May 18, 201511 yr Hi, Just a brief introduction, I`m a Northumbrian, born and bred, a keen walker, with lot`s of other interests, ie local/ natural history, reading, writing, books etc... Back in the day (when Methusala was a lad) my family ran a small DIY shop on Bedlington High Street. I also recall, or seem to recall the miners picnics that were held anually, just a stones` throw from the village, down a rather steep hill. am I right, or is my mind playing tricks? I am of a certain age after all. That`s me then, looking forward to joining in on the discussions.
May 18, 201511 yr Welcome to the forum Vagabond! Looking forward to your posts. You are right about the Miner's Picnic but it involved the whole of the main street as well as Atlee Park at the bottom of the hill. The bands paraded along the street and down the hill to the park where the speeches were held. You'll find som great photos in the gallery.
May 18, 201511 yr Welcome Vagabond, if you reveal the name of the DIY Shop then I,m sure you'll get lot's of stories and anecdotes from the lads & lasses on this forum.
May 21, 201511 yr Hi Vagabond,and welcome to the forum!I'm not a dinosaur yet,but gettin on,and was brought up in Bedlington,Hollymount Square,from the first houses being built,[circa 1947-8 ish].The word D.I.Y. hadn't been coined,when I was a kid,although Jimmy Milne sold everything but Gold Pigs!Matty Robinson was more diversified than Jimmy,but as a kid,I didn't know Bedlington Station existed!!I moved away to Stakeford in 1970,so was it after that when your Dad had the shop,or am I just ignorant of the fact that it might have been earlier ,and as a young man,might not have been interested,as I wouldn't have any DIY to do....except for repairs to my guitar and motorbike....!!!!
May 21, 201511 yr Author Hi all, and thank you for the welcomes, I don`t want to give out the name of the business for reasons I`m sure you will understand (it was a family business). Suffice it to say, it was a tiny little shop, situated opposite the Lion Garage, Not directly opposite (as in across the road from) but a little way further down the road, It was in a line, or a terrace of shops, except that the line was broken at the side of our shop by a patch of waste ground, so it looked like our shop was at the end of the terrace, and where there should have been a shop (or some kind of building) there was nothing, just a space, overgrown with weeds. I should say that I`m going back 50 years or so, c 1961. I would have been 14 years of age then. We sold, timber, hardboard, plywood, pelmets (remember them) made to order), dowling, nails, screws, brackets, glues, etc - the usual stuff. But like I said, the premises were too small, and we gave it up after 3 -4 years. We had two other, more proffitable shops. The term DIY was in its infancy in the 1960`s. On a good day, eg on a Saturday we would clear 100 pounds, a considerable sum in those days. PS. My dentist is in Bedlington, must make an appointment, my check up is long overdue! Edited May 21, 201511 yr by Vagabond
May 22, 201511 yr A little late but welcome Vagabond.Lots of us in the same age range as you.1946/47 were good years to be born.What better place than Bedlington to live!
May 24, 201511 yr Heh heh! ...."Pelmets"...!When we moved into our first house ,in 1970,[a colliery house that had stood empty and dilapidated for over a year...!],I was proud as a peacockwhen folks used to come to visit and remark how nice our pelmets were,and I told them I had made them......what a task it was....with just a pit axe and along bit o' string.......!!!What a blast from thi past,Orloff!![they really were thi "in" thing to have...at thi time!]
May 25, 201511 yr Author Thankyou for your welcome Maggie Re, pelmets, they were all the rage back in the 60`s, we couldn`t make them fast enough; they didn`t `alf pick up the dust though; one reason they lost popularity. We also sold Formica, and, of all things - model planes, the type you `wound up` with elastic bands (Keil Kraft). I think we bought a job lot from a wholesaler. We sold whitewash too - or distemper (The Paragon Packing Company) as it was more commonly known. And glass, we sold glass too, to order. Everything was cut to size, customers would come in wanting 5` 4 inches of 2 x 1 and we`d cut it for them. If they wanted a piece of plywood 16" x 30" we`d cut it for them. Only exception were the rammon mouldings, these were generally sold in 6` lenghs. Some customers complained about this - why did they have to pay for 6` when they only wanted 4. They`d never had it so good, everything cut to order - was like having someone do half of the work for them - all they had to do was put it all together! It was all change though in the late 70`s when the big boys came on the scene, B&Q and the rest. No one cuts to size now, cep`t maybe your local glazier. Edited May 25, 201511 yr by Vagabond
Create a free account or sign in to comment