Just wanted to add my threepennorth on the Dare trail.. First of all my parents in law bought their first new home built by Harry Dare in Berkswell Road, Erdington in 1935. My brother in law Ronnie Walker worked for the firm at the time.
In 1979 we responded to an advertisement in the Birmingham Mail and expressed our interest in one of four house which Patrick Dare proposed to build in Henley in Arden, in Brook End Close. Patrick had returned from South Africa and had Ted Mayne working with him operating from an office on High Street, Henley in Arden. Patrick was great with us, ours was the first house and we quickly realised that it was beeing designed on the hoof, when we questioned about such things as fireplaces, bathroom and kitchen fittings, the answer was always "what would you like, it's your home you can have what you want. Poor old Ted Mayne was left with the unenviable task of keeping up with everything and trying to charge us a fortune for everything.
Patrick intended to live in the third house himself but during the fairly prolonged build period he changed his mind and moved into Chestnut Drive. I remember him campaigning for Stratford Council, but somewhere around 1984 things seemed to go pearshaped and I think he disappeared, and the business folded. His wife (South African I think) was still around when we left Henley in Arden in the late 80's.
My sister lived in a 1957 Dares house in Hathaway Road, Four Oaks. Does the road name suggest a connection to the Charlie Hathaway referred earlier in this posting. I know that they had a habit of using family names, Dare Road and Robin Road in Erdington.
Whatever, they built great homes!
jimi