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If the front entrance says INTU, does the side exit say OUTOF?

An interesting article in the Nottingham Post today shows photos of the Victoria Centre construction. http://www.nottinghampost.com/pictures/Nottingham-s-Victoria-Centre-years-pictures/pictures-25712

In related news lets hope the latest plans for Broadmarsh Shopping Center go ahead

OK, if you've got a few minutes to spare - can you tell me what shops and stuff were in the Vicki way back in the 70s.

I think it beagan in about '70 - I remember the footings looking about 50 feet deep!

I also remember the flats and for some reason I have a memory of them being closed after someone was attacked in one of those long corridors - but I'm sure that must be a false memory

I remember that heat came from a big incinerator in West Bridgford but a) wasn't very good b) was very expensive c) produced no end of pollution

I remember that if I walked in off the Milton Steet/lower Parliament Steet entrance Cecil Gees was on the right and if I walked in off the entrance up on mansfield road Habitat was on the left, but all my other memories have gone! Getting old isn't all it's cracked up to be!

Also there was a pub at the back - on Glasshouse street? - Huntingdon Street? - where (in '82) I exchanged clothes with a young lady one saturday afternoon and borrowed two oranges from the bar-top to improve my shape. (we had all had a couple of beers) It all went very well and we were having a great laugh when I happened to notice that one of the other punters was my new boss from the EMEB sitting with his jaw on the floor in total disbelief. (he'd only ever seen me in my pinstripe three-piece before) Well, what could I do, except flash my oranges at him. This may be one of the reasons why I never did very well at the EMEB. Does anyone remeber the name of the pub in question?

!englandflag! there were 2 pubs.1 at each end,miltons and the new vic.the pubs on glasshouse street were owd boots and round the corner its known as little foresters.i lived at one time and they were never closed.hope this helps.
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  • 1 month later...

Ayup Mariag and welcome

A little tip for you ,if you want to quote another post simply click on the 'Quote' button, and then on 'AddREPLY' that way you don't need to use two posts to quote another

As for the Viccy Centre , I used to love going up to the top floor (When I was a kid) and just looking at the view .It was a bit obscured as the glass was louvred and reinforced ,also it was fogged glass so you had to open it as far as it would go and become a contortionist, difficult but worth it for the view

Trouble was, nobody would believe you were genuinely looking at the view, they always thought you were up to no good, and threatened to call the police.

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  • 2 weeks later...
There used to be a pub on the corner of Glasshouse Street and Rick Street up until around 1970 but I can't recall the name.

Mrs Frank's brother used to have a room/flat on Rick Street just a few doors away. Never went in as I was much too young ;)

Yes there was another pub on glass house st where it met Rick st. There was recently a car tyre place on the site but it's now a warehouse selling soft furnishings , curtains and all that.

the Pub was called the Sir Issac Newton. I think I've got a scan of a pic somewhere.

I'll have a look.

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Here's the pic it's from a very good book which if could recall the title I'd give it a plug.

Something like Nottingham Steam volume one. A4 size book, got it from Arnold Library.

The shop on the far left is now a fancy dress shop. the rail turntable would be , I guess just on your left as you drive out of Vic Cntr car park. :-(

victoriaturntable.jpg

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Much more interested in the Stanard 4 73XXX on the turntable, quite a rarity for the Vic'

Tends to date the picture late 50's, early 60's...

Cheers

Robt P.

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Thanks for that Dick. Great photo.

so did they have two turntables at vic....i know at the north end left of the mansfield road tunnel they had one.....but that was surrounded by steep sand cliffs

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  • 1 month later...
I remember my favorite shop in the Vicky center was The Reject Shop.Tons of gadgets and trendy furniture if I remember rightly.

Good lord I'd forgotten about that place. Where in the vic centre was it? Does anyone remember juicy lucy upstairs? It was a cafe- a family friend ran the place and the kitchen for it was quite a way from the place....

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reject shop was the far end by the bus station, before house of fraser came along.....think it was next to browns the hairdressers? it was a great place to kit out your first home....can you also remember spoils, where zara is now on high street...

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reject shop was the far end by the bus station, before house of fraser came along.....think it was next to browns the hairdressers? it was a great place to kit out your first home....can you also remember spoils, where zara is now on high street...

Yes I'd forgotten that place as well... I bought a pampous chair from there - it was a cane type with a round padded cushion that sat in it. Do you remember I think it was called 'nonsuch' it was quite a small shop but had oriental stuff in there. Myself and best mate when we were teenagers spent loads of time and money in there - it was on bridlesmith gate Flanels side, not sure where exactly it was?

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non such was fantastic ( had a second shop on western boulevard ) flannels is now where non such was..can you remember the rocking horse outside...my kids spent so much time on that thing that i had to buy one..its still in my front porch and although i haven't any grandkids yet , all my 5 and their mates have worn old neddy out!!!!....

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I reckon Nonsuch was in a smaller shop next door first? As I remember it being a smaller shop before it moved into Flannels. The first shop had a downstairs as well. This must've been about 1981.. My best friend had all her bedroom done out from there [with a couple of those paper parasols hanging from the ceiling] I was really envious at the time I was about 12 then

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  • 1 month later...

Re The District Heating, the actual heating plant is off meadow lane, end of the road that Anchor Surplus is on, here the household rubbish is burnt along with shop waste inc once around 1,000 pairs of "out of date" scholl sandals (well 1,000 went in, a guess how many burnt!) this heated water to steam which was then sent to the old Boots power station corner of london rd and canal street, where coal was also burnt "in heat season" here as well as generating electricity for the national grid it was also direct injected into "hot wells" which heated to around 95c and pumped at around 100psi to lots in nottingham, most council buildings, the libary, police hq, council house etc lots of shops inc all vic centre and broad marsh, the 400 odd vicy centre flats 5,000 st ann's dwellings and some parts of the meadows. The plants and all underground mains were operated by The National Coalboard who also maintained the council and shops properties the dwellings were maintained by Clorius Meters who also did metering via their infamous evap meters, (we screwed some to a door and they registered!) Vic Centre flats and all other warm air heated properties had an electric "hours on" but still an evap one on hot water supply about one tenth of all dwellings were disconnected at any given time because of debts etc, I left in 1980,s having worked on it over 20 years, as far as I know still district heating but proper accurate electronic metering these days,

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My Dad, who is long gone now, used to cellotape those evap meters up for most of the billing period. Hardly cost him anything in heating!

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Ayup Ashley

My old mate in Nott'm used to work at the heat transfer place, now he's at the incinerator plant been there since Gedling pit closed, I worked for Business post for a long while and went into the London road workshops on a few occations, usually snap time, and I always took my telescopic fishing rod, because, there was a vent where some warm water was released into the canal ,and the fish bit like billyo. It was great watching the expression on the fishermen who had been sat there for hours not catching owt and we popped out for 5 mins and caught loads!!

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We used to be able to get on roof of VC, great view all round, but good also when foggy as like flying above the clouds, Top (26th) Floor had totally obscured glass near the lift where someone jumped out from 1976 onward, over the years this window replacment got progressively lower! first 25th then 24th etc, remember a "fuss" one day and on 4th floor roof garden a body was covered with a sheet, a WPC had part of his leg,(knocked off when he hit a window sill part way down) in a plastic bag!

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  • 9 months later...

I had a flat in the Victoria Centre from 1979 to 1981. 10th floor at the back, looking out on to Huntingdon St and up Woodborough Road.

Mine was of the 2-bedroom variety (although, unlike almost everyone else, I didn't share with anyone or have any unofficial lodgers!). It was very spacious - main bedroom had a built-in wardrobe, the kitchen was bigger than in many 3-bedroom houses then, and now, with loads of cupboard space.

It was always warm (heat presumably rising from below) and the only time I really needed to use the hot-air system was when it snowed outside. Naturally those were the days the system broke down. Hot water was also supplied by the system, so I did use it, but I frequently got a refund because I never used the monthly standard DD charge.

Tales abounded of people jumping off various levels, and of residents of the 26th floor having to hold on for dear life when the wind blew, but I never actually witnessed anything of the sort.

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I lived on the 4th floor (cannot remember exact years but around 1989) Yes it was very warm - directly above the shop floor. I guess you were in before the flats had a security system? I had friends on the 26th floor and no it didn't sway but they were a lot colder and suffered with damp. Since I left there many years ago they have had the windows done.... they were really needed cos they were filthy without any chance of cleaning them!

I really enjoyed my time in the flat...... great for rolling back after a night out.

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I must have been in both your flats! we visited them all once a year to carry out a service, must have been about 5 suicides that I recall, remember one woman landed on the old bus station roof! another only just missed one of the caretakers, you had to take care on the roof garden (4th floor) as people chucked all sorts out the windows, only thing that hit me though was contents of a teapot! Do you remember Hendrix the window cleaner? he used to climb half out the sliding windows to get to the other one, one day someone saw him, thought he was going to jump and police and all sorts came! There were in later years lots of gays living there and it got the nickname of The Fairy Castle

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