Things you remember from back in the day? (11 Viewers)

Johnnythespider

Well-Known Member
Taking bottles back for the deposit
Wearing shorts to junior school all through the year
Riding our bikes around rough close scout camp
 

shmmeee

Well-Known Member
Shops.

Proper shops with random shit in. Like Intershop. Walking round town browsing stuff. Going to four different game shops to get the best deal from K Soft's price match.

America.

America being a magical mystical place where any rumour you heard that started "In America they..." you would believe. Getting excited if someone was going there because they'd bring back stuff you couldn't get here. Now it feels like its next door.
 

Ranjit Bhurpa

Well-Known Member
Yes. Bloody things never worked properly.

I went down the shops just to buy my mum a pint of milk one day and ended up in Water Orton.
If they had the animal paw prints on the sole, were you following the beaver trail Otis??
 

dancers lance

Well-Known Member
The Commodore 64
Atari Lynx

There's loads of stuff I can't think of at the moment!
I have a brand new (from the early 80's) Commodore 64 bundle pack in my attic that has never been opened, I also have a brand new electronic game in the box Called "After Burner" by Grandstand (also fro the 80's). I am hoping they will be worth a fortune at some point, but probably not.
 

Gazolba

Well-Known Member
<snip>

America being a magical mystical place where any rumour you heard that started "In America they..." you would believe. Getting excited if someone was going there because they'd bring back stuff you couldn't get here. Now it feels like its next door.
They felt/feel the same about Europe.
 

ccfc92

Well-Known Member
Shops.

Proper shops with random shit in. Like Intershop. Walking round town browsing stuff. Going to four different game shops to get the best deal from K Soft's price match.

America.

America being a magical mystical place where any rumour you heard that started "In America they..." you would believe. Getting excited if someone was going there because they'd bring back stuff you couldn't get here. Now it feels like its next door.

'Tis the only downside the easy travel nowadays.

30 years ago, going to America was practically emigrating. Now it's "Meh"

I've been 3 times this year, love it. Want to do 3-6 months out there travelling :)
 

wingy

Well-Known Member
I have a brand new (from the early 80's) Commodore 64 bundle pack in my attic that has never been opened, I also have a brand new electronic game in the box Called "After Burner" by Grandstand (also fro the 80's). I am hoping they will be worth a fortune at some point, but probably not.
I've just picked up a 1973 set of Subbuteo with something like 12 teams, all boxed but I think used.
One of the lads at work has just split from his Mrs and cleared his loft.
As soon as he mentioned it I said I'd have it for my grandson,he reckoned stuff like that was on ebay for £300
Anyway three days later he came back to me, said his kids didn't want it
Have I done any good?
There were a few jealous lads in the workshop £50.
 

Ranjit Bhurpa

Well-Known Member
I've just picked up a 1973 set of Subbuteo with something like 12 teams, all boxed but I think used.
One of the lads at work has just split from his Mrs and cleared his loft.
As soon as he mentioned it I said I'd have it for my grandson,he reckoned stuff like that was on ebay for £300
Anyway three days later he came back to me, said his kids didn't want it
Have I done any good?
There were a few jealous lads in the workshop £50.
Make sure all the players are intact Wingy. We never had a table big enough for the pitch and had to play on the carpet. Many promising careers were ruined by our knees accidently crunching the players in half :banghead:
 

wingy

Well-Known Member
Make sure all the players are intact Wingy. We never had a table big enough for the pitch and had to play on the carpet. Many promising careers were ruined by our knees accidently crunching the players in half :banghead:
They can't believe I'm willing to let him play with it.
Should be stored as some kind of artifact.
 

Astute

Well-Known Member
Waiting for your game system to load games from a tape deck. Would take about 10 minutes listening to bleeps. And then fault right at the end so you would have to start again :banghead:

Sega master system coming out with Sonic the Hedgehog. You couldn't save the game so would stay up all night to finish it. Then it was time to go to work :yawn:

Raves in fields and not noticing how badly shitted up or cold you were.
 

Gazolba

Well-Known Member
Collecting cigarette cards. Used to get them in tea too.
Free gifts in breakfast cereal boxes.
Boys playing marbles and girls playing hopscotch or skipping rope.
Do kids still play conkers?
 

Malaka

Well-Known Member
Cards to collect in your PG Tips, glueing my football stickers in my book, coins issued to collect with two gallons of petrol, Honda C50/C70/C90 (Honda dog). Vinyl covers on car roofs, Wimpy burgers, The Pink, Off Licence in the pub (getting the deposit back on bottles to buy sweets), paddling pool at Coombe Abbey, boating lake at the Slough, Tiswas, aggro at Football matches
 

Gazolba

Well-Known Member
<snip>. Vinyl covers on car roofs, <snip>
My current car (1983 model) has a vinyl roof. It's a white car with a white vinyl roof.
 

tommydazzle

Well-Known Member
Great memories - haven't thought of potato puffs for over 40 years! The stink bombing of Owen and Owen made me laugh - we used to buy ours from a joke shop somewhere near the Alexandra? cinema. They were glass capsules that you cracked under your heel and normally deployed in the lifts as Owen and Owen. Also memories of caps in their little round paper packets for guns and rockets, smoking monkeys that we used to light on the top of the 21 bus going home from town. From this same bus we would rapid-fire peas from shooters at unsuspecting pedestrians. We used to hang off the back of these buses to experience the g-force as it accelerated or swung around corners - there was always a fast bit on the way to the Paris cinema where you needed all your strength to hang on for dear life. Making racing trolleys, dens and rope swings. The slough - one year it froze solid and we skated and slid for days our pet dogs included which seemed to go everywhere with us in our gang of kids. The burning banks (AKA clog banks.) Playing football in Longford park until dark, playing all kinds of street games (wonder if they're all forgotten now - Kingy, Hot Rice etc). Penny-for the-guying, carol singing and bob-a-jobbing all to extort money from the general public. Wagging it in the billiard hall on Longford opposite the Saracens where you could stay all afternoon and get beans on toast and a game of snooker. As we got a bit older sneaking into the Engine from Foxford school for a crafty pint and a game of darts. Motorbike scrambling on the Black Pad and the quarry (pretty much where the Ricoh is I think). Playing pinball in the bowling alley above the circular market in town. Davenports Beer at Home, Cresta - it's frothy man, the strangely chemical taste of the vending machine pop in Livingstone Baths and the freezing cold water in the pool. Salvation Army bands in the streets on Sundays, Rag and Bone men, seeing David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust and Deep Purple at the Coventry Odeon (also panto here when we were kids paid for by my dad's factory every year).

Millions of memories prompted by this thread but it makes me realise that I wouldn't swap my childhood for a modern one which seems to consist of parents driving and entertaining their kids everywhere. It's probably rose-tinted but I look back with real fondness at the freedoms we had.
 

olderskyblue

Well-Known Member
Great memories - haven't thought of potato puffs for over 40 years! The stink bombing of Owen and Owen made me laugh - we used to buy ours from a joke shop somewhere near the Alexandra? cinema. They were glass capsules that you cracked under your heel and normally deployed in the lifts as Owen and Owen. Also memories of caps in their little round paper packets for guns and rockets, smoking monkeys that we used to light on the top of the 21 bus going home from town. From this same bus we would rapid-fire peas from shooters at unsuspecting pedestrians. We used to hang off the back of these buses to experience the g-force as it accelerated or swung around corners - there was always a fast bit on the way to the Paris cinema where you needed all your strength to hang on for dear life. Making racing trolleys, dens and rope swings. The slough - one year it froze solid and we skated and slid for days our pet dogs included which seemed to go everywhere with us in our gang of kids. The burning banks (AKA clog banks.) Playing football in Longford park until dark, playing all kinds of street games (wonder if they're all forgotten now - Kingy, Hot Rice etc). Penny-for the-guying, carol singing and bob-a-jobbing all to extort money from the general public. Wagging it in the billiard hall on Longford opposite the Saracens where you could stay all afternoon and get beans on toast and a game of snooker. As we got a bit older sneaking into the Engine from Foxford school for a crafty pint and a game of darts. Motorbike scrambling on the Black Pad and the quarry (pretty much where the Ricoh is I think). Playing pinball in the bowling alley above the circular market in town. Davenports Beer at Home, Cresta - it's frothy man, the strangely chemical taste of the vending machine pop in Livingstone Baths and the freezing cold water in the pool. Salvation Army bands in the streets on Sundays, Rag and Bone men, seeing David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust and Deep Purple at the Coventry Odeon (also panto here when we were kids paid for by my dad's factory every year).

Millions of memories prompted by this thread but it makes me realise that I wouldn't swap my childhood for a modern one which seems to consist of parents driving and entertaining their kids everywhere. It's probably rose-tinted but I look back with real fondness at the freedoms we had.

That almost matches my childhood Tommy. Remember walking back from the slough to wood end one winter all the way on the frozen river Sowe. Going scrumping, gangs of us hunting for firewood for bonfire night (carrying axes...) scragging other bonfires to make ours the biggest. Guarding yours so no one lit it ahead of time. ha great fun.
 

tommydazzle

Well-Known Member
Yes bonfire night - increasing the strength of bangers by sellotaping them up, jumping jacks which must be banned now as they invariably chased you up the path and into your house and making our own explosions with weedkiller and sugar. Made me laugh at your mention of carrying axes - you were obviously a tougher gang than us! Even the word 'scragging' is brilliant to hear again.
 

Nick

Administrator
Yes bonfire night - increasing the strength of bangers by sellotaping them up, jumping jacks which must be banned now as they invariably chased you up the path and into your house and making our own explosions with weedkiller and sugar. Made me laugh at your mention of carrying axes - you were obviously a tougher gang than us! Even the word 'scragging' is brilliant to hear again.

Air bombs in dog shit bins ;)
 

olderskyblue

Well-Known Member
Yes bonfire night - increasing the strength of bangers by sellotaping them up, jumping jacks which must be banned now as they invariably chased you up the path and into your house and making our own explosions with weedkiller and sugar. Made me laugh at your mention of carrying axes - you were obviously a tougher gang than us! Even the word 'scragging' is brilliant to hear again.

We all carried sheath knives too. Only used them for whittling, playing stretch, or trying to throw them into trees, rarely getting the pointy bit in first.. Remember walking up stoney stanton road to a shop near broad street where we bought rabbit pelts. Cured them, and then covered the sheaths with the pelt. All very innocent back then. Used to walk along the River Sowe with air rifles too, shooting the rats. :)
 

Nick

Administrator
We had full on fireworks wars. Plastic pipes for guns, rockets for ammo, air bombs for grenades.

Fucking mental now I look back on it, but was a proper laugh.

Yeah I think people would have heart attacks nowadays!

Holding a tube with a rocket in and firing it, shops serving 16 year olds with beer and fireworks!
 

Houchens Head

Fairly well known member from Malvern
I see there's lots of old buggers like me on here! I remember scraping frost off the bedroom windows and then going downstairs, cleaning out the fire grate and getting it ready to light for when my old man came home. That would be around 1958/59.
 

Gazolba

Well-Known Member
I remember rag and bone men coming around the street with a horse and cart. I wonder when they stopped doing that?
When I was little we played in bomb craters, some of them were really deep, must have been huge bombs that caused them.
I lived not far from the Morris Engines factory which was a prime target and of course hundreds of bombs missed.
 

skyblueinBaku

Well-Known Member
I remember rag and bone men coming around the street with a horse and cart. I wonder when they stopped doing that?
When I was little we played in bomb craters, some of them were really deep, must have been huge bombs that caused them.
I lived not far from the Morris Engines factory which was a prime target and of course hundreds of bombs missed.
When I was little, we played in the bombed out houses at the top of Gulson road, opposite the hospital where I was born. If that was nowadays, our parents would be arrested!
 

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