Southampton Nostalgia...

After a serious bout of nostalgia on the main board (http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=474690#post474690) thought it might be worth starting a thread for any oldies with memories of Southampton "back in the day".

Could be anything, must be a ton of funny stories out there - just a few possible themes off the top of my head:

City events - The Southampton Show, The Carnival, The Fair ("A load of Pompey are coming down!"), Radio 1 live from the precinct

Nightlife - Barbarellas, The Top Rank ("Millionairres" night?!), The Rum Runner, Rainbows, that "indie" one down Ascupart St. in St. Mary's (Manhattens?)

Footy Pubs/Lock-ins - Painted Wagon, The Warreners, The Corner Post, Cricketers, Cowherds etc. etc.

Old Shops - Edwin Jones (?!) which became Debenhams, Toomers, Parnell's (THE place to buy your 14-hole DM's), Top Shop (body-popping outside!), Subway records

The old cinemas - ABC, Gaumont, Odeon, Saturday morning "kids shows"

Stuff to do - The Sports Centre, The Lido (legendary in '76!), The Central Baths and 'the 16'6" end' complete with kids flashing out the front windows!, Top Rank Ice Rink, The Stevedors Xmas Party, "Uncle Tony's Playtime Club" in the Echo(!), The Tyro League

City Landmarks - The Bargate, The Pier, The first McDonalds(!) - actually think it might have been Burger King(?), The Floating Bridge

Classic Gigs - The 'new' Mayflower getting wrecked in it's first week when the Pogues played, the Joiners Arms etc.

Inter-school rivalry - my old lot vs. Glen Eyre was always a classic...

You get the gist, anything and everything welcome...

 

Inter-school rivalry - my old lot vs. Glen Eyre was always a classic...

 

You get the gist, anything and everything welcome...

Hampton Park were you? I was Glen Eyre....:smt075

In addition I remember It's A Knockout came to the Sports Centre a couple of times and set up shop on the athletics field.

There used to be the Atherley Cinema in Shirley (now a bingo hall).

And don't forget the Lord Louis at the old Green Bus Depot.

Manhattans Night Club in St Mary's Street.

Mike's Burger Van.

I'll have to come back to this....

Inter-school rivalry -

 

As a 'spud', I held an antipathy towards Bellemoor

As an infrequent ( ) visitor now, I find some of the 'familiar' road layouts from my younger days have been obliterated. I have had particular problems with Thomas Lewis way, Lances Hill ( and whatever the new bits at the top are called ), and Six Dials, ( changed a lot since I used to visit my Grandad there ).

Hampton Park were you? I was Glen Eyre....:smt075

 

In addition I remember It's A Knockout came to the Sports Centre a couple of times and set up shop on the athletics field.

 

There used to be the Atherley Cinema in Shirley (now a bingo hall).

 

And don't forget the Lord Louis at the old Green Bus Depot.

 

Manhattans Night Club in St Mary's Street.

 

Mike's Burger Van.

 

 

I'll have to come back to this....

St. Georges! Never involved meself mind, but do remember lads stomping off to the woods to meet up, and home time on the bus was always an adventure when we got to around that pub "The Stile" (? memory fades). Numerous times I remember the driver/conductor warning that "the bus is not stopping until we get to the police station" although it rarely did.

Had many a drunken burger at Mike's (assuming that is the one across the road from Barbarella's - next to what was the first Virgin Records shop?).

The old Green Bus depot (Hants & Dorset) is a section on it's own - Plesteds Pies, Percy's the barber, Subway Records, those old drinks vending machines that were always getting battered etc. etc.

Remember going to 'the Sporty' to watch the FA Cup Final "It's a Knockout". Can't quite remember who won, think Man Utd did...

 

Inter-school rivalry - my old lot vs. Glen Eyre was always a classic...

 

Glen Eyre also for me, I seem to remember when I was in the fifth year our girls and your girls going at it and bringing Burgess road to a standstill circa 1985.

Ah see, I thought you meant Hampton Park as well.

:confused:

As an infrequent ( ) visitor now, I find some of the 'familiar' road layouts from my younger days have been obliterated. I have had particular problems with Thomas Lewis way, Lances Hill ( and whatever the new bits at the top are called ), and Six Dials, ( changed a lot since I used to visit my Grandad there ).

Me too - fine on The Avenue or Hill Lane but then it all gets a bit confusing.

Ah see, I thought you meant Hampton Park as well.

:confused:

I think Glen Eyre used to get it from all sides as you were in the middle. Getting off with Glen Eyre girls was seen as a victory for our lads (given we didn't have any of our own!) and used to rile the Glen Eyre lads...

3 hour queues for a £3 hair-cut at Eddie Horn's!

The Balloon Show.

Fireworks at my old school.

Plumbers (sp?).

Then when a bit older...

Thursday night everything's a quid at The Goose and Granite! :drinkers:

Getting off with Glen Eyre girls ........

I used to live 30 yards from Glen Eyre School, and 2 of my sisters were "GE girls", ( which one were you ? )

- Henry's records in St Mary Street

- Bondage-In-General next to the Gaumount

- Hari & Al sprayed everywhere

- Testwood v Hounsdown

- The Tumble-In cafe

- Doves Burgers

- The 'Hit Fifty' in the Contented Sole chippy

- Henry's records in St Mary Street

 

- Bondage-In-General next to the Gaumount

 

Bought loads of t-shirts in Bondage -in General.

Who Dat comics - Above Bar.

The Southerner in the High Street - pre match pint and a bun.

I was trying to locate the site of Henry's the other day after the Gillingham game - where exactly was it on St. Mary's Street and when did it close? My last memory of visiting the shop was in March 1986 shortly before I left for Scotland.

Hurling drunken abuse at Barry Sheene in the Top Rank one 70s night (rabid Mick Grant fan at the time as I had a Kwak 500) -weird that back then bike allegiance was as tribal as football.

Sticky floor in the Atherley Cinema.

Going to work one morning from Shirley (shared a flat on Greville Road) to the Ordnance Survey in my nice suit - so hungover that I didn't realise that I still had my SFC carpet slippers on! (Teenager/carpet slippers? )

More memories surfacing all the time.

I was trying to locate the site of Henry's the other day after the Gillingham game - where exactly was it on St. Mary's Street and when did it close? My last memory of visiting the shop was in March 1986 shortly before I left for Scotland.

From memory, it was just the other side of Ascupart Street from Bigland the Bakers (which was on one corner), maybe one shop along - certainly before you got to Budgens. The Venture chippy was one or two along from Biglands.

From memory, it was just the other side of Ascupart Street from Bigland the Bakers (which was on one corner), maybe one shop along, certainly before you got to Budgens. The Venture chippy was one or two along from Biglands.

Ta. What a shop that was - 'I can get you anything from anywhere' - he was the first to get Reggae/Toaster imports, weird 9 inch singles etc etc.

Once classic on the "Nightlife" scene I forgot of course was Bogarts (nr. cenotaph) on a Friday night - this is more in the 80's Casual Era, Bri Smith as Mein Host, Hammy on the decks, and all sorts of mayhem guaranteed...

Ta. What a shop that was - 'I can get you anything from anywhere' - he was the first to get Reggae/Toaster imports, weird 9 inch singles etc etc.

They had all sorts of weird and wonderful stuff in there. I was always a little scared to go in when I was a kid - we lived in the area - but did so when I got to my teens. Subway Records was the other regular haunt, particularly in the punk/new wave era.

What was the name of the old flea pit cinema on Above Bar, near the junction with Commercial Road ?

3 hour queues for a £3 hair-cut at Eddie Horn's!

Hahaha we all did it. Legendary place. He used to give the kids 10p mix-ups when they were waiting

Hahaha we all did it. Legendary place. He used to give the kids 10p mix-ups when they were waiting

Yep, he would leg-it next door to buy some more if he ran out in between cuts. Top bloke!

What was the name of the old flea pit cinema on Above Bar, near the junction with Commercial Road ?

I was thinking of the cinemas - in town there was the Odeon (now a bar or something?), the Gaumont (now Mayflower), the ABC, now gone (bar as well?), and I'm sure there was another one, but can't remember it's name (or maybe that was the ABC and I'm getting confused).

Might be the one you're thinking of, it was across the road from the Odeon from memory and was pretty much just an entrance. This is one of the ones where they used to do the Sat morning kids things "The Children's Film Foundation"... the manager used to introduce the programme and invariably got bombarded by popcorn and sweet wrappers!

http://www.imdb.com/company/co0103210/

Oh our youth!!!............widows night at the pier midweek, ice skating on a Saturday morning, then pick a pig at the top rank on Saturday night....Lager and blackcurrent...yuk!!!

I was thinking of the cinemas - in town there was the Odeon (now a bar or something?), the Gaumont (now Mayflower), the ABC, now gone (bar as well?), and I'm sure there was another one, but can't remember it's name (or maybe that was the ABC and I'm getting confused).

 

Might be the one you're thinking of, it was across the road from the Odeon from memory and was pretty much just an entrance. This is one of the ones where they used to do the Sat morning kids things "The Children's Film Foundation"... the manager used to introduce the programme and invariably got bombarded by popcorn and sweet wrappers!

 

http://www.imdb.com/company/co0103210/

Is the ABC the same as the Canon?

That was where the Virgin Megastore popped up IIRC.

I was thinking of the cinemas - in town there was the Odeon (now a bar or something?), the Gaumont (now Mayflower), the ABC, now gone (bar as well?), and I'm sure there was another one, but can't remember it's name (or maybe that was the ABC and I'm getting confused).

 

Might be the one you're thinking of, it was across the road from the Odeon from memory and was pretty much just an entrance. This is one of the ones where they used to do the Sat morning kids things "The Children's Film Foundation"... the manager used to introduce the programme and invariably got bombarded by popcorn and sweet wrappers!

 

http://www.imdb.com/company/co0103210/

It was called 'The Classic'. You walked down a narrow passageway, to the auditorium at the back.

It was called 'The Classic'. You walked down a narrow passageway, to the auditorium at the back.

The Classic!! Bang on. Yeah, now I remember it.

Is the ABC the same as the Canon?

 

That was where the Virgin Megastore popped up IIRC.

Could be wrong, but I think the Odeon was where Virgin now is (or was?). The ABC became a bar for a while (it was up towards "Tyrrell & Greens" / "Plummers"). Of course, I could have the two cinemas round the wrong way.

Taken from 'Southampton' by Robert Cook. The History Press, 2009.

 

Taken from 'Southampton' by Robert Cook. The History Press, 2009.

Great photo, but sad story. And there is The Venture chippy next door.

The only thing that survives in this photo of Bevois Road level crossing is the concrete level crossing post (far left) and the railway line.

Stand here today and you are looking directly at the Kingsland Stand. The pub on the corner is roughly where the Dell Supporters Club Bar is now. The gas holder is not one of those surviving today, it is pretty much on the centre circle!

ref. Southampton's Railways by Bert Moody. Atlantic books 1992.

I was thinking of the cinemas - in town there was the Odeon (now a bar or something?), the Gaumont (now Mayflower), the ABC, now gone (bar as well?), and I'm sure there was another one, but can't remember it's name (or maybe that was the ABC and I'm getting confused).

 

Might be the one you're thinking of, it was across the road from the Odeon from memory and was pretty much just an entrance. This is one of the ones where they used to do the Sat morning kids things "The Children's Film Foundation"... the manager used to introduce the programme and invariably got bombarded by popcorn and sweet wrappers!

 

http://www.imdb.com/company/co0103210/

The Odeon was where the Virgin Megastore / Waterstones/ Other shop was built. The ABC still exists as a building (Squares) and the classic became Burger King. There was also an "Adult" cinema as part of the Classic which I think was called The Tatler

I've just found this picture of the old Odeon where Virgin now stands.

http://www.mawgrim.co.uk/projection/southampton.jpg

(It's a slow day at work)

I've just found this picture of the old Odeon where Virgin now stands.

 

http://www.mawgrim.co.uk/projection/southampton.jpg

 

(It's a slow day at work)

Great pic - brings a few memories back. The redbrick place next door was some sort of church wasn't it? (may have been a "proper" old church before I think). There was a taxi rank on that corner too.

Was squinting to see what was on - Three Men and a Baby I think, along with something else. That would make it about 87 or 88.

Great pic - brings a few memories back. The redbrick place next door was some sort of church wasn't it? (may have been a "proper" old church before I think). There was a taxi rank on that corner too.

 

 

Was squinting to see what was on - Three Men and a Baby I think, along with something else. That would make it about 87 or 88.

The Church was the Above Bar United Reformed Church, I think it's still there. I can't remember, and the google maps car didn't go past it so I cant have a look.

Here's another one:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3286/2989440204_2408892586.jpg

You can see The Classic cinema in this one. Mind you this photo is a bit before my time, that could be my Mum & Dad crossing the road.

Interesting few photo's here.

Millionaires club at the Rank is where I met my wife. Anyone else there the night Roger D'courcy died a death on stage?

Biglands in St marys street, some good stuff there over the years to be had. My parents had shops in St marys street and Northam road and so this was a regular haunt.

Russell shoe shops in st marys street, they had 2 shops there. St marys street was such a thriving place in the late 60's and early 70's.

The Atherley saturday morning to watch a couple of films (Marx bros)and it was bedlum with all the kids running around.

The milk machines at the bus station, it was the only place they sold the strawberry flavoured stuff.

Henrys records

Shirt king

Holt and Haskell sports shop and of course Toomers where they sold all the subutteo teams and stuff.

I've just found this picture of the old Odeon where Virgin now stands.

 

http://www.mawgrim.co.uk/projection/southampton.jpg

 

(It's a slow day at work)

Could be wrong, but I think the Odeon was where Virgin now is (or was?). The ABC became a bar for a while (it was up towards "Tyrrell & Greens" / "Plummers"). Of course, I could have the two cinemas round the wrong way.

I think you may have been right!

Good photo. I remember going to that cinema when I was a young'un. Used to have to queue outside round the alley/small road to the left if it was busy.

Great pic - brings a few memories back. The redbrick place next door was some sort of church wasn't it? (may have been a "proper" old church before I think). There was a taxi rank on that corner too.

 

 

Was squinting to see what was on - Three Men and a Baby I think, along with something else. That would make it about 87 or 88.

And The Monster Squad, I think

Great thread!

My dear old dad used to run off a list of cinemas the city used to have. I can remember the Odeon, ABC, Classic, Gaumont, Plaza (on Northam Bridge). There used to be two in Woolston too I think and one in Bitterne although I can't remember the names.

I can remember the great coffee shop near Plummers and the Tudor Coffee Bar. Also the Checkpoint at the Bargate and the Lonesome Pine in Woolston! See how old I am

I also remember Edwin Jones and Mays (near the Bargate). I can remember eyeing up the King Edward's boys on the bus (I was at the Girls' Grammar School).

Oh happy days

The last film a saw at the old odeon was Jurassic park.

The last film I saw at the other cinema up the road was **** Tracy

Sooo long ago

Another fond memory i have was every Xmas when I was really youg, the old Echo office on above bar had a father Christmas on the roof with a mechanical waving arm to which I used to wave back... Lol

Great thread!

 

My dear old dad used to run off a list of cinemas the city used to have. I can remember the Odeon, ABC, Classic, Gaumont, Plaza (on Northam Bridge). There used to be two in Woolston too I think and one in Bitterne although I can't remember the names.

 

I can remember the great coffee shop near Plummers and the Tudor Coffee Bar. Also the Checkpoint at the Bargate and the Lonesome Pine in Woolston! See how old I am

 

I also remember Edwin Jones and Mays (near the Bargate). I can remember eyeing up the King Edward's boys on the bus (I was at the Girls' Grammar School).

 

Oh happy days

What about the bird avery?

Another fond memory I have of Southampton was a time when manor round-a-bouts did not have traffic lights around them

There was a shop in Bedford Place towards the park end and they sold all sorts of smelly fragrant soaps and candles, can't remember what it was called. The eye hospital, my nan letting people in the side door at The Corner Post on matchdays.

Larry's Burger van, he used to have a pitch under arundel Towers and then later in the car park opposite the Lord Louis.

I heard, last year, that Larry had passed away.

Millionaires club at the Rank is where I met my wife. Anyone else there the night Roger D'courcy died a death on stage?

Biglands in St marys street, some good stuff there over the years to be had. My parents had shops in St marys street and Northam road and so this was a regular haunt.

Russell shoe shops in st marys street, they had 2 shops there. St marys street was such a thriving place in the late 60's and early 70's.

The Atherley saturday morning to watch a couple of films (Marx bros)and it was bedlum with all the kids running around.

The milk machines at the bus station, it was the only place they sold the strawberry flavoured stuff.

Henrys records

Shirt king

Holt and Haskell sports shop and of course Toomers where they sold all the subutteo teams and stuff.

A good mate of mine, Pete Bentley, worked at Henry's for many years. pete has an unbelieveable record collection, especially soul music.

There was a shop in Bedford Place towards the park end and they sold all sorts of smelly fragrant soaps and candles, can't remember what it was called. The eye hospital, my nan letting people in the side door at The Corner Post on matchdays.

Oh I remember the Eye Hospital! I was a patient there twice when I was a very little girl. The nurses were nuns in those days (well, I think they were - they looked liked nuns to this 6 year old )

There was a great Italian restaurant opposite I seem to recall - had live lobsters in a tank.

St. Georges! Never involved meself mind, but do remember lads stomping off to the woods to meet up, and home time on the bus was always an adventure when we got to around that pub "The Stile" (? memory fades). Numerous times I remember the driver/conductor warning that "the bus is not stopping until we get to the police station" although it rarely did.

 

Had many a drunken burger at Mike's (assuming that is the one across the road from Barbarella's - next to what was the first Virgin Records shop?).

 

The old Green Bus depot (Hants & Dorset) is a section on it's own - Plesteds Pies, Percy's the barber, Subway Records, those old drinks vending machines that were always getting battered etc. etc.

 

Remember going to 'the Sporty' to watch the FA Cup Final "It's a Knockout". Can't quite remember who won, think Man Utd did...

Oh you were of St George's!!!!

Mike's Burgers used to set up shop in the lay-by outside the Air Cadet hall opposite the fountain near the Civic. There you go, the Air Cadet hut and the old fountain.

I used to go to Percy Horn's barber shop all the time, it was always chock full of punks (like me....), rude boys, skins....had to get there early to avoid a long wait.

And Subway Records. You could get any record you could think of in there. And there was one of the first Space Invaders games in there that only had a high score of 9999 and then went back to 0. Henry's ran Subway a close second; they used to do a sealed bag of 10 singles for a quid, I got some right gems.

Toomers sports shop was fab as well, I remember being gutted when that shop shut.

TDD has mentioned the bird aviary, but there was a coffee shop just down the road, probably where Beatnik Emporium is now. It used to smell brilliant!!!!

And there was a tobacconist in London Road that used to sell all sorts of weird tailor mades and rolling baccy.

I could be thinking of things all night at this rate....

Alec Bennett Motorcycles Portswood

RD250 or GT250?

Floaters

Mid week pub darts league

Martines

Manns brown ale

Someone remind me where the helicopter landing pad was...

near the Gaumont?