Mitcham

A Memory of Mitcham.

As a child I grew up in bomb ravaged Mitcham. I lived in 16 Ashtree Avenue, Mitcham. We were bombed as so many other people were. I attended the 'Star School, Benedict Road. until around 1947ish then the family moved to Battersea. The Star School was memorable for me in that Miss Gregory a Welsh teacher took particular delight in tormenting pupils, in particular myself. And Daddy Weston ditto, one day he walloped a kid that lived in 'Rocky', a lot of gypsy people lived there, this kid's father came in and punched 'Daddy Weston' in the face. Mr Rackley or Brackley the head master was dithering around as a small ineffectual man only can. I remember we kids cheering loudly. In those days the sun always seemed to shine for ever during the summer hols'. We roamed far and wide, across the vast Mitcham common, all the parks, we never had any cares, no one molested us. I moved to New Zealand in 1964 and made a new life for myself. In 1987 I returned with my NZ wife, we visited the Star School and they were celebrating their centenary,  we were invited in to see the kids put on a "visit the period" drama, it was pure magic. The streets and houses are all the same as I remember them from over 40 years ago, my gran lived in Church Road, her house condemned in 1939 and she lived in until the 60s has gone.  
Richard Watson