Commo

I was just informing Mrs Commo of the eye watering admission fee when it was as Beachbum reminds us, free apart from the Sunday charge. I always thought that for "Free" it was a really good deal, but £5.50? I wonder how many tourists pay their money and perhaps expect something like Ludlow or Alnwick? Mind you, Alnwick is not cheap at about £8.

Mick, your description of Leno's was exactly how we knew of it, only went once and having been used to the luxury of The Empress, could understand why poor old Leno's suffered from that particular soubriquet!

Who was an ABC Minor? Reading through other threads about St Anns and Nottingham cinemas set me thinking about our eagerly awaited weekend entertainment. Saturday morning pictures was an institution for us and kids of our generation and along with a gang from our street we paid our 6d at the Empress and displayed our pin badges with pride. The Cavo (Cavendish) also had a loyal following but I think their entrance fee was less than the Empress, so we had a better class of hooligan in our club! After queing for the doors to open and learning various aspects of street survival, we were ushered

Catfan, just browsing through "old" threads and came across your great photo's, haven't been down St Anns Well Road area since the late 60's and have to say that Bath St Garden of Rest looks a heck of a lot better than when I was last there. The reputation of the area, to those of us living away with no reason to go back there, goes before it, and I would never have thought it perhaps the most salubrious of areas to venture into nowadays, but your itinerary has made me rethink my prejudices, or am I being too trusting?

Roosta, re #156,The Odd Hour cinema, previously The News Theatre, was on Upper Parliament Street next to the old Turkisk Baths. It was demolished in he early 1960's and I remember as a child going there to see programmes of news reels and loads of cartoons.

Cheers, Cliff, I hve now put Picture The Past on my "favourites" and can spend many a happy hour browsing. The images of the boarded streets seem so dismal, never saw them like that when they were full of people and were just a part of everyday life. It was sad to see the communities disappear, but the downhill trend for me started in the late 60's when the properties were being allowed to deteriorate further awaiting the demolition.

Thanks again Cliff and Bubble, I've been mentally (?) walking up and down Mark street all night looking for The Minstrel and had almost convinced myself that I could remember it! Good to get back to reality.

Golden Key sounds about right from my selective memory.

At about age 11, discovered James Bond, Hercule Poirot and Lord Emsworth et al, but before that like a lot of others immersed myself in Famous Five, Secret Seven, Jennings etc, and have started wth Jennings again having had an Omnibus edition for Christmas, and am enjoying them all over again. Joined the Central Library Childrens library around 1953, and remember that one of the first books borrowed was about "A Platypus Duck named Bill" though can't remember much of the plot. Another favourite at that time was the Little Black Sambo books,(can I safely say this?) though I bet they have now b

Re #4 Cliff, what year was the large scale map, as I cannot recall a pub on St Marks Street which shows as The Minstrel Tavern? There was the pub on the corner with Huntingdon Street, was that The Foresters or something similar? Could of course just be that the memory is now somewhat selective!

You're a Star! It was the Curzon, a bit of imaginative thinking there when they named it methinks! I am always impressed at your prowess with these great old maps.

Alex McLeish leaves by "mutual consent" - who we gunna get nah? How on earth can 6 weeks be long enough for anyone in this position? You have to wonder whether the new owners know much about the game???

Thanks so much Cliff, mind now at rest! Any idea about the one on Curzon Street?

We were discussing the pubs in St Anns area the other day, and were stumped with the location of The Napier, thinking it could have been on Union Road or Curzon Street or somewhere roundabout there. We know there was a Sir Charles Napier up on North Sherwood Street, but have we dreamt of another one in St Anns? There was a pub on Curzon Street at the corner of The lammas, can anyone confirm what this was called?

"The Old Grey Mare, she ain't what she used to be Ain't what she used to be, Ain't what she used to be. The Old Grey Mare she ain't what she used to be, So long ago" (and so on) Old folk song, childrens rhyme etc

It would save having to pay to get in!

I have not been into the City Centre since the car park was demolished, which was an eyesore in any event. I have a book "Nottingham - Ciy Beautiful" which is a collection of photos from all around the City showing new building works from about 2009, and Trinity Square does not seem to feature in it! It could be that the "development" had not been completed when the book was published in that year. (From the photos on this thread, it seems it still has not been completed.) I have to say that looking at the way the City has altered over the years as shown by these photos, I would be hard press

You could never replicate the particular aroma of Drury Hill, mentioned on many of the threads on here. It was a definite part of the "ambience" of the Hill.

Announced now that HS2 will be going ahead sometime in the distant future. If this does happen, what benefits will there be for Nottingham folk, apart perhaps from an increase in property values as Londoners will be able to move up and commute?

We moved to Ruddington in 1955 so I knew the garage well, and in those days like most local garages had a loyal customer base. As said previously, the garage had a few ups and downs, but is now open as both a servicing and MOT garage, and the forecourt and showroom as a used car dealership. I remember in the 50's and early 60's the little shop at the side of the forecourt was a watch and clock repair and salesshop, my first wristwatch being bought there for my 10th birthday.

Compo, re #41, I think that the music shop which was next to Pearsons store was Farmers Music, but can't recall whether this was at some stage amalgamated into Pearsons. Anyone throw any light onto this?

It was Corporation Oaks from the other side of Woodbro' Rd up to the covered reservoir, and then became Elm Avenue as it crossed over Cranmer Street and joined up with Mansfield Rd at the Alfred St/Huntingdon St junction.

And believe me Poohbear, downtown Huddersfield has very little to commend it!! By the by, LOVE your sledging dogs!

Re #69 - Michael, thank you so much for putting this up, I have wanted to say this for weeks, but didn't know where to start or how to finish! Taking just one of your points, the State retirement Pension, I and Mrs Commo have been SO angry lately because it seems we are greedy, grasping pensioners just because we have been lucky enough to get to 65 and start taking our ENTITLEMENT to a State pension which we have paid into for almost 50 years. From starting work and paying National Insurance I was aware that the State did not run the Pension system as a funded operation, and that my NI contri

It was Johnny Allcock round our way who was the bad fishmonger, and the name of any kid who had upset you that day was substituted. The rhyme was also used as a skipping song by the girls in the street.