Threepenny Rush


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I remember the heroes of the Saturday matinees at the 'Forum' cinema on Aspley Lane. 'Flash Gordon' (Larry Buster Crabbe); 'King of the Rocket Men'; 'Superman'; 'Roy Rogers'; 'Hoppalong Cassidy' and others you may remember. All good entertainment, along with Laurel & Hardy; The Three Stooges and a selection of cartoons; threepence downstairs, or if you were posh, sixpence in the balcony. Recall any others?

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Yes, they were busy days before the widespread adoption of TV.

To us over in Carlton it was always referred to as the "Tuppenny rush." Maybe I'm a bit older. slywink

We always went to the "Ritz," plushiest cinema in those parts. The lines were often long and very often the manager would come out and tell the latecomers at the end of the line to go to the "Regal" up the road as they were about full. Probably made a bob or two for sending us up there.

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My locals in the 50's were the Vernon & the Highbury. Your list is pretty comprehensive and I'm struggling to add to it. Additional memories though are of the cinema manager shutting down the projector, turning on the lights and threatening to throw everyone out if we didn't "shurrup and stop messin' about". Then there were the sherbert dabs bought on the "walk" to the matinee. We must have been a pretty smelly lot - especially if we'd come in from the rain.

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My local was the `Empress' on St.Ann`s W.Rd and sometimes the Cavendish. The main thing about the Empress I remember was the brainwashing! Half way through the lights went up and there were songs and chants about how wonderful the kid`s club was on a Saturday morning.

I remember one particular Saturday when all the kids rushed across the road to buy the first copy of `The Eagle' comic(remember Dan Dare?). I think the Empress (wait for it Mick) is now a Mosque.

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Mid 60's, i used to go to the ABC on Saturday mornings. It was 6d downstairs and 9d upstairs. We used to sing a song that went something like

We like to have a laugh and sing song

just a jolly crowd are we

why don't you come along and join us

we're minors of the ABC.

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!englandflag! I also did the Forum Saturday afternoons for threepence, a tanner for upstairs though, I also had to 'Chaperone@ my older sister to the flicks(now Commodore?) on Nuthall road, remember seeing April Love with Pat Boone & Bernadine was another film (i think)...............

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Was the 'Commodore'. Found it was something different when I was on Nuthall Road last January. Glad to see the old library was still up and running on the opposite corner though.

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We used to go to the Capitol on Nuthall road - Flash Gordon.....Wwhoohaaaaa

And sing along to I'm a Pink Toothbrush, I'm a Blue Toothbrush at the Gaumont. Trick shop after (Sign of 4) then into the Co-op on Parliament Street to drop the stink bombs down the staircase...he he

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That's the song Mick. Can we get some of the members on here to sing it, especially the bit about we're all pals together. rotfl.gif

Good one Denshaw!

There seems to be a lot of in-fighting and back biting where logical argument and discussion have failed. Pity as over the years a wealth of information (not to be found elsewhere) and informed opinion on this site have been overidden by bitter comment.

As one of the oldest on this site I know some of my comments sail close to the wind,but in the present world one becomes evermore cynical!

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Regular patron at the Saturday 'Aspley', then over the road to the library.

Wasn't Charlie Chan a regular showing, or was that on 9" TV?

Nightmare material for impressionable urchins!

Cheers

Robt P.

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Regular patron at the Saturday 'Aspley', then over the road to the library.

Wasn't Charlie Chan a regular showing, or was that on 9" TV?

Nightmare material for impressionable urchins!

Cheers

Robt P.

!clapping! Yup! Charlie Chan and his son was called: "Number one son"!!!! !laughing!

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!cheers! Mick, that Youtube is Mr Hearne dancing the Lancers, whilst steadily getting Pi**ed...........very funny sketch!!

I remember seeing him do it on 'Sunday Night at the London Palladium' !cheers!

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  • 2 months later...

I remember the song going like this:

We come along on Saturday morning,

Greeting everybody with a smile.

We come along on Saturday mornng,

Knowing it's all worthwhile.

As members of the GB club we all intend to be,

Good citizens when we grow up and members of the Free.

We come along on Saturday morning,

Greeting everybody with a smile, Smile, SMILE,

Greeting everybody with a smile

Robert

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  • 4 months later...

We used to go to the Imperial on Wilford Road (the medders)in the 40/50s.

There`d be a cartoon, a feature film - usually a western - a regular showing of a silent film from the cinema`s stock - usually Charlie Chaplin - and a cliff hanging serial.

There`d be much shouting, swapping seats and throwing of orange peel and other small missiles. Heroes were cheered, villains were booed and any suggestion of smooching was greeted by hooting and 'yeuk'ing.

It started as the 'Tuppenny rush' but went up to threepence in the early 50s.

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Saturday morning at the Lenos on Hyson Green. 6d to get in and a mad dash to get the best seats.

Hundreds of kids variously sitting, running or fighting in the stalls waiting for the films such as Tarzan, and the serial ‘Batman’ which always had a big cliffhanger at the end of every episode.

other memories come to mind:

One kid would go to the toilet, open the emergency fire doors to let his mates in and about 25 kids coming out where the one went in. ‘Talent’ contests in the intermission – Boys Brigade buglers of various skill levels were a popular turn, shouting and stamping when the film snapped and had to be repaired, and the near-apoplectic manager trying to keep order and control dozens of kids out for fun and mischief– how he survived this each week I’ve no idea.

here's one of my favourite characters of the day.

180px-Larue-lash.jpg

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There must have been a mad sweeping and cleaning session after our Saturday afternoon sessions to get the place clean for the evening shows.

I don`t remember carefully putting sweet papers and crisp packets in my pocket to take home.

We would wade through inches-deep drifts of rubbish to get out.

And I bet many a skirt/trouser seat would be stuck on a blob of unnoticed chewing gum.

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