Author Topic: Then & Now  (Read 339634 times)

Spud

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1254 on: November 10, 2019, 04:52:47 PM »
I remember seeing Rock Around The Clock at The Rialto in Hall Green . What a night that was. I had not been going out for very long with the future Mrs Spud and her father was a bit of a stickler had he known we had been there on the infamous night I doubt if she would ever have become Mrs Spud.
The Rialto was a lovely old Cinema they had a organist named Foley Bates hardly a name you could forget and an usherette named Minnie a dear soul who lived a few doors from my parents house in Sparkhill. Doubt if either had heard of Bill Haley let alone his Comets. Every thing was going swimmingly until Bill belted out the first cords of Rock Around the Clock Watching from the Back Stalls the place erupted . The Circle above our heads began creaking groaning. It started with dancing in the aisles but the staff try as they did to control the audience it was just hopeless. I can still see seats being torn out. We managed to get out just as the Police Arrived to restore order. The Circle was damaged so much it was never to open again.
Arriving home early-ish  we told my Girl Friend's Dad that we had been to the Robin Hood
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mike mancott

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1255 on: November 10, 2019, 06:17:46 PM »
I remember seeing Rock Around The Clock at The Rialto in Hall Green . What a night that was. I had not been going out for very long with the future Mrs Spud and her father was a bit of a stickler had he known we had been there on the infamous night I doubt if she would ever have become Mrs Spud.
The Rialto was a lovely old Cinema they had a organist named Foley Bates hardly a name you could forget and an usherette named Minnie a dear soul who lived a few doors from my parents house in Sparkhill. Doubt if either had heard of Bill Haley let alone his Comets. Every thing was going swimmingly until Bill belted out the first cords of Rock Around the Clock Watching from the Back Stalls the place erupted . The Circle above our heads began creaking groaning. It started with dancing in the aisles but the staff try as they did to control the audience it was just hopeless. I can still see seats being torn out. We managed to get out just as the Police Arrived to restore order. The Circle was damaged so much it was never to open again.
Arriving home early-ish  we told my Girl Friend's Dad that we had been to the Robin Hood


So you not very seriously HOOD-winked your girlfriend`dad.




Scipio

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1256 on: November 10, 2019, 08:52:04 PM »

I saw 'Rock around the Clock' there in 1955. Because of Teddy Boy riots in London, the Castle Cinema was the only one locally that would show it so all the Teds in the area came. The police stood at the back and immediately ejected a couple that started dancing in the aisle. At that moment, someone let a banger off and there was uproar. No further trouble but the atmosphere was electric - magic!


On another occasion, I was caught letting my mate in through the back door.


Then we have the nerve to say about the youngsters misbehaving ,you can now see where they get it from
If voting made any difference , they wouldn't let us do it.
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JudithM

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1257 on: November 11, 2019, 01:12:50 PM »

Arriving home early-ish  we told my Girl Friend's Dad that we had been to the Robin Hood

 ;D ;D ;D
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Phil

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1258 on: November 18, 2019, 11:37:51 AM »
St Barnabus Church in Balsall Heath on the corner of Ladypool Road and Clifton Road, Said to have been bombed during the war but I have memories of a complete church during the 50's and I'm pretty sure the damage was caused by a fire.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

frederick

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1259 on: November 18, 2019, 02:45:31 PM »
I was Chrisened there and later I was in the choir with my cousin Graham Webb, we also had to pump The bellows for the organ. Two of my femail cousins were married there. It looks a lot different now.
Failure to Prepare is to Prepare to Fail

Phil

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1260 on: November 18, 2019, 02:55:01 PM »
The thing is Fred was it bombed during the war and this was the cause of the rebuilding?
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

frederick

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1261 on: November 18, 2019, 04:35:34 PM »
Phil,
It could of had war time bomb damage. But the front of the Church in your photo apart from the iron railings was all intact I have added a photo of one of my cousins weddings.
Failure to Prepare is to Prepare to Fail

Phil

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1262 on: November 19, 2019, 12:52:49 PM »
Phil,
It could of had war time bomb damage. But the front of the Church in your photo apart from the iron railings was all intact I have added a photo of one of my cousins weddings.


From what I have heard so far everything seems to concur that it was a fire sometime in the 50's that called for the rebuild and not a wartime bomb.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

Phil

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1263 on: November 19, 2019, 01:02:37 PM »
The Ashted Cinema on Ashted Row, the older image must have been before 1958 when it was demolished, though I thought it was later than that.
Phil died in 2020. RIP.

mike mancott

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Re: Then & Now
« Reply #1264 on: November 19, 2019, 02:37:24 PM »
I read somewhere that The New Ashted Row Cinema was owned by the Villa football player Will Devey, when it was still Ashted Row Picture House.
When I first travelled past it on a bus as a child, I read the name as, "The New Washed Row Cinema".


 

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