"Digger" Hunwick Growing Up At No 7, Hall Road.

A Memory of Aveley.

Born under a table in the front room of No.7 Hall Road on 16/7/1944 while an air raid warning sounded to herald the German V1s presence above.
I attended Aveley Infants and Primary schools between 1949 and 1955 and then Aveley Sec.(Bushy Bit) from 1955 until 1959.
My teachers were Ms Pentany and Ms Pavitt in the Infants and then Primary Ms Skeet, Mr Webster, Ms Southgate and Mr Skinner. The headmaster being Mr Moss.
I have fond memories of our League Champs football team which was coached by Mr Skinner. The team members were Podge Rogers, Bowser Cox, Fredie Felton, Bobby Hammond, Gussy Guest, Willie Watkins, Easto Eastland, Paul Thompson, Freddie Fogg, Trevor Morris and myself Digger Hunwick.
As a 10 year old I sat with a little clique in Mr Skinners class who used to share sweets bought at the sweet shop next to Hubbards fish shop in the High Street. The sweetshop name was something resembling "Elvy's." café.
The clique included the girls Cathy Fackerell and Margaret Clarke and the boys John Gussy Guest, Terence Flirter Clark, Colin Bogis Lewis and Patrick Dooders Mead. Of the clique I was the only one not to pass the 11 plus. The rest of them went to a Technical School. I believe Valerie Smith and Marilyn Finbow were the only two of our class to go to Grammar School.
Hence for me it was on to "Bushy Bit."
E. Stowers Johnson was headmaster and memorable teachers were Mr Napier PE, Mr Brooks maths, Miss Bolt drama, Miss Meredith maths/english, Mr Barnaby biology and Mrs Barnaby english, Miss Broughton music, Mr Purdy RE, Mr Rice geography, Miss Austin history/civis, Mr Whitwood science, Mr Katon gardening, Mr Sharp woodwork, Miss Close english Miss Norman girls PE. Mr Williams and Mr Evans joined the staff when I was in the 3rd year.(1957)
My best buddy at school was Terry Lockwood from the Uplands Estate.
I always went home for lunch and used to run over the Mardyke bridge home to the village with Terry (Mousey)Bond at 12 noon and back to school by 1.20pm for our afternoon lessons.
The lunchtime runs graduated to cycling when my mother took me to Mr Rogers cycle shop in the High Street opposite the church gate. I proudly became the owner of a red Hercules bike costing £14.10 shillings. Paid for at 10 shillings a week. Terry Bond got the same bike too so we were cycling buddies instead of runners.
I was football captain for my year playing with Paul Thompson, Terry Bond, Ivan Cox, Maurice Livermore, Gary Eastland, Willie Watkins, Ray Pavis, Eric Tuffee, Ivor Brown, and Terry Lockwood. We never won the league. However, Paul Thompson, Terry Bond and myself played for the Thurrock District team and us three for the year above.
Billy Dicks from the Uplands Estate was captain and centre half for the year above. I remember "Bill" Bailey in goal, John Hills, Roy Girkin, Roy Tuffee, Dave Cooper. That team also never won the league.
I remember the great achievement when Napier's older boys won the coveted Dewer Shield. Chas Trangmar, Trevor Heath, Barry Babbs, Kenny Ball are a few that I remember.
Napier's boxing boys were always high achievers. Dave Eggleton, who was a year above, was a national semi finalist and Colin (Wiffit) Willett in my year was a national champion. Our school nearly always won the Tilbury Cup and during my years at Aveley the school had won The Police Cup 10 out of 11 times. Napier had some great boxers pass through the school.
We won the district cricket with Robert Overy being awarded a Stuart Surridge cricket bat for hitting 62 runs not out against Lennards School. The team members were Roy Petit, Trevor Morris, Rod Morton, Trevor Johnston, Freddie Fogg, Bob Hammond, Ivan Cox, George Ward, Eric Tuffee and myself.
I used to collect money from some of the boys for betting on horse racing.
I would take the bets, which were illegal then, to Mr Price in Hall Avenue who was a bookmakers runner. All illegal and no doubt the local policeman, P.C. Dunn, knew the goings on and turned a blind eye to the peaceful but illicit gambling.
The bets were on a piece of paper with your own code name written on it. Mine was CON X. I used to like knocking on Mr Price's door and saying "returns for CON X, please." I won quite a bit of money when E.S.B. won the National and Petite Etoile won The Oaks.
Dave Eggleton organised a school trip to Margate's Dreamland for the whole of his year who had stayed on till aged16. Dave's year played truant with just Terry Lockwood, Maurice Livermore and me from our year below.
What a day that was. Although under age we stopped at a pub on the way home. I only remember having 2 pints of beer but at just under 15 years of age it had a profound effect which seemed to amuse Dave Eggleton and my older schoolmates.
I recall going to Aveley Village Hall with Roy Girkin playing tea chest bass with his skiffle group The Blue Chords.
Rambling over Belhus Park, Tunnel Sportsground (Bill Fletcher-Groundsman) and Thames Board Mills Sportsground (George Parker-Groundsman)
Dear old Aveley. My father was born at The Maltings in 1897 and professed to being the first person to drive down Aveley High Street in a motorised vehicle, namely an Alldays and Onions, in 1909. He was a passenger to the owner to whom he was houseboy. He had left school aged 12 in those days to work in service. His name appears in the honours lists in the Aveley Bowls Clubhouse.

ted.hunwick@talktalk.net (Digger)

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