 the number one single was The Next Time/Bachelor Boy - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Black & White Minstrel Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Sylvia Plath publishes her only novel The Bell Jar.


On 10/01/1964 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Steptoe & Son (BBC) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Anti-US demonstrations over Panama Canal.


On 10/01/1965 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page No 798




HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE





FIRST PICTURE: A NEW YEAR DAY CARD FOR ALL OF YOU








SECOND PICTURE: HOME SWEET HOME OVER THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS






HOME ON SUNDAY

Hey! Do you remember Sundays and holidays at home when we were first at Manor Court. We were 11 years old or so that would make it 1957 or thereabouts; but Sundays then were a very different animal than they are today.
To start with as Sundays were special and were mainly reserved for the visits of, or visits to, some of the far flung members of the family I was never allowed to go out and play with my friends because ‘It is Sunday and it was for the family’ and when you are an only child with no brothers or sisters to contend with, that can make for a very boring day!! Especially if I was playing in the garden I was not to make too much noise ‘because it was Sunday’. Maybe in the afternoon we might go out for a walk if the weather was fine but even that was no relief as to go out, ‘because it was Sunday’, it meant being dressed in your Sunday best, not comfortable clothes, what a bore.

You could not even escape by running an errand to the shops as they were not open, no grocery store, no d-i-y store, no supermarket and definitely no off licence. The only shop that was open was the newsagent for the Sunday papers and their deliveries and by 11 or 12 o’clock they had usually closed ‘because it was Sunday’.

There was no professional sport on a Sunday but amateur sport was allowed so club football, rugby and cricket matches took place as did motor cycle scrambling and moto cross. There really was a queer mix of things that were allowed by the Lords Day Observance Society who had a lot of influence as to what could or could not happen on a Sunday.

The radio programmes weren’t bad and I know I have discussed them in depth on earlier pages But then there was Television. In the early days of us owning a TV, set a 14” Sobell, there was very little to watch apart from the Sunday Service in the morning, then there was a period when the station was off the air, ‘because it is Sunday’. It then re-opened with programmes specially aimed at children, programmes, which, as far as I can remember, children did not like, or want, programmes such as ‘All Your Own’ with Huw Weldon. I know that I never had the slightest interest in what other children could do or what they could play, to me and to many others it made for just a boring programme. Then came one of the highlights of the day, the Sunday afternoon serial, ‘Hornblower’, Children of the New Forest, ‘Kidnapped’, ‘the Black Narcissus’, Swiss Family Robinson, Treasure Island or some other exciting story usually dramatised for television by a man whose name always fascinated me by its strangeness, Dennis Constandures.

The of course there was ‘Songs of Praise’, ‘because it was Sunday’ the tv company’s had to fill the God Spot! Then we would all settle down with a cup of tea, a cold meat sandwich (meat left over from the Sunday Roast) and a slice of Victoria Sandwich ready for ‘Sunday Night at the London Palladium’, a real family favourite.

Once this had finished it was time to get your clothes and books ready for school so as not to have a rush in the morning, a bath ‘because it was Sunday’, then off to bed as I had to get up for school in the morning.

As far as I can remember this was the regular routine in our house every Sunday for years and years, maybe being interspersed sometimes with church on most Sunday mornings. And even when we went to stay with my Grandmother in London or my Godmother in Essex the routine hardly changed except for one very big thing, neither of them had a television set!

Well as I am sitting here writing this of an evening when all the rest of the family have gone on to bed I had better stop writing as time is marching on and out of guilt I will have to stop writing ‘because it will soon be Sunday’.

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:

Even more about Highbury
I was speaking to an elderly lady the other day who remembers moving into Highbury Grove when it was new and before the roads were made up. She tells me that opposite the Highbury Shops, where the bowling green is now there was a large builders sign advertising the houses. This sign consisted of a whole row of cut out houses and there were soon found by the local birds who very quickly moved in and made nests in them.


NEWS AND VIEWS:
A brand new "Ivor the Engine" story, the first in over 30 years, was unveiled on 7th December after a unique collaboration between Ivor's co-creator, Peter Firmin and Dan Postgate, son of the late Oliver Postgate who wrote the original Ivor stories. With brand new illustrations by Peter Firmin and words by Dan Postgate, "Bluebell's Christmas Mission" is set in a snow-bound Wales on Christmas Day, and will benefit the work of UK veterinary charity SPANA (Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad). SPANA provides free veterinary care to working animals like donkeys, mules and horses in some of the poorest countries of the world, and it's fitting that the new story sees a central role for Bluebell the donkey, who figured prominently in the original Ivor stories. The new story, entitled "Bluebell's Christmas Mission" is available as a download from the SPANA website at www.spana.org at a cost of £3. Hard copies can be ordered online for £3.50, or by sending a cheque to SPANA at 14 John Street, London. WC1N 2EB. All profits made will help SPANA's veterinary and education work overseas.
SPANA has had the story fully translated into the Welsh language, and this is available as a separate download from the same website or as a hard-copy by post
ON THIS DAY 3RD JANUARY 1960-1965
On 03/01/1960 the number one single was Starry Eyed - Michael Holliday and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Boeing 707s to be tested by UK pilots.

On 03/01/1961 the number one single was I Love You - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was The Russ Conway Show (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Millionth Morris Minor produced.

On 03/01/1962 the number one single was Moon River - Danny Williams and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Pope ex-communicates Fidel Castro.

On 03/01/1963 the number one single was The Next Time/Bachelor Boy - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Black & White Minstrel Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/01/1964 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 03/01/1965 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page No 796

FIRST PICTURE: MY CHRISTMAS CARD TO YOU ALL












SECOND PICTURE: CHRISTMAS AT HOME


THE ANNUAL CHRISTMAS QUIZ

Where is it?

1. Chernobyl was the site of a nuclear accident in 1986, in which country is it?
2. Casablanca is the title of a well known film starring Humphrey Bogart. In which country is Casablanca ?
3. Waterloo was the scene of a famous battle fought in 1815, in which country is it?
4. Guadalcanal was the site of fierce fighting during World War II. In which group of islands is it?
5. Herp Alpert was backed on several hits by the Tijuana Brass. Where is Tijuana?
6. In which country is Transylvania, home of the vampire legends?
7. “The girl from Ipanema” was a popular tune of the 1960s. In which country is Ipanema?
8. Timbuktu is always cited as a very distant and outlandish place, where is it?
9. Fez is an African city which gives its name to a type of hat. In which country is it?
10. The Crimea is a famous as the scene of a war in the middle of the last century which included the famous Charge of the Light Brigade. What country does it belong to?

Memories.

11. What book, written in the 1920s was the subject of an obscenity trial when finally published in 1960?
12. The largest liner was launched in 1960 what was its name?
13. How did spurs player John White die in 1963?
14. Which UK channel started broadcasting in 1964?
15. What city was Martin Luther King killed in?
16. Which London landmark was cleaned in 1968 for the first time since 1864?
17. What became Britain's tallest building in October 1965?
18. Who became Governor of California in 1966?
19. Who was 'Chi-Chi' off to meet in 1966?

Locations
20. In which Beijing Square were the 1989 protests crushed by tanks?
21. Which cathedral was badly damaged by lightning in July 1984?
22. What was abolished by France in 1981, The Netherlands in 1982, Australia in 1985 and New Zealand in 1989?
23. What sank in the Solent in 1545 and was raised in 1982?
24. What year did Britain suffer its worst storm since records began?
25 Which year did the SAS storm the Iranian Embassy in London?
26. In 1984, who was the WPC shot dead outside the Libyan Peoples Bureau in London?

1960’s Music
27. What did Dora Bryan want for Christmas in 1963?
28. In 1966 who were they 'coming to take me away, ha-haa' ?
29. How was the Belgian Soeur Sourire known in the UK?
30. What was The Shadows' first No. hit?
31. Where and at what time was Kenny Ball in the charts in 1961?
32. Who advised us to 'Walk, Don't Run'?
33. Which famous guitarist's real name is Brian Robson Rankin?
34. Who was the band leader of Manuel and his Music of the Mountains?
35. What was The Beatles' first top ten single?
36. 1966 Frank Sinatra had a No. hit in 13 countries with what song?

1960’s General
37. Who or what was 'The Shrimp'?
38. Who played the lead in the film 'El Cid'?
39. Which new cup was introduced to English Football in 1960?
40. What went up with a bang in Dublin in 1966?
41. What football team did TV's Alf Garnett support?
42. India was attacked by which country in 1962?
43 What was the occupation of Norman Parkinson?
44. Who was in charge of the 'Desilu' production company?
45. What year saw the Rolling Stones' first No.1 hit?

Good Luck and Take Care the answers are in the You Write section as usual.

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
I WRITE THE QUIZ ANSWERS
1. Ukraine
2. Morocco
3. Belgium
4. Solomon islands
5. Mexico
6. Romania
7. Brazil
8. The Sahara Desert in Mali
9. Morocco
10. Ukraine
11. Lady Chatterley's Lover
12. SS France (Norway)
13. Struck by lightning
14. BBC2
15. Memphis
16. Nelson's Column
17. The Post Office Tower
18. Ronald Reagan
19. An-An
20 Tiananmen Square
21 York Minister
22 The Death Penalty
23 The Mary Rose
24.1987
25 1980
26 Yvonne Fletcher
27( All I Want For Christmas Is ) A Beatle

28 Napoleon XIV

29 The Singing Nun

30 Apache

31 Midnight In Moscow

32 The Ventures

33 Hank B. Marvin

34 Geoff Love

35 Please Please Me

36. Strangers In The Night

37 Fashion model Jean Shrimpton

38 Charlton Heston

39 The Football League Cup

40 Nelson's Column

41 West Ham United

42 China

43 Photographer

44 Lucille Ball

45 1964

NEWS AND VIEWS:
Monkee Micky Dolenz will start rehearsing in January to join the London cast of the stage musical "Hairspray." He will take over the part of Tracy Turnblad's dad, Wilbur on February 2nd.

ON THIS DAY 20TH DECEMBER 1960-1965
On 20/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Knight Errant (Granada) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1961 the number one single was Tower of Strength - Frankie Vaughan and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1962 the number one single was Return to Sender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was West Side Story Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1963 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1964 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 20/12/1965 the number one single was Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out - The Beatles and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

FIRST PICTURE: TRANSPORT FROM THE PAST BOAC BEDFORD VAN





SECOND PICTURE: SOUTH PARADE PIER IN ITS HEY DAY.





Web Page No 794

13th December 2009

COMEDY SIT COM.


The mainstay of much of television in the early days was the comedy sit com. Most of us remember the famous ones from the 1950’s and 60’s, the Likely Lads, the Army Game, Bootsie and Snudge etc but here are a few from the period of time up until 1965 many of which I have never heard of before.
Abigail And Roger
This was 1950s sitcom about a young engaged couple who love to explore life in the city of London from their flats in bedsitter land. It was broadcast on BBC in 1956 and they only made one series of nine episodes. The programmewas written by Kevin Sheldon and starred Julie Webb, David Drummond, John Stone, Rosina Enright, Maud Long, Frank Williams, Grace Denbeigh-Russell

The Sky Larks
From 1958 this was probably the first Royal Navy based TV sit com and featured the adventures of a helicopter crew based on the fictional aircraft carrier, HMS Aerial (not to be confused with the former name of the air station HMS Daedalus at Lee on Solent in fact in real-life the ship was HMS Ark Royal). Again a BBC production and only ran for one series of 16 episodes.16 (1 series). Written by Trevor Peacock, Gavin Blakeney, John Warrington, it starred Anton Rodgers (who later found fame in many sit coms), A.E. Matthews (Matty), Robert Chetwyn, Roland Curram, John Southworth, William Mervyn (later to be cast as the Bishop in All Gas and Gaters), Frank Shelley

Educating Archie
This strange programme did actually transfer from the radio to TV the though of Archie Andrews, a ventriloquist's dummy, taking on a life of it's own as it talks and walks all over it's creator, Peter Brough was quite bizarre. The series was made by ITV between 1958 and 1959 and ran for two series of 27 episodes. Despite the programmes writers being a Who’s Who of British Comedy Marty Feldman, Ronald Chesney, Barry Pevan, Ronald Wolfeand starred the likes of Peter Brough, Dick Emery, Irene Handl, Freddie Sales, Ray Barrett the fact that Peter Brough was a good theatre ventriloquist ie from a distance, close up he was very poor probably helped to finish the series.

The Artful Dodger
There was only one series of 6 episodes and was made in 1959 by the BBC. It starred Dave Morris, Joe Gladwin (later to become Wally Batty in Last of the Summer Wine), Gretchen Franklin (who found fame in Coronation Street. The stories were about the swaggering, work-shy, know-all Artful Dodger.

The Adventures of Brigadier Wellington-Bull
This was a short lived BBC programme of 1959 only having 5 episodes. It was a sitcom following the barnstorming antics of retired Brigadier Wellington-Bull. The Brigadier in trying to come to terms with civilian life gets into all sorts of situations. 'Sooty' Pilkington, a young officer who had served under the Brigadier and the Brigadier's daughter Jane, also featured. It starred Alexander Gauge, Valerie Singleton (she of later Blue Peter fame), Donald Hewlett

Three Live Wires
Made by Associated Rediffusion this was a trio of TV repairmen who travelled around London repairing the TV sets of the rich and famous and trying to avoid the wrath of the shop manager. With a total of 26 episodes it is remarkable that it only lasted for one series: Starring: Michael Medwin (from the Army Game), Bernard Fox, George Roderick, Deryck Guyler(Sykes and Please Sir much later) , Derek

Colonel Trumper's Private War
Yet another Army based sit Com from the unpublished biography of an hitherto unknown war hero, Colonel Basil Trumper, comes the stories that changed the course of World War II. Made by ITV it lasted only five episodes and featured Dennis Price (Jeeves), Warren Mitchell (Alf Garnett 0 and George Tovey. Written by established writersBarry Took, Hugh Woodhouse, Bill Craig, Dick Vosburgh it was made by Granada Television.

The Walrus And The Carpenter
AKA:You're Only Old Once Carpenter
Two old men Gascoigne Quilt & Luther Flannery meet in a graveyard, theyhave little in common but Luther's sense of adventure leads them into scrapes. It was made in 1963 and there were only seven episodes Starring Hugh Griffith, Felix Aylmer(the Abbot in Oh! Brother) and Hazel Hughes, the stories were written by Marty Feldman, Barry Took for the BBC




Meet the Wife

This ran between 1963 - 1966 on the BBC for 40 episodes in 5 series. It starred Thora Hird, Freddie Frinton (known as the best drunk in the business but was in fact TT), Ronald Wolfe, Ronald Chesney
The stories revolved round a plumber Freddie Blacklock who lived with his wife Thora in the north of England. Freddie was a down-to-earth bloke who likes to take things easy whereas his wife had ambitions for the couple to improve their social standing. Snobbish Thora often put on a 'posh voice' in an attempt to impress those she was speaking to. A much loved sitcom at the time (the Beatles even mentioned it in one of their songs) and was based on a 1963 Comedy Playhouse production, "The Bed".

Best of Friends
A 1963 ITV single series of 13 episodes, it featrured Charles Hawtrey (of Carry on Fame), Hylda Baker (she knows ya know), Sheena Marshe and Brad Ashton. It was written Bob Block (who later wrote the childrens programme Rentaghost) and Gerry Maxin About a clerk in an insurance office situated next door to a café. The owner of the shop accompanied the clerk on insurance assignments and protected him from his Uncle Sidney who was always trying to find a way to dismiss his nephew

HMS Paradise
Another Royal Naval sit com this time by ITV in 1964 and ran for 26 episodes. HMS Paradise was supposedly an island off the Dorset coast an idyllic posting as nobody seemed to do any work... but not everyone is happy about the situation It featured Richard Caldicot, (from the radios Navy Lark, in fact one of the writers of this very long running series Lawrie Wyman was also a writer for HMS Paradise ) Frank Thornton, Robin Hunter, Ronald Radd, Angus Lennie, Priscilla Morgan, Ambrosine Phillpotts, Graham Crowden

The Big Noise
Events in the uneasy life of a top pop disc jockey, Bob Mason were broadcast by the BBC in 1964. Bob Monkhouse played the lead and with the team of writers of Frank Muir, Denis Norden, Denis Goodwin, it is amazing that it only lasted six episodes. It was to prove a crossroads in the career of Bob Monkhouse and he would never return to the world of sitcom again.

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Mike Writes about the Highbury estate:-
I like reading your postings, but I have to disagree when you said there was no school on the Highbury Estate in the early days. I'm a little older than you, and I attended an infants school which was located very close to where the junior school was later built, on Dovercourt Road. I remember the old infants school as a small building with either a parking area or playground of black cinders. They were not kind to knees if you fell over!

My younger sister went to the new Highbury Junior School, but I went to Court Lane, and after the 11+ to the Northern Grammar. Incidentally, I asked my older sister if she remembers the infants school that I attended, but she did not. It is possible she never went there, as it may have been before the family moved to Chatsworth Ave.
NEWS AND VIEWS:
Little Richard has just undergone a hip operation in the Medical Center in Nashville. He is currently undergoing physiotherapy and is preparing for a concert tour early next year.

ON THIS DAY 13TH DECEMBER 1960-1965

On 13/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was The Army Game (Granada) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Bootsie & Snudge (Granada).

On 13/12/1961 the number one single was Tower of Strength - Frankie Vaughan and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Grandma Moses dies.
On 13/12/1962 the number one single was Return to Sender - Elvis Presley and the number one album was On Stage with the Black & White Minstrels - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 13/12/1963 the number one single was I Want to Hold Your hand - The Beatles and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.


On 13/12/1964 the number one single was I Feel Fine - The Beatles and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 13/12/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page No 792

FIRST PICTURE: ADVERTS FOR LOCAL HOUSES IN THE DAILY SKETCH OF 1957. HOUSES AT BARGAIN PRIZES!!!!






SECOND PICTURE: THE TOP OF COSHAM HIGH STREET 1910



BACK TO THE DAILY SKETCH OF TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1957

TRY THIS FOR A HEADLINE! THE STORY REALLY MAKES YOUR HEART BLEED!

MONEY SCARES THEM.

To hire somebody like Dirk Bogarde to make a film you'd have to pay him at least £20,000 for the eight or ten weeks you have him on your pay roll. The same goes for most big British stars. Some like John Mills and Jack Hawkins have been in the £50,000 a year income bracket for years.

On the face of it that should make them very rich men. But it doesn't. No film star to-day has a chance in a million of ever making a million. The staggering fact is this: Our stars are constantly thinking: up ways of keeping the wolf from their palatial doors. Money terrifies them. Lots of it—or lack of it.

The big bogy is income tax. Unlike authors, who have their Income spread over thrqe years, actors have to cough up annually. And it's usually a great big cough, too. Dirk Bogarde is lucky if he gets £3,000 out of the £20,000. Even the steady £50,000 a yearers seldom see more than £6,000 of what they earn. To the general public this still seems ,a healthy chunk of cash. But is it, when weighed against the gargantuan expenditure entailed in being a movie star?

Whenever the subject of money is raised, actors look coy. Mention their big salaries to them and they roar — with bitter laughter. Jack Hawkins is likely to roar like a wounded bull and tell you that most of his Roehampton neighbours probably have more money than he ever will.

Mrs. Donald Sinden is even more explicit. " It is impossible for actors to save money," she said. " This small house Donald and I own is the only asset we have. And Donald's been an actor for 19 years. " If Donald was thrown out of work to-morrow we would have nothing to live on. As a film star, he gets plenty of prestige but no security." When I asked where the money went, she told me that just being Donald Sinden, movie star, made enormous inroads into their net earnings. Clothes for premieres were a big item. "Stars and their wives or husbands have to be well dressed," she said. " This is essential. We owe it to the public, who sometimes wait in the rain for hours to see us, to be glamorously dressed. " The public also demands that its movie stars live glamorous lives. That has to be worked out the best way the star and his budget will permit."

Mrs. Sinden said that she and Donald were anxious about the education of their children. " We just can't make any security for them," she said. " If we take out an insurance policy to safeguard their education, what guarantee have we that Donald will earn enough to pay the premiums over a number of years? " This is always a worrying thing. No one can tell when Donald will no longer be considered fashionable as a star. It's happening all the time in the theatre. " Yet at school our kids are regarded as young millionaires.! It's ridiculous, but you can't blame people thinking that, when you hear what stars earn— BEFORE TAXATION."

Mrs. Sinden said that unlike doctors or solicitors or other professional people, stars had to pay out a lot of money for simple domestic privacy. ! "If Donald takes the kiddies on buses or eats with them in cheap cafeterias, he is mobbed by fans. So he has to take them to more exclusive places and pay exclusive prices."

Then she summed up the plight—and fear—of all movie stars. " Like all stars Donald has slogged hard all his life to get where he is. When he retires he will not have much put aside. " And unlike the other professions he has no capital to show or sell. " AFTER ALL, WHO WANTS TO BUY A SHARE IN A RETIRED MOVIE STAR?"

Well Mrs Sinden how time has changed things, Donald is still well employed at 86 years of age and staging his own One Man Show and unusually for show business still married to the same woman. Oh! And of course he is now Sir Donald Sinden so I expect he no longer worries about being a Retired Movie Star!!!!

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Jonathon writes:
Thanks for your I -Spy comments.As a boy I also loved to fill in the I-Spy books and had virtually the whole collection. It was a huge thrill to spot the rare objects that scored 50 points such as a VR post box in I-Spy in the Street ........I have often wondered if they are still in publication and whether the modern child of the computer generation would also enjoy them today...........I am sure they would .............I must try and get some for my grandchildren.
I don't remember sacrificing my book to get a feather......I thought I got my books back,,,,,,,,,,,,,still my memory is not strong on that issue.

NEWS AND VIEWS:
At the National Portrait Gallery in London there is an exhibit called ‘From The Beatles to Bowie’ The sixty’s exposed. This exhibition explores the leading pop music personalities who helped create 'Swinging London' in the 1960s. Over 150 photographs, together with a range of memorabilia, illustrate how the photographic image, music and performance made these popstars the leading icons of their time. Featuring key pop cultural figures the exhibition begins in 1960 with groups such as The Shadows and The John Barry Seven. As the decade progressed, early portraits of singers such as Cliff Richard, Adam Faith and Billy Fury were followed by those of bands such as The Kinks and The Who. The classic rivalry between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones is played out visually by a variety of top photographers. The exhibition is on until 24th January.

ON THIS DAY 6TH DECEMBER 1960-1965
On 06/12/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Armchair Theatre (ABC) and the box office smash was still Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 06/12/1961 the number one single was Little Sister/His Latest Flame - Elvis Presley and the number one album was Ipswich Town. The top rated TV show was "Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £not very interesting and 13.25 were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.The big news story of the day was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV)".

On 06/12/1962 the number one single was Lovesick Blues - Frank Ifield and the number one album was On Stage with the Black & White Minstrels - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 06/12/1963 the number one single was She Loves You - The Beatles and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Christine Keeler jailed for perjury.

On 06/12/1964 the number one single was Little Red Rooster - Rolling Stones and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Martin Luther King preaches at St Paul's Cathedral

On 06/12/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page No 790

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FIRST PICTURE: A COLLECTION OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS FROM THE 1950’S. THIS IS TO BE FOUND IN THE MUSEUM OF CHILDHOOD IN BETHNAL GREEN.












SECOND PICTURE: TYPICAL 1960’S MODERN SUNBURST WALL CLOCK.




HOW

Were you a member of the I-Spy Club from the daily paper the News Chronical? I was and I was dead keen on filling in all sorts of I-Spy Books but I only got one feather for my war bonnet because I soon realised that if I sent off my completed book to Big Chief I-Spy to get my coloured feather, only the feather and an Order of Merit came back and not the book. So after the first book that I sent off I satisfied myself with the single feather and kept the hard won filled up books at home.
The I-SPY books were and still are spotters' guides written for British children, and were particularly successful in the 1950s and 1960s being based on things that the children could see in and around Great Britain.
The I-SPY Tribe was based on the I-SPY Books, of which there were forty four different titles, of small spotters books that sold in hundreds of thousands. Each book covered a subject such as I-SPY Cars, I-SPY on the Pavement, I-SPY Churches, I-SPY on a Train Journey, etc, etc. As children spotted objects such as coalhole covers, oak trees, semaphore signals, police boxes, stations, plants, fire engines, whelks, and so on, they recorded the event in the relevant book, and gained points. Once the book was complete, it could be sent to Big Chief I-SPY for a feather and an Order of Merit, a child could also belong to the I-Spy Club and could proudly wear a News Chronical I-Spy Club members badge. (a subtile way of advertising)

The club was supposedly run by a Red Indian chief called Big Chief I-Spy. The original Big Chief I-Spy was Charles Warrell, who was a former headmaster and who created I-Spy towards the end of his working life. He retired in 1956, but lived on until 1995 when he died at the age of 106. After Charles Warrell's retirement his assistant Arnold Cawthrow became the second Big Chief, and served in this role until 1978. For part of this time he also worked as an antiques dealer in Islington. He died in 1993, and is commemorated by a stone plaque placed on the outside of the Boatmen's Rooms, the house where he spent some of his last years in Deal, Kent.

Members of the I-Spy Tribe were called Redskins, and the head office was variously known as the Wigwam by the Water or the Wigwam by the Green. The former was located for some years next to the Mermaid Theatre at Blackfriars, while the latter was in London's Edgware Road.

The books were originally self-published by Charles Warrell but, after a brief period when they were published by the Daily Mail, they were taken over by the now long departed News Chronicle and based in the paper's building in Bouverie Street. The regular I-SPY column, which appeared in the News Chronicle, reverted to the Daily Mail when the News Chronicle ceased publication, and continued to appear until the late 1980s. The books have had various publishers over the years including the Dickens Press, a company set up to continue the book publishing interests of the 'News Chronicle', and Polystyle Publications, a publisher of children's comics.

The books became very popular, with most print runs going well into six figures. Big Chief I-Spy had a succession of assistants, usually known as "Hawkeye". In the early 1970s, this position was held by Ralph Mills. Earlier assistants included Max Heinz and John Tagholm. In the 1980s, following a short-lived third Big Chief, Robin Tucek, Professor David Bellamy of TV fame replaced Big Chief I-Spy as the person to whom completed books were sent, and the earlier Red Indian connections were quietly dropped, I suppose by this time the ethnic connections were politically incorrect!

I-Spy books were still being sold, until recently, by Michelin Travel Publications and there has been talk of Michelin licensing the I-SPY brand to another publisher in the future.

I really do hope that another publisher can be found as the books were a really good grounding for children and nurtured an inquistive mind. However one thing does occur to me and that is with over 40 different titles covering 40 different subjects it really must have been a nightmare keeping these books up to date! Still they were great fun and I spent hours going round recording things in my books. Maybe I should try to introduce my grandson to the wonder of I-Spy!

Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:
Peter Writes
My father started working in Baker & Sons Ltd; in 1946, after he qualified as a Pharmacist, which was owned then by Mr Baker. He took the business over circa 1953 when Mr Baker retired and he renamed the business "Bakers of Cosham". Incidentally, Mr Baker lived at and owned Lumley Mill at Emsworth. In those days, it was just one residence. After he retired, my mother made him a Christmas Cake every year until he died. Either me or one of my brothers had to catch the No 31 bus ( Southdown ) and take it to him.

Seems I have digressed a bit from your Manor Court theme but soon I will send you some more school memories, although I was at Court Lane immediately before it changed to Manor Court.

NEWS AND VIEWS:
Max Robertson, writer, broadcaster and sports commentator, has died aged 94. He was the first presenter of Panorama, of Going for a Song, and was a commentator at the Queen's Coronation in 1953; but he was best known as the "other voice of Wimbledon", alongside Dan Maskell.
He covered every Wimbledon final for the BBC from 1946 to 1986. He was chosen to do the commentary for the first postwar Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1948 and covered summer and winter Olympiads. He also covered the royal tour of Canada in 1951 when the young Princess Elizabeth deputised for her father who was too ill to travel.
ON THIS DAY 29TH NOVEMBER 1960-1965
On 29/11/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Labour Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/11/1961 the number one single was Little Sister/His Latest Flame - Elvis Presley and the number one album was Ipswich Town. The top rated TV show was "Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £ 13.25.The big news story of the day was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV)".

On 29/11/1962 the number one single was Lovesick Blues - Frank Ifield and the number one album was Out of the Shadows - Shadows. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/11/1963 the number one single was She Loves You - The Beatles and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was 119 killed in Montreal jet crash.

On 29/11/1964 the number one single was Baby Love - Supremes and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 29/11/1965 the number one single was The Carnival is Over - Seekers and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music.A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

Web Page 788

Three more pictures from Peter Barlow. Thank you so much Peter.





First Picture: 1940-50








Second Picture: 1930’s








Third Picture: 1963













THE DAILY SKETCH FRIDAY APRIL 5TH 1957

Now for all those who have been waiting a week to find out what Joan Collins meant by the phrase ‘Lets get back to honest sex’ here is the answer. At that time she was in a film called ‘The Sea Wife’ and in this wartime story she is cast adrift, first in a rubber boat and then onto a deserted island with Richard Burton and Basil Sydney. The trouble is that she plays a nun and spends the whole film with no make up and dressed only in a shift. How frustrating for the men in the party!! Hence her quote after the release of the film of ‘Lets get back to honest sex!’ Incidentally there was a third star in the film the coloured Jamaican calypso singer Cy Grant, this was his first film but I expect most of you will remember him when he appeared nightly on the ‘Tonight’ programme with Cliff Mitchelmore.

Right what else was in this particular paper. On the front was an advert saying ‘I’d love a Babycham’. Inside there was speculation whether the defence cuts announced by the Defence Minister Duncan Sandys would be enough to reduce taxation; it wasn’t. The new Navy, it was declared would consist soley of aircraft carriers and it was announced that plans were being made to scrap HMS Vanguard.

Miss Ghana entered the Miss World contest and stunned the press with her 40-38-46 figure, and there was a half page advertisement for a story in the Sunday Dispatch (now who remembers that?) entitled ‘I married a Maharajah’, the English girl, Janet Hicks’ fascinating story. Another article declared that the Italian actress Sophia Loren receives 1,000 love letters a day and that she was working hard to learn English so she can be in a Hollywood film (well Goodness Gracious Me!)

The Archbishop of Malta banned girls in his congregation from wearing English fashions as he classed them as indecent. The BBC Festival of Dance Music at the Albert Hall featured Ted Heath, Sid Phillips, Oscar Rabin, Alex Welsh, Dennis Lotis, Jill Day, The Stargazers, Betty Smith and bottom of the bill Tommy Steele, seats from 12/6 to 3/-.

There is a centre page spread featuring that seasons debutantes highlighting the 17 year old Miss Gloria Kindersley from the Isle of Wight wearing pink taffeta with lace trimmings. (if you are really interested I can send you a copy of the picture) .

The strip cartoons featured very heavily in this paper, I must admit that I really did not appreciate just how many there were in just one publication. In this edition there was ‘Blondie’ by Chic Young, ‘Pop’ by Can-can’t, ‘Tug Transom’ by Alfred Sindall, ‘Carmen & Co’ by Maz, ‘Rick Martin’ by John Diamond, ‘Jimmy Gimmicks’ by Hugh McCelland and lastly on the back page ‘Peanuts’ by Schulz.

Now whats on the telly? First ITV Robin Hood, Emergency Ward 10, Take Your Pick, Dragnet, Jack Hylton, a play followed by Palais Party, The News and at 10.45pm shut down. Whilst on the BBC there was I Married Joan, Watch With Mother, Gardening Club, The Grove Family, Armand and Michaela Dennis, Up for the Cup, Be Your Own Boss, Table Tennis, Anglo French Fortnight, the News and shut down at 10.45.

And finally the letters page or as it was called in the Daily Sketch ‘The Pungent Post’. Here are some examples:-

Women-such dull folk. WHAT dull people women radio fans are. Two of the most popular programmes on the BBC are angled at women — " Housewives' Choice" and " Mrs. Dale." They're two of the worst. If you've ever woken up to the strains of the housewives' requests you'll know what I mean. The programme is an awful jumble of all that's bad in music. And any woman who can enjoy the vicious little clique that Mrs. Dale moves in must be the battleaxe to end 'em all.— GREGORY WALLS, Bournemouth, Hants.
Don’t blame me I did not write it!!!
No cure for insomnia. Our village clock struck 668 times in 27 minutes from midnight last week. Is this a record? Miss M Ward, Thurlaston.
Busier. Is there any place in the World where the traffic congestion is worse than London. Surely there can’t be. Arnold Polter, Richmond, Surrey. He should try living 52 years later in 2009. Ed.



Stay in touch and Take Care

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com
Pj.keat@ntlworld.com

YOU WRITE:

Mary Writes:-
Thanks for all the lovely articles. I do enjoy them. I often go to vintage bus rallies with Mike, so love the photos you print. We have been lucky enough to go out on the buses for a good ride around the coutryside. They are surprisingly comfortable. On a different tack, the day I left Malta many years ago after a very enjoyable stay, standing outside my grocers was Reg Varley, the star of "On the Buses". He was quite short, and looked extremely happy, standing there in the lovely Maltese sunshine. It was more than I was having to leave and face England after such wonderful weather. A few hours later there I was at Brize Norton on a grey, damp, December afternoon!

NEWS AND VIEWS:
Callon is dead. Edward Woodward, husband of Michelle Dotrice, passed away in hospital this week. He made his reputation in our era by playing Callan against Russell Hunters ‘Lonely’. A well known actor he starred in various shows over the years including The Equalizer.

ON THIS DAY 22TH NOVEMBER 1960-1965
On 22/11/1960 the number one single was It's Now Or Never - Elvis Presley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Take Your Pick (AR) and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/11/1961 the number one single was Little Sister/His Latest Flame - Elvis Presley and the number one album was Another Black & White Minstrell Show - George Mitchell Minstrels. The top rated TV show was Sunday Night at the London Palladium (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/11/1962 the number one single was Lovesick Blues - Frank Ifield and the number one album was Out of the Shadows - Shadows. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was First broadcast of That Was the Week That Was.

On 22/11/1963 the number one single was You'll Never Walk Alone - Gerry & the Pacemakers and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Conservative Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was JFK shot dead in Dallas and we all remember where we were on that day!!!.

On 22/11/1964 the number one single was Baby Love - Supremes and the number one album was A Hard Day's Night - Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

On 22/11/1965 the number one single was Get Off Of My Cloud - Rolling Stones and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Take Your Pick (AR) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Mohammed Ali beats Floyd Patterson In Las Vegas.