The Chequers c1965, Prestwood
The Chequers c1965, Prestwood Ref: P281007
Memories of The Chequers c1965, Prestwood
The Chequers
At the age of 16 I remember picking cherries on the trees (still existing in the photo and just shown to the left of the picture) while being too embarrassed/shy to acknowledge the presence of my first "girlfriend", Valery, on her bike below.
The Chequers was my fathers local from the mid twenties until the mid eighties. He hardly missed an evening's visit during the whole of that time, so the Chequers became a rather "looming" object throughout my childhood, rather like a third (naughty) parent. But it did provide the odd Vimto and packet of Smith's crisps in the late forties/early fifties.
Prestwood Village
I was 12 and lived in Prestwood for about 6 months, Oct 41 to March 42. Lived at Delsyde, Hockley Road with my parents in the house of the Adams family including Isabel aged about 10 and Leslie about2, Mr Adams had a business in Wycombe in the tyre trade.
The landlord at The Chequers was a widow, cannot remember her name but she had a son at RGS Wycombe and I cycled to school with him a few times. At that time there was a brickworks in Prestwood and I went with Isabel Adams to watch bricks made by hand, that works was later used as a storage for war surplus. Great excitement when the greengrocer got a crate of oranges. There was a baker on the road to Missenden, bread made on the premises, he had a gas engine to mix the dough, speed control was by a 'hit and miss' governor. Someone must remember it. ... Read more
As A Kid
My parents were from the area, Dad from Bryants Botom, Mum from Gt Hamden. They shifted to New Zealand straight after they were married, leaving all friends and family behind. Mum always talks about Chequers. As kids, me and my two sisters were lucky enough to visit and school for a while, me at Kingshill, Sally at Hamden School, and I'm not sure where Jane went. I remember it was a drought year and also lots of snow, sounds crazy, we had days off school because of the snow, the woods around Hampden were white. Dad worked at his brother's mushroom farm, we would play in the woods behind Dad's mum's place in Bryants Bottom, looking back it was the most awesome time for me as a 9 or 10 year old. We went back to New Zealand whre we live, I have lots of family in Prestwood, Speen, and around the area.
Pednor & local memories
Read and share memories of Pednor and Buckinghamshire inspired by Frith photos.
Pednor Riding Stables
I learned to ride at Pednor stables, run by Hilary with help from her husband. They had a motley but extremely well cared-for string of horses, which grew all the time. My favourite was a 4-yr-old exmoore called Kerry, who was sold and kept on ther in livery. Bubbles was cream with wall eyes...anyone remember the others?
Hilary has always been an inspiration and although I have not followed in her footsetps, latish in life I have begun to work with horses
