Memories of Portsmouth

MUDLARKS

My father was one of those so called 'Mudlark's. I remember him telling the stories of how they used to stage mock fights over the pennies to make people feel sorry for them and throw more money.
The thought that they were poor orphans who had to do this to stay alive was very far from the truth. We lived very well in a house in Southsea near the Kings Theatre.
The memory was brought back on a recent trip to Egypt and a trip down the nile. Children beg for money along the banks of the nile as the cruiser goes by at the narrow points. After the ship is gone they get their BMX bikes out of the bushes and pedal home to the mud brick house with the satellite dish and the Merc parked outside.

Dancing at Neros

In 1977 I was the Wrigleys rep, I was 21. I stayed in Hayling Island Holiday Inn, being from the Watford area. I was in charge of Fine Fare, Southsea. I used to drive into Portsmouth and dance at Neros. Great Memories. My week started at Dorchester, then I moved on to Bournemouth and Southampton and went back to Watford on Friday.

"Somewhere beyond the sea...my lover waits for me.."

As a young lad I had great eyesight for long distances. As we sat on the pebbled beach at Southsea it was always me that first spotted a slight bump in the horizon as the then huge incoming ocean liners, The Queen Mary, The Queen Elizabeth, The Mauretaina and many more coming home from New York down the Solent towards Southampton. I enjoyed being scoffed at for a good half an hour or more before others managed to notice them approaching with the telltale whisp of smoke from her funnels.

Later on I worked one summer holidays as a waiter at the Seaview Hotel on the Isle of Wight where we got a grandstand view of these great ships sailing by from this exact vantage point.

I had my first kiss on the seawall at Seaview when a lovely Dutch girl called Riet Berendsen took a fancy to me. How great was that as the sun set and the ships sailed by ? I wonder where she is now ?

"Kiss Me, Hardy"

I've only been onboard the Victory once. It was enough to profoundly strike my imagination. I stood where Nelson fell ! It brings tears to my eyes to think of it now as I write. She is an incredible vessel. You can almost hear the cries and commands shouted out during naval battle.

And what a genius Nelson was. To break conventional naval tactics and completely fool the Spanish Armada by a frontal attack compared to a sail-by was unbelievable.

As a youngster I read all the naval stories I could and, having a great imagination was transported back to the days of sail. Being on the deck of the Victory I feel is a priviledge not to be undersestimated for anyone of British descent.

Wasn't 'Master and Commander' and awesome movie to recreate the days of sail ?? I can't watch it enough and still read books about the early days of exploration under sail.

THE BEST PLACE IN THE WORLD

This was to me, as a young lad, one of the best places in the whole world!

There was nothing more appealing to me than being at this great vantage point for the Portsmouth Dockyard. I could have stayed there all day watching our British Navy aircraft carriers, battleships, submarines and cruisers contrasted to the masts of our most famous ship of all time, the HMS Victory, watching the ferries plying back and forth to Gosport, feeling the spray from the often rough seas pounding the seawall and blasting up into the air.

Being on the Point was like being on the prow of a ship. I want so badly to go back there and hope someday I can.

My step grandfather, Goldsmith, was a senior man in the dockyard during WW2.
He would have been thrilled to see Pompey win the 2008 FA Cup!!!

THE MUDLARKS

We used to go down to Sallyport from 1954 -1958 ..there were a lot of local 'urchins' called the 'Mudlarks' who would stand in the knee deep, sloppy black mud below the pier to the ferry when the tide was out and people would throw them pennies which they had to find in the mud.They'd end up covered from head to foot. A lot of them had great characters and had developed great 'carny' skills to get people to toss them money.

My step aunt, Linda Goldsmith knew most of these kids 'cos she taught them at the nearby elementary school.

Art Exhibition, Old Portsmouth.

My grandparents Bert & Dorrie Hedger started this amature exhibition in about 1965, and carried on until my grandfather died in 1982. I recognise several of the paintings as being by my mum Rita Grant, as I was taken down there every weekend from the age of three.

Swimming at Sallyport

The outfall from the power station made the water warm here so that we swam all year round - not for those who didn't know the currents. The visitors were amazed at our apparent hardiness, or perhaps foolhardiness.

Ferry Slipway

This slipway was built in 1960. Prior to that time ferries left from Portsmouth Point.