Memories Of Growing Up In Gantshill

A Memory of Ilford.

I have so many memories of this place. I was born in Martley Drive, 1947, my grandparents originally bought the house back in the 1920s when they moved from Bethnal Green. It was a good place to live, I went to Gearies School all the way through from Infants, Juniors to secondary. It was just a short walk. Sadly the secondary school part appears to be an adult education centre now. I wonder if anyone knows what happened to Barry and Nigel Cox who used to live in the same road as me? When we were coming up to teens I used to go out with my friends rollerskating for miles around. I remember come home satisfiyingly tired at the end of the day. Each day was an adventure and nobody used to worry about safety in those days, it was such a wonderful sense of freedom that children had. Out in the morning and back in the evening during the school holidays. As we got older we ventured to hanging around Gantshill roundabout. I remember going to the Billiards Hall, it was somewhere round the back of the Unigate Dairy I think. My friend Anne lived over the Post Office in Gantshill which was near the Dinner Gong restaurant and Five Ways restaurant. There was a coffee bar called the Circus too which we sometimes went to. Does anyone remember that? I remember the bakers in the Woodford Road side of the roundabout. I can't remember the name of it but it had a wonderful aroma of baking. There was also Cramphorns on the same parade which used to sell animal feed and other things and I loved its own unique smell. Sainsburys was right on the roundabout and they used to pat their own butter to order, that was so great to watch when I was small. There used to be a shoemakers next to the King George pub and a newsagents/sweet shop run by a lady with dark curly hair and really bright red lipstick. Does anyone remember the tuck shop opposite Gearies school run by a kindly old couple? I remember the day that sweets came off ration and the whole street was littered with paper. We had a fairly carefree existence growing up and it was a wonderful place to do just that. Does anyone remember any of those place and can add some gaps in my memory I wonder?

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