Gills Memories of Ealing

I went to Little Ealing Junior School which was at the bottom of my road.  I remember on my first day running home to my gran, crying because they were using pencils and I had come from a school in Hounslow where we had got pens and inkwells, I thought the school was so backward. It was quite hard to integrate and I got bullied by some older girls from another school until my dad met me on the way home and gave them a talking to. I don't suppose it did them any good but they didn't pick on me again. I remember a lovely teacher called Mr Lim who was very kind to me and put my italic writing up on the wall even though it wasn't very good but I was so proud. Then I won an essay competition organised by Cadburys and had my name read out in assembly. I was so cross when I got home that I had to share my winning Easter eggs with my brother even though he couldn't be bothered to enter.  

The area was quite built up, lots of houses but two nice park (Lammas and Walpole) which are still there. We used to sneak into the back of Ealing studios through the park in those days - I bet you can't do that now!

I used to lie in bed listening to the tube trains which I really loved and one night the house on the other side of the bridge was hit by lightning and a boy's bedroom set on fire. I thought it was so exciting. I went to ballet lessons in Brentford with a girl called Patricia who had that most wonderful of objects, a soda syphon that made fizzy drinks. We weren't allowed such luxuries and I remember Pat operating this wonderful machine before we went to ballet, I was in Heaven.

I also went to Ealing Swimming Club for many years and particularly enjoyed Sunday mornings when I helped teach people who had polio to swim. Great fun.
Our instructor was called Mr Zimmermann but the less said about him the better I think.

I loved going to West Ealing and Ealing Broadway as there were great shops even then and my mum and I would get a cup of tea sometimes which was to me the height of luxury. The shops were so beautiful at Christmas, full of life and lights and a joy to walk around.  

Ealing also gave me ballroom dancing lessons with Mrs Pinkerton and her husband, a Youth Club with judo lessons, St John's Ambulance cadet classes and ice skating at Richmond. I spent Saturdays at Heathrow Airport on the Queens roof building sorting out faints and nosebleeds with the St John's ambulance nurses and loved it.

My brother went to Drayton Manor Grammar along with a certain Richard Wakeman and his cousin Alan. We are now avid fans and go to all his concerts when we can. (Rick's that is, not my brother's!)

I do remember some girls from those days, Nancy Wilkinson, Pamela Dyer, Pat Barrett and a rather nice boy called William Turner who lived round the corner! I attended Acton County Grammar School after that but was so unhappy there and it impacted on my life after that.