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Teenage Rebels: Box Youngsters in the 1960s Extracts from Kevin Ford's Story, 2010 Landscaper, Kevin Ford was brought up at Longsplatt and now lives in Ashley. He tells of life in the village when a new species, called Teenagers, were discovered. They had spending power and new ideas after the post-war rationing ended. You can read Kevin's full story at Life at Longsplatt. Left: Prince Monolulu and I Gotta Horse! who regularly attended the Monkton Farleigh horse races |
I can remember going to the point-to-point at Monkton Farleigh only once. Whether we didn't have any money or it didn't interest us I don't know but we used to cycle up there. And I can remember a tipster called Prince Monolulu. I have since seen a photograph of this chap he was dressed up like a Zulu Prince, giving out tips for money and so forth. His famous saying was I Gotta Horse!. Somebody told me (or I read it) that in fact he was a chap from Birmingham and he weren't a Zulu prince at all. He obviously did a roaring trade.[1]
Why the point-to-point finished at Monkton Farleigh I have absolutely no idea but I have got quite vivid recollections of it being in a sloping field and being able to see all the horses go round. As for stalls and that, there must have been some there.
Why the point-to-point finished at Monkton Farleigh I have absolutely no idea but I have got quite vivid recollections of it being in a sloping field and being able to see all the horses go round. As for stalls and that, there must have been some there.
Fireworks
Just one recollection I have was when we used to have bonfires down at Granddad's and the fireworks down there. I can remember old Mrs Pocock sat on her shooting stick and us lighting up jumping jacks behind her and watching her jump at the bangers and run away (not allowed to do that now of course). The old spuds were in the ashes and so forth but I wouldn't say it was a real big, big deal.
Just one recollection I have was when we used to have bonfires down at Granddad's and the fireworks down there. I can remember old Mrs Pocock sat on her shooting stick and us lighting up jumping jacks behind her and watching her jump at the bangers and run away (not allowed to do that now of course). The old spuds were in the ashes and so forth but I wouldn't say it was a real big, big deal.
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The Winter of 1962-63
Over on the other side of the road at the golf course there's a track that goes down from the top and then there's a left angled right-angle which goes down and meets Lower Kingsdown Road. It was just the other side of what was the Chapel round there and then it goes on down Lower Kingsdown Road. |
It Froze from Boxing Day to Easter |
In the winter of 1962-63 it was a very bad winter when it never went above freezing, I believe, from the time it snowed Boxing Day until March and that was our best sledging place. In fact I've got it in my diary, my oldest diary that I kept.
I made a sledge called Big George which was just three bits all nailed together and the first time I went down there and went to go left on this right-angle, it all snapped in half and I went straight on and I cut my lip and everything. That was our best run because that was a long, long run all the way down and then you met the road and went straight on down. And that was a long trudge back up.
That year was quite remarkable for the amount of snow. I recollect walking down just past the Swan there's a bend and the drifts were that big that the baker down there, Threshers, were throwing their bread over the snow drifts because they couldn't get through. I don't know how many weeks it was before they did get through but it was very harsh.
The other place that year that we went sledging was down Doctors Hill, that's the steepest hill around here, down to the bottom. It was a sheet of ice and we went very, very fast you had a job to stop at the bottom or get round the corner at the bottom. Of course once you got down there you had to walk back up. We only did it twice.
I made a sledge called Big George which was just three bits all nailed together and the first time I went down there and went to go left on this right-angle, it all snapped in half and I went straight on and I cut my lip and everything. That was our best run because that was a long, long run all the way down and then you met the road and went straight on down. And that was a long trudge back up.
That year was quite remarkable for the amount of snow. I recollect walking down just past the Swan there's a bend and the drifts were that big that the baker down there, Threshers, were throwing their bread over the snow drifts because they couldn't get through. I don't know how many weeks it was before they did get through but it was very harsh.
The other place that year that we went sledging was down Doctors Hill, that's the steepest hill around here, down to the bottom. It was a sheet of ice and we went very, very fast you had a job to stop at the bottom or get round the corner at the bottom. Of course once you got down there you had to walk back up. We only did it twice.
Pubs
A pub up on the Devizes Road which is no longer a pub was the Lamb Inn. I spent the 1966 World Cup night (when we won the World Cup) in there and I recollect a skittle alley. The only thing that sticks in my mind is sat outside of the Lamb on what must have been a summer's evening and a big American limousine went past with all blacked-out windows. One of the windows went down and a chap waved out from there and it was the American group, The Byrds, who had a hit with Turn, Turn, Turn. But I didn't spend a lot of time in the Lamb.
A pub up on the Devizes Road which is no longer a pub was the Lamb Inn. I spent the 1966 World Cup night (when we won the World Cup) in there and I recollect a skittle alley. The only thing that sticks in my mind is sat outside of the Lamb on what must have been a summer's evening and a big American limousine went past with all blacked-out windows. One of the windows went down and a chap waved out from there and it was the American group, The Byrds, who had a hit with Turn, Turn, Turn. But I didn't spend a lot of time in the Lamb.
Next to the Northey there used to be a dump (illegal I believe) but when Harbutts, the Plasticine manufacturer in Bathampton, burnt down in 1963, Father took us down to the dump and we went down picking up Plasticine, crayons and so forth and we had sort of two half sackfuls and we were the only ones down there.
And going on down where the Nissan Garage is now, that used to be the Drop Anchor Cafe and we used to go along there on our motorbikes and have a cup of coffee and play the fruit machines it was also a petrol station as well. We used to go along there on our Honda 50s and NSU Quickly and think we were the bees-knees.
And going on down where the Nissan Garage is now, that used to be the Drop Anchor Cafe and we used to go along there on our motorbikes and have a cup of coffee and play the fruit machines it was also a petrol station as well. We used to go along there on our Honda 50s and NSU Quickly and think we were the bees-knees.
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I must have been 15 or 16 and stayed all summer working up at Jim Bush's saving all the money. I went into Bath buying a pair of shoes. They weren't winkle pickers they were square; they were quite flash shoes.
Mother took one look at them and told me take them back and I can remember saying No I worked all summer that's what I want and if I can't have them then you take them back and she relented. Another time with the old flashy Italian shoes which I bought in Bath (they were like moccasins) they lasted about 3 weeks and the heels were made of cardboard and as soon as they got wet they disintegrated. Another great buy! Left: Kevin sporting the latest fashions in the early 1960's: Italian-cut suit, thin tie, narrow trousers and winkle-picker shoes. |
Youth Club Nights
Well, the place that we all used to hang out to begin with was the old Bingham Hall. It's not there any more, Bingham House is there and they demolished the Hall. It was a black building (I think it was corrugated iron). It was basically just a hall; it had a kitchen, a stage and an area behind the stage but was basically just a big floor. Just outside but semi attached to it was the library in Box.
The Youth Club always met there and there was always a dance in the Bingham Hall on Boxing Day. We had a local pop group The Four Specs who became quite famous playing skiffle and rock-and-roll, like Buddy Holly.
Geoff Bray was the leader (he still lives at Box Hill) and the group was managed by Mel Bush (another local resident), who I believe later promoted or managed David Essex, Queen and Vanessa Mae. They used to travel around in a big van with sofas in the back which slid around when you went round corners. Later they changed their name to The Gonks and they backed the singer Twinkle on a tour and appeared on the television programme Sunday Night at the London Palladium.
A new youth club was built in Dyer's Yard in the Market Place in 1964 and the singer Frankie Vaughan came to open it. We always used to have a collection for Frankie Vaughan's charity, The Boys Clubs.
Well, the place that we all used to hang out to begin with was the old Bingham Hall. It's not there any more, Bingham House is there and they demolished the Hall. It was a black building (I think it was corrugated iron). It was basically just a hall; it had a kitchen, a stage and an area behind the stage but was basically just a big floor. Just outside but semi attached to it was the library in Box.
The Youth Club always met there and there was always a dance in the Bingham Hall on Boxing Day. We had a local pop group The Four Specs who became quite famous playing skiffle and rock-and-roll, like Buddy Holly.
Geoff Bray was the leader (he still lives at Box Hill) and the group was managed by Mel Bush (another local resident), who I believe later promoted or managed David Essex, Queen and Vanessa Mae. They used to travel around in a big van with sofas in the back which slid around when you went round corners. Later they changed their name to The Gonks and they backed the singer Twinkle on a tour and appeared on the television programme Sunday Night at the London Palladium.
A new youth club was built in Dyer's Yard in the Market Place in 1964 and the singer Frankie Vaughan came to open it. We always used to have a collection for Frankie Vaughan's charity, The Boys Clubs.
Motor Bikes Don't Mix with People
I have just remembered the old copper of Box was John Bosley (you actually had your own village copper in those days) and he lived just the house next door to the Post Office, that was the police house. He was there for years I had a few run-ins with him. I can remember I must have given him some lip and him having me by the shirt front with one hand up against the wall by the rubber factory threatening me.
The other thing was when I came down Quarry Hill and I had the NSU Quickly which was a sort of pedal assisted 50 cc motorbike, three gears, I had somebody on the back and there wasn't really a back. It was like a paper rack sort of thing that you could put bags on and we went past there. Bosley was at the end of Bargates and we went flying past no helmets in those days or anything, down round the corner at the bottom of Quarry Hill into Bulls Lane. I can remember just touching the wall, just got round there and we got down to the bottom by the Post Office.
The passenger jumped off, I then went home all the way up Henley Lane. I can remember taking the bike down to the shed and throwing a bucket of cold water over the engine in case Bosley came up and said, It was you, your bike engine is hot. I thought if I threw cold water over the engine he can't say it was me because the engine would be cold. How I didn't damage the engine I will never know but I didn't so that's a plus mark for the NSU Quickly.
I have just remembered the old copper of Box was John Bosley (you actually had your own village copper in those days) and he lived just the house next door to the Post Office, that was the police house. He was there for years I had a few run-ins with him. I can remember I must have given him some lip and him having me by the shirt front with one hand up against the wall by the rubber factory threatening me.
The other thing was when I came down Quarry Hill and I had the NSU Quickly which was a sort of pedal assisted 50 cc motorbike, three gears, I had somebody on the back and there wasn't really a back. It was like a paper rack sort of thing that you could put bags on and we went past there. Bosley was at the end of Bargates and we went flying past no helmets in those days or anything, down round the corner at the bottom of Quarry Hill into Bulls Lane. I can remember just touching the wall, just got round there and we got down to the bottom by the Post Office.
The passenger jumped off, I then went home all the way up Henley Lane. I can remember taking the bike down to the shed and throwing a bucket of cold water over the engine in case Bosley came up and said, It was you, your bike engine is hot. I thought if I threw cold water over the engine he can't say it was me because the engine would be cold. How I didn't damage the engine I will never know but I didn't so that's a plus mark for the NSU Quickly.
Reference
[1] The so-called Wiki Ras Prince Monolulu (26 October 1881 - 14 February 1965) was really Peter Carl Mackay. He appeared at most British racing tracks from the 1920s onwards. He later wrote his memoirs called I Gotta Horse!
[1] The so-called Wiki Ras Prince Monolulu (26 October 1881 - 14 February 1965) was really Peter Carl Mackay. He appeared at most British racing tracks from the 1920s onwards. He later wrote his memoirs called I Gotta Horse!