Sixty Years On And We Still Visit.

A Memory of Felixstowe.

Living in Southend meant that Felixstowe was a bit of a busman's holiday for us but Nan had a caravan there - close to the amusement centre on the old unmade road to the fort.

I clearly remember the hiss of the Calor gas lamps in the caravan at night and the dulcet tones of the bingo caller: "Green line, four and two, forty-two." Memories that will never leave me!

The paddling pool by the pier. The mini railway next to it.

The walk back from the fort on the unmade road singing the Mary Hopkins hit of the day: "Those were the days my friend" at the top of our voices. A Saturday evening in August, 1968.

A Felixstowe 'claim to fame'?
On the morning of the 1966 World Cup Final, I was nervously waiting for my parents to pack up for the journey home from the caravan in time for the kick-ff at 3pm. I was one of a bunch of kids playing a game of football. One London lad was begging his dad to take them home on the train to get back in time for the final. He got his wish. Being a Talksport fan, I happened to be listening in to Danny Kelly's show one evening and he mentioned the above fact and that it was HIM who had begged his dad in Felixstowe that day. I texted the show and some 50 years later, our shared experience of Felixstowe was re-lived.

Mum is now 88 and we have a 'pilgrimage' in July most years. Lunch at The Alex Café Bar & Brasserie and a walk to the caravan site along sea road. My children, now in their twenties, have a fondness for the town and have taken Felixstowe into the next generation.

I have a photo of me from 1960 stood in front of the fountain at Manning's. It hasn't changed a jot since then.

Maybe that is something that endears Felixstowe to us. The resort seems timeless and thankfully, pretty changeless.

Thank you Felixstowe for the memories.

"Those were the days, my friend."

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