Oztalgian

There are a number of cycling clubs in North Notts that may be able to help. North Notts Olympic and Mansfield Aces were active at that time and someone from Mansfield Road Club or the Sherwood Cycling Club nearer the city might be able to help.

What years? The Leader of the Opposition went there. PM if you like

Yes RB that is strange but for some reason they don't think it gets cold in winter here or hot in Melbourne in summer. Ducted reverse cycle air fixes most problems but you have got to keep an eye on the running costs.

Which school did you teach at in Rennuth?

You would not try that here Margie. Until around the late 70's we did not have an antivenin and the bite from a funnel web spider invariably resulted in death. The White Tip Spider can often cause severe damage to the skin and flesh and not to forget the good old Redback in the outdoor dunny. On this photo of the Funnel Web you can quite clearly see the fangs and they can be aggressive little bu**ers. Here is the song to remind you of the Redback Spider Many a bloke was traumatised

I'm missing them too except the last one of Compo on the snowy path?

The funniest series of books that I have ever read are the "war memoires" of Spike Milligan. The series began with "Adolf Hitler My Part in His Downfall" Absolutely hilarious. The "Leader of the Opposition" banned me from reading them in bed.

Brilliant photos Compo thanks for posting. I particularly like the one with SWMBO on it with the two rivers that flow into the lake or is it loch? A person in the frame gives you an idea of the scale. When I used to fell walk and climb in the late 60's and early 70's it was the custom to add another stone to a summit cairn when you reached the top, is it still done? or have all the local stones been used up and you have to take one up.

We spent the first 9 months of our time in OZ with two bean bags, a cheap table/chairs, a TV, a fridge and a bed, as the company that was shipping our furniture went bust and we had to pay again and wait for our stuff to get here. When we eventually got our stuff two of the dining chairs were damaged and had to be repaired.

Hi Radford Boy, my wife and I are 10 pound poms too. Having worked in the automotive supply chain in Oz for 40 years I know Melbourne quite well and managed a company in Ringwood for a while. I won't make the usual jokes about the weather in Melbourne but there are some days when it is not too different to Blackburn in the UK. It was easy to make the decision as we had family downunder. I was ready for a change and the timing was right as at the time I could only see the UK going down hill. I know this is not a political thread but given what is happening to the fabric of t

Hi kj792 From you interests I'd guess that you are in either NSW or Qld but it doesn't really matter, another Nottstalgian in Oz to add to the gang downunder. Welcome

Or those that bring cheap plonk but drink only the good stuff

I think the little house knew something about it, don't you?

They are advertising Christmas already downunder one of the larger stores is urging you to put children's toys on lay-by now for Christmas. Do they have lay-by in the UK? You put a deposit on an item and pay a little off regularly until paid in full and pick it up before Christmas. A bit like HP but you do not pay interest.

Opuntia Stricta, (Prickly Pears) were imported into Australia in the 19th Century and quickly took over some 15,000 square miles of good farming land (Nottinghamshire is about 850 sq miles) and made it unproductive. They imported a biological control Cactoblastis Cactorum a moth in 1925 and it was very effective in controlling a very invasive visitor. It was a lot more successful than the bl**dy Cane Toad which was imported in an attempt to stem the cane beetle and has now become a pest in its own right.

As a kid I remember families with cars picnicking in the laybys on the A614 and along the Oxton and Epperstone by passes

Yes Lizzie on most grounds it does as the actual playing surface is one of a number on what is called the wicket square and when they use the outer ones they result in much shorter boundaries. I was referring to the unusual shape of the ground itself that seems to result in a shorter boundary too. Most cricket grounds are oval in shape but when they built the stand in the left hand corner of this shot from You Tube it seems that the architect only had straight lines in his CAD system and no curves. Most unusual!

So far England can't bowl,(too short) can't field (too many fumbles) and we will find out later if they can bat (if there is no movement of their feet it will be an early finish)

DJ360 Do you remember the back way, Waterloo Lane, from Trowell Services to the Festival Inn? Many a night you could hear moans and groans from the churchyard opposite the Inn

Classic memories there Mr Meeseeks. The wrestling on Saturday afternoon was a must for my mum, Was it Kent Walton that commentated? Pat Roach (Bomber) from Auf Wiedersehen pet was a pro wrestler too and I well remember the scene in Never Say Never Again during a fight with Bond he was slammed into a cabinet that contained all sorts of glass bottles etc. and fell forward dead with shards of glass sticking in his back.

Hi Lanie, Welcome to another Nottstalgian down under, whereabouts are you in this wide brown land?

BK no they're not, going the other way here. Three minutes more daylight here today than yesterday. I've had enough of winter already! The sun has started its journey back down under and on 21st December it will be our longest day and summer will be well under way. If you live in Central Qld around Rockhampton the sun will be directly overhead. The nearest place to the UK where to this happens is somewhere in the Sahara desert/ Egypt/Saudi Arabia

Hi Lizzie, watching the World Cup coverage from Trent Bridge I was wondering about the strange shape of the playing surface resulting in one stupidly short boundary. I can't remember the outfield being that shape back in the 60's and early 70's or am I mistaken? What happened?

Flippin heck that's $200 in our money. I refuse to have any "Cable" TV because of the business model they use here, base level, kerching, sports package 1, kerching, sports package 2, kerching. movies, kerching,and so on. If they had one fee that allowed me to pick say ten channels of my choice then I might, dependent on cost, consider it. Sri Lanka beating England by 20 runs, not seen the excuse list yet.

Good one Ayup - Great photo of Maxie (Tangles) Walker. Used to bowl right arm round left ear'ole. He went on to become one of the best after dinner speakers in Australia. If you like a good read get one of his many books. He also played Aussie Rules at elite level. Sadly we lost him in September 2016