Early 1970s - When I announced in the office, one Monday morning, my fiance and me had placed a deposit, on Sunday the day before, on a new build semi in Tamworth (near the Reliant Two Gates factory) many thought my powers of reason had deserted me, to decide to live so far away, my explanation that it was the only way we could afford a new house fell mostly on deaf ears.
As it turned out, after we had moved in (1972), I questioned the logic of my decision on more than one occasion when the oil crisis hit in 1973. Although we only had a Mini the fuel rationing allowance was not enough to cover our daily commute so we had to put contingency plans in place to spend some weekday nights with our parents in Erdington and Sutton Coldfield, thankfully petrol rationing was never introduced.
So, did our move to Tamworth prove to be a good one? From a property ownership aspect, Yes. Due to, what I can only describe as, a freak set of circumstances the house we purchased doubled in value in 18 months.
Peg.