Ellen English has very kindly provided some photographs taken at a VE Day street party in Royston Avenue Laindon. The chalkboard in the first photo appears to show that there will be TEA, CAKE, VARIETY ACTS, RACES, REFESHMENTS, PRIZES and a BONFIRE. Please let us know if you recognise anyone in the photographs, or maybe you were there.
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Hi Ellen, sorry to hear about the passing of Terry,
myself and my wife (Daphne) both worked with Terry at the Securicor depot Basildon all the time he was there until his retirement we knew him quite well. He told me he knew my older brother Donald from school, Laindon High Road, also Donald’s wife Ann Britton also at LHR Think they were all the same age. Donald passed away in March 2023. Ann, sadly has had to go in a care home, with Alzheimer,s
David
Hi Mick, Thank you for your reply, no Terry never could sing, it was lovely to hear your memories of early school years.
Terry never liked school and said he only had 1 woodwork lesson! apparently I think he was larking around and Mr Finch threw something at him and not to attend any more lessons.
He was in the army cadets and was army cadet of the year in 1953.I still have the wooden plaque he was presented with, you can look that up on this website,
He would have liked to have gone into the army but was completely deaf in one ear.
He was always fun loving and a great husband and father.
Hello Ellen,
I was sad to hear that Terry had had Alzheimers for such a long time and had died. We started school together at Donaldson’s primary school. I will always remember the music lessons when we had to sing and always in this sequence it was “Merrison shut up, English shut up, Hawkins shut up and Blundell shut up”. It was no problem as while the singers were away we could play football or cricket. Did Terry ever learn to sing? I didn’t.
I was called-up in 1958, and was in the RAF until 1963. I got married in 1963, and then moved farther and farther away from Laindon. We now live in Lincolnshire. I can remember Terry from our first day at school as we sat next to each other. He tried to escape back home. I was jealous as he had an easier name than I did to spell and write.
Thanks for bringing back so many childhood memories.
Mick
Hello Mick, so pleased I put the photos on the archive site and that you saw them. I wasn’t sure with the passage of time if anyone recognised someone.
Terry’s mum is in the 4th photo down, face hidden by flowers and with a tartan check top, Terry is in front of her on a chair with his turned away to the left,
I recognised his very fair hair.
I remember your name, Terry often spoke of his youth and friends and mates he hung out with.
Mickey Hopper, Terry Simmons, Peter Pettet, Ernie Hawkins, Ray Venner.
He told me they used to go to the Fortune Of War Sunday mornings, at closing time they would play cards in the middle of the roundabout, then go back to the pub when it opened again in the evenings. Another episode was hitching a lift home on early morning milk floats. He really enjoyed his youth.
I lived in Langdon Hills, and we married in 1962,
We always lived local and have been in Durham Road for 43 years.
Unfortunately Terry passed away in March 2022 after 16 years with Alzheimers .
I and my brother Bert are in a few of the photographs. We are 2nd & 3rd in from the bottom of the table. In the last photograph is my father, my Aunt Vi & my Uncle George Bell, all now dead. Thank you so much for taking me down memory lane. By the way which one is Terry English, I remember him very well? Is he still with us?
Thank you Colin for enlarging them. The lady I thought was my mother -in-law was correct and I think Terry is on a chair in front of her.
All the entertainment and party food etc must have been great for everybody.
I think our generation owes a great deal to our parents especially our mums, a lot of food was still on rationing, so to provide all the party food was a massive effort on them.
I know a lot of fruit etc was preserved but it would all have been prepared by hand.,no popping to the shops and buy it all in packets.
It must have been a big relief for the war to be over.
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