My Memories Of Greenfordin The 1950s And 1960s

A Memory of Greenford.

We actually lived in Northolt Grange but our cousins, the Barltetts, lived in Stanhope Road, Greenford (does anyone remember them?). I worked from the age of 8 or 9 for Ron and Stella Valente who owned Toni Milk Bar (very near the police station end). What at fantastic couple they were, they named me 'Corporal', I was like their son (they had not children) and I was there till I left school at Vincent Secondary in Northolt. I used to actually make the ice cream when I was 11 and serve it at the window, as well as serving coffee and sandwiches inside. Ron had, I think, 6 or 7 vans, and he had a white Zephyr car, reg. no 230 XMD, how strange I can remember that! Can anyone remember the coffee bar? There was another one on the Greenford Road called 'Creamery Fare'.
We used to stay with my cousins, me and my brother Andy, their names wer David, Steven, Carole and Brenda, does anyone remember them? We were a right rough lot, that I will say, but we had fun playing at a park called the 'rec which is still there today. We were always in trouble with police but my Auntie Rose was always there to sort things out, she was and still is the best auntie you could wish for. Does anyone remember the Greenford market where the buses park outside? The market no longer there now but buses still park there. And who remembers the fruit stall on the trafic lights, and it's still there! I always remember that stall at Christmas time, there was that certain smell that you don't seem to get any more at Christmas, can anyone understand what I mean? Like the smell of dates and oranges etc. The Red Lion (still there) was our drinking hole, we would all be under age but still go in for pint of red barrel, then after a few of them at a shilling a pint (lol!) we'd then go round the corner to the Wimpey bar, then after that if the bingo was on that night above Burtons the Tailors we would have an ice cream from the Toni van then wait till break time in the bingo hall because then they would all rush down to buy ice cream as it was so hot up there apparently, then we'd make a nuisance of ourselves with them, ha ha. Just us kids growng up, getting clouts around the ears etc but at least we were allowed to grow up and find out our wrongs and rights. How many people bought up in the 1950s and 1960s didn't learn about respect? - more than what today's kids are allowed to do.
Does anyone remember the dump in Greenford Road? We all used to play over there, at times we used to get chased off there depending, which way they chased us we'd sometimes end up at Cuckoo Hill, I can't remember how though. Saturday morning pics was regular as clockwork, Dad used to give us our pocket money of 1 shilling, always in pennies, tuppence for the 90b bus to Greenford from White Hart (I hardly ever paid) and sixpence for the Odeon (but only one ever paid because he would go in and open the side door for us and our cousins and friends),that way all our money that we saved went on sweets and popcorn, we'd always sit up on the balcony so that when the organist used to come up out of a hole in the floor we would then pelt him with wrappings and anything we could find! God, how bad were we? But it was harmless fun and we didn't walk around with knives stabbing everybody and robbing old ladies! It was just teenagers growing up the best way we could, we had no video games, phones etc in those days, you had to make your own entertainment which strangely enough came easily.
Does anyone remember the first supermarket to open in Greenford? I do, it was Tesco's and I remember going with Mum, Dad and brother Andy and my mum being really excited about it, and my dad kept shouting at her in the car, telling her to calm down. When we got there it was so weird, it was on the left in the Broadway about 7 doors down from Woolworths, the size of a normal large shop but it had 4 aisles that you walked up and down and they had large coloured price tickets on the items and you had wire baskets to put the food, my mum bless her heart was so excited. The trouble was, she was buying things she didn't normally have, as my dad pointed out, so she had to keep putting things back. Me and my brother were having a great time stashing sweets in our pockets, ha ha, no CCTV cameras then. Woolworths was always a great shop in them days, I mean, what didn't they sell? And what parent didn't do their Christmas shopping at Woolies?
I have such great memories of Greenford in those days, I really could go on for ever. Does anyone remember the Digbys that lived in Greenford Road near the Red Lion? June and Dennis lost count how many kids they had, they couldn't stop producing them, yet they were always happy kids even though they didn't have much then.
I also remember going to the Odeon to see the Rolling Stones! And I think on the same bill were the
Everly Brothers and the Searchers. Wow! That was some night, you couldn't hear them singing through all that screaming! But it didn't matter, we were there watching the Stones.
I remember Lists the bakers, oh my God, the smell that used to come from the back of that shop was unforgettable! I think they were a couple of doors from the Toni milk bar. I know that the Toni owner Ron Valente died some time in the 1980s and is buried at Greenford Cemetery, I don't know about Stella though.
My email is: john.nicholls@sky.com  I hope you enjoyed reading this.names i remember :the Digbys in greenford rd.the bartletts in stanhope rd and the park called the wreck in same rd