Memories - early or general

Let us think back and enjoy our early memories. Remember before the television came to the forefront, we used to enjoy Totopoly, the horse racing game, or Subbuteo, the soccer game. I looked forward to Sunday evenings when I listened to my show on the radio, The Ovaltinies. When we had our first television the show for me was Muffin the Mule, starring Peregrine the Penguin, Willy the Worm and not forgetting Larry the Lamb. We used to go outside and upset the neighbours by chalking all over the pavements and playing hopscotch. My favourite memory takes me back to 1954 when at 12 years of age my passion was football. At that time I was attending Broad Heath School. West Bromwich Albion had just won the F.A.Cup. Imagine my delight when members of the winning team brought the cup to our school for the pupils to see. To make it better the cup was placed on my desk and I actually touched it. The cup must have gone to other schools at that time, can anybody remember this? Come on, let us hear you memories.

Hello. I have always enjoyed model railways. Do you remember a model/toy shop in Hales St, where they had a slot for a penny to be pushed in to the window frame, which then started a train going around in the window display?

Oh yes, and do you remember 'Torchie the battery boy'? And stilts? My dad was always making stilts for my friends and I. And what about 'rat-tat-ginger'? Oh dear that could never happen today could it? My husband used to tie cotton to the letter boxes of the neighbours across the street and then hide behind the hedge in his front garden. Gilly.

This is fun! Thank you Gilly. I now live in a cul-de-sac. I have only ever had two homes, Sewall Highway with Mum & Dad, and where I am now. Cul-de-sacs were good for rat-a-tat. Not just cotton though. The fun I had with rope, tied to opposite letterboxes. I was cought once in Delhi Ave, having tied two letter boxes together. I could not run fast enough to get away. Built up shoes were not good for athletics.

I think my oldest memory is, strangely enough, the lady from next door rushing round to ours to tell my mum that the King had died - so that's 1952 At Easter 1952 I started at kindergarten (why don't we have an English name for that?) in Browns Lane - I went on the bus from The White Lion at Brownshill Green to the Daimler factory on Browns Lane in the morning (do I recall there were green bus tickets used in the early morning rush hour?) and at lunch-time I waited for my dad to come and pick me up in his Standard Vanguard [Stephen Williams, and his sister Esther, went there as well, and he and I would be in the same form at King Henry VIII in later years, and much later I became very good friends with his father (DLT "Bill" Williams, who was manager of the bank on the corner of Tile Hill Lane and Fletchamstead Highway, and became President of Warwickshire County Bowls Association)] On TV I remember Hank and Humphrey Lestocq, and Andy Pandy, and then the Coronation in 1953 - I don't really recall the Matthews Cup Final that year, although it would certainly have been on the TV at home

The green tickets were workers returns, I remember them & Hank. My neighbourhood chum had a Hank puppet. Our first television was in 1952. A twelve inch grey screen with four knobs on the front. I can't remember being that bothered about the tele'. I enjoyed 'Dick Barton' on the 'wireless'. Calling it that gives our age away. One of the books we had to read for our English O was 'Lord of the flies'. I mention this because I always identified myself with the character 'Piggy'. I never had asthma like he did, but so many of my mannerisms are like his. I hope that I do not die in the same way. I should be taking names so I will sign off for now. Best wishes to you all.

I don't remember that one Philip (or the nearby Opera House for that matter!) but I do remember a tiny shop on the other side of Hales Street which at one time sold Hornby-Dublo and after they went bust, Hornby Aicho. There was a steeple-cab locomotive in the window with pantograph on the roof which I never forgot and later found in a reprint from the Aicho catalogue.

There's an opening clip from it on my website along with many similar shows: Torchy the Battery Boy I had to go round to a friend's house to watch it because (being posh) we had one of the early BBC-only sets. I used to play it Far Gosford Street on my way home from school. You could back then because there were still private residences on the street frontage. These days the kids don't run away, when the occupant comes to the door they wrestle him to the ground and give him a good kicking. I've seen it happen.

Yes, I remember it well - what a treat it was to be in Hales Street with a model railway to view

Just had the best 7 minutes of watching 'TORCHY THE BATTERY BOY' How wonderful. Thanks ever so much (can't wait for the next episode!) Rob must be so proud of his site (I am still reading and learning so much about Coventry that I had either forgotten or didn't know) and to all of you experts that contribute with your knowledge of Coventry, I am just so amazed at some of the things that are discussed and I thank Rob and all of you for bringing back so many memories for me. Gilly.

Here you go: Torchy the Battery Boy (Episode 1 - part 2) Roberta Leigh went on to make Space Patrol which was one of my favourites. Another of my favourites Whiplash featured Coundon's own Frank Ifield singing the opening theme. This was before he became famous in the UK although he was already the biggest singing star in Australia and New Zealand.

I am listening to Noggin the Nog from 1959. I want to be a direct descendant of Noggin the Nog. Do you see what you have done, Gilly? I would settle to be a Clanger, but they are too new for fifties tele.

It is often the case that we miss what is almost on our doorstep. I know that I do.

He should know better at his age!

The first house I ever lived-in Coventry had no electricity upstairs. It did at least have an upstairs bathroom (the size of a closet) and wash basin which was unusual at the time. When I say 'bathroom' I mean 'bathroom' as the toilet was still downstairs out the back! It was of limited use as well since there was no electric light. The main source of entertainment during the day was the radiogram (remember them?) because television didn't begin until the early evening. In those days radio wasn't just 'pop & prattle' like it is now. There were comedy reviews, drama series, quizzes, sci-fi even! The street outside was cobbled and still lit by gas. A man had to come round with a long pole every evening to light it. The alleyways between the houses weren't gated-off then like they are now and could be used as a short-cut to wherever you wanted to go. The child-minder in charge of me was amazed that I could find my way around the alleyways of Earlsdon easier than she could and she had lived there for decades!