Brent Street

The Baker's Shop referred to used to be 'Pritchards' before and during the Second World War; in the Sixties it became 'Millers'.
As for the bus fare, even in the Forties the cheapest ticket was a 1d (One old Penny) so it must have increased by the 1960s.

Thanks for the info about the baker's shop. Millers rings a vague bell. For the life of me I can't remember many of the other shops around there (save for a sweet shop on Parson Street, and another down Finchley Lane), though could the building beyond the bus stop with the turret have been a furniture shop?

As for the bus fare, perhaps it was a penny ha'penny half, so 3d for an adult fare. I can just about remember the old Bell Punch tickets on London buses, but the new Gibson tickets, with their distinctive faded purple ink, had come in by the time I was traveling home from school.

You may recall some of the shops directly opposite on the other side of the road In Brent Street to Millers, there was Dorice - Hairdressers, Thaines - Electrical, who also used to sell bikes too.
As for the building with the turret on the opposite corner of Lodge Road to Millers, it housed Rosalie, Ladies Hairdressers and adjoining Miranda, Opticians; next to them at No.161 was Finlay's - Tobacconists; a few shops further on at No.169b there was a Confectioners; possibly the sweet shop that you remembered?

Digging into the depths of my memory, I recall now, there used to be a furniture store just a few doors along from Thaines; my parents purchased a new 'Utility' three piece suite from there in 1947. It was opposite the building with the turret in the picture.

I lived in Long Lane East Finchley and attended Hendon Technical College from the age of 13 in 1957 to the age of 15,When I left college in 1957 I went to work at WH Perrys .Ford main Dealer in Ballards Lane North Finchley.( I believe Waitrose stands on this site now)..Where I done a 5yr Apprenticeship in Motor engineering. During which time I attended Hendon Tech.again for 5yrs one day a week as part of my apprenticeship. When I got married in 1964 I moved to where I still live.That is in Chandlers Ford in Hampshire. I worked at the local Ford Dealer all my life until I retired in 2007.
At Christmas time and other special occasions we would go into the then local Pub that stood on the corner of Hutton Grove and Ballards Lane.It was then called The Moss Hall Tavern.
That photograph of Hendon Tech brings back many memories.

Thaine’s rings bells as does Miranda’s and Finlay’s now you jog my memory. Glad to learn that I hadn’t completely misremember there being a furniture shop thereabouts, too. There was certainly a confectioner/tobacconist/newsagent on the corner with Church Road, opposite the cinema. Quite a thin shop, as I remember. The two sweetshops I went to were one down Finchley Lane between Glebe Crescent and Tenterden Grove; you had to go up a couple of steps to get into it, I think. There was a petrol station opposite, perhaps? The other was in Parsons Street opposite the junction with Florence Street. I seem to remember there was a coachworks and a funeral parlour thereabouts, too.

Joy's Tobacconist & Confectioners at No. 37 Finchley Lane was most probably the 'sweet shop' that you remembered, situated between Glebe Crescent and Tenterden Grove; opposite The Quadrant Garage that incorporated a petrol filling station and car showrooms. In Parsons Street at No.1 was Hammond's (Coach Builder Hendon Ltd) and next door at No.3 was C.Cordon - Cemetery Masons, and one of the shops opposite was Cavalcade which sold various photographic 'bits and pieces'. They displayed one of my photographs in the window there for the month of December 1953; it had been chosen as 'Print of the Month' at The Hendon Camera Club. The club used to meet every Friday evening in a hall opposite the Hendon Town Hall.

The Quadrant Garage and Hammond's ring bells. And it could well have been a monumental masons rather than a funeral parlour on Parsons Street. While I don't recall the name of the sweetshop in Finchley Lane, I do remember the lemon sherbet dips you got there. Bright yellow-wrapped tubes of lemon sherbet that was extracted with a piece of liqourice.

And a (very) belated congratulations, photographricks, on your Print of the Month.

Thank you for your belated congratulations. Come January 2017 I shall have completed Seventy years of photography.
Now, the yellow wrapped tubes were made by Bassetts and were call Sherbet Fountains, the liquorice tube was hollow and sometimes if you sucked too hard a great mass of sherbet would come through and clog your throat. You may also remember the little yellow packets of 'sweet' cigarettes ( white with a red tip one end to make them look like the real thing )made by the same company. The church on the corner of First Avenue and Finchley Lane ( opposite Tenterden Grove ) is where I used to attend 'Life-Boys' each Friday evening during the War; it was run by the Peacock sisters, assisted by two young men from the Boy's Brigade; Godfrey and Aubrey.

I was born several years after the war ended, but I do remember going to Spalding Hall in Victoria Road off Brent Street (or rather being taken by my mother) to get bottles of orange juice which were still under rationing then.

Spalding Hall, situated behind the Congregational Church in Brent Street. I used to go to Sunday School there before the Second World War, and the memory for me that I remember most from those days in there (apart from always singing 'All things bright and beautiful') was when it was prize giving, and my name never got called out; I went and asked if I could have prize please? But, no luck, I guess at the age of five I had not been around long enough to earn or deserve one. During the Blitz in 1940 a bomb fell on the buildings next to the church, at the corner of Victoria Road and Brent Street. Once the site had been cleared they erected a 'British Restaurant' on it; that remained there until after the end of the war.

An early life lesson, I guess, photographricks, but must have spurred you on to win Print of the Month in 1953.

British Restaurants were disbanded a few years before I was born. They were emergency meal centers for the bombed out, as I understand it, but had a secondary role in feeding anyone who needed assistance or had run out of ration coupons. They continued until after the end of the war.

Hendon got hit by 14 bombs in the first week of the Blitz, including the one that you mention. Eleven fell on October 10. The area just off Brent Street around the top of Bell Lane took six hits. I remember the bomb site near the cinema on Bell Vue Road that was still there well into the 1950s when I was a kid. Hendon Central and West Hendon got bombed later on, probably because of the railway line and armaments factories along the Edgware Road.

During the war years of 1939 to 1945 Hendon and surrounding district from Golders Green, Cricklewood, Brent, West Hendon through to Colindale were hit by 261 Incendiary Bombs, 579 High Explosive Bombs, 39 Oil Bombs, and 70 H.E Bombs that did not explode. In mid September 1940 an Incendiary bomb landing outside of our front gate in Green Lane; fortunately it jumped across the road and exploded, and not towards our house. The indentation mark made by the bomb where it first landed stayed in the pavement at least until 1947; that's when we moved out. On the night of the 22-23 September 1940 the bombers returned. The sirens sounded in the middle of night and my Dad and Mum, plus my brother and I were awaken from our beds and made for shelter in the cupboard under the stairs. Even today I can still hear the sound of bombs whistling down, getting nearer and nearer, and then the sound of glass being smashed by the blast from the bombs that fell in Green Lane, Holmfield Avenue, Danescroft Avenue.

Soon after we heard the voices of a Policeman and an Air Raid Warden enquiring from an open front doorway, if there was anyone in there? My Dad replied, then was told that we would have to get out and go along to Bell Lane School; as we were making our way there more bombs were falling and I dived into a hedge. We eventually got to the gates at the school, only to be told that they thought another bomb had fallen behind the school, and we might have to make our way to St. Mary's School (incidentally was even closer to Hendon Aerodrome!). They discovered that a bomb had not fallen behind the school so we were led to the rear of the building where we were ushered into a shelter (after the lights had been switched off before entering). Once inside, and the lights were switched on again it seemed as though half of Hendon's population were there, and being only seven years of age it was like standing in a forest of adults; I remained standing for about six hours until the 'All Clear' was sounded at about seven o'clock in the morning, the door was opened and daylight and fresh air came in. I think it was the longest night of my life.

During the raid the bomb aimers had been quite accurate dropping bombs on Colindale Laundry, and Thistle Laundry in Hillview Gardens; thinking possibly that they were factories?

My school days from 1938 to 1947 were spent at Bell Lane, though Infants, Juniors and Seniors; in 1946-47 I was elected to be one of the Boy's Prefects, and then made Captain. In that role I was custodian of the key to the cycle shed . . which was the same place under the school that had been the air raid shelter where I had stood all night back in 1940. I believe it has since been made into a classroom.

I was born in 1946 and we lived with my Grandparents until I was 2 in Brampton Grove, number 57. My Grandma always took me shopping to Brent Street. I remember Leonard Heffer the butcher with sawdust over the floor, Sainsbury's where, I loved to watch as they patted the butter and packed it also the huge cheeses. Across the road was Williams, they had dividends in the shape of tin shapes. Next door was a fruit and vegetable shop. Next to Sainsbury's was a wet fish shop. Such comforting memories!

My grandfather had a pharmacy in Brent Street from the 1940s until his retirement around 1960. It was probably 100 yards up the road from Sainsbury's on the other side of the road, catty corner to Foster Street. There was a hardware shop on the opposite corner. Paige's? I remember the turbans, probably gauze knotted head scarves, that the women serving at some of the counters in Sainsbury's in the 1950s used to wear. The wet fish shop may well have been a Mac Fisheries.

May I just refresh Susan Rushworth's memory. The shop next to Sainsbury's was, in the 1940s, 50s and 60s was Jackson's, a tobacconists, newsagent, and in the back room a men's barber; I had many a 'short back and sides' in there in the Forties. In the Sixties it became an Estate Agents. Sainsburys were at number 79, and Mac Fisheries was at 69; then at 59 was Brent Fisheries, a fried fish and chip shop. The shop next to Williams Brothers, across the road, was Bell Fruit Stores.

Regarding Chemists in the main shopping area, there were three. On the corner of Heriot Road at number 43 Brent Street was H. C. Heard Chemists, then on the opposite side of the road, further up, was Boots at 122, and David (Chemist) at 130, opposite Foster Street..

My grandfather's Chemists would have been at No 130 before it was David's.

I was born in the top floor flat of 81a Brent Street some 60+ years ago which I was informed was a gentleman’s outfitters. Tried a bit of research to get a bit more on the shop name etc but no joy. Anyone out there able to shed a bit of light on this please?

Re Brian Waller's question I believe this was called Clark's outfitters which also sold school uniforms for some of the local schools in Hendon. Very traditional as I recall with lots of wood fittings and glass cabinets, run by an older gentleman with glasses c60 years of age in the early 1960s and his colleague, a younger gentleman c40.

Prompted by a rely to an earlier query re the outfitters in Brent Street, it caused me to reflect on the mostly happy memories of Hendon from my childhood in the 1950s/60s and my recollections of various places which have now long since disappeared. Brent St was always busy and boasted a range and variety of shops which would be the envy of most present day high streets.

I can recall 3 greengrocers 2 virtually opposite each other the Bell Fruit Stores near William's Brothers on one side and Rich's on the other whilst Cook's was further up near the Prince Edward pub and next to Rosin's the bakers. Ferris' the electrical shop was on the corner of The Crest and Brent St and I believe was run by 2 brothers Ernie and Ron(?) who ran a thriving business and seemed to be able to repair almost anything electrical. On the same side across The Crest was the office for Cronshaw's coaches whose garage was down The Crest next to the then Christ Church Hall and when Cronshaw's left I believe the premises were taken over by Gravatt's removals. Next to the Cronshaw office was a chiropodist, then a café which was always very popular with the Hendon County senior pupils and sold very cold Cokes, with a barbers which I recall was called Harold's

Going back up the street there was Dore Sports, a ladies dress shop, another gentleman's outfitters run by an impossibly elegant and courteous couple who were Hungarians of origin. Williams Brothers was at that time another traditional grocers with coffee grinder, wooden counters and a" divi" arrangement not dissimilar to the Co - Op but on a more modest scale. Next door was a small hardware shop called Doe's with a newsagent's next door to that.

I recall there was a café which used to display posters for the latest films on wooden boards outside which may have then become CC Fish bar run by some cheerful Cypriot chaps who numbered Barbara Windsor amongst their clientele. Further down at the top of Bell Lane was a Greek barbers and a kosher delicatessen.

Before the left hand side of Bell Lane was knocked down in the early 1960s I remember all the shops having steps up to their entrances including a pet shop ("Bunny@ Breadmore the owner ?) another (elderly) Greek barber George Glinos whose shop was painted a vivid yellow and displayed photos of Greek soldiers in national dress. No visit there seemed to be complete as a child without the application of lurid coloured lotion which seemed to set on contact with a 5 year old's hair and which I think he whimsically called "strawberry jam"

Further down the older houses in Stratford road were demolished to make way for a new estate, then came Bell Lane School which I attended Infant and Junior from c1958. The headmistress of the infants was I believe a Miss Foulkes and I believe at this stage, however incorrect it may be viewed now, the school celebrated Empire Day. The staff were exclusively female and everybody's favourite teacher was the lovely Mrs Austin, whilst Mrs Dixon was kind but had a reputation as being rather fierce too.

Moving up to the Junior school, I recall the head as being Mr Leonard Kew,invariably dapper with brogues in which you could see your face. Pride of place in his study was a picture of Dennis and Leslie Compton the famous cricketer/footballers and probably the most well known "old boys". Mr Norman Bell was his deputy and owned a Renault car - a true curiosity at that time. Everyone wanted to be in Mr Bell's class as he had a reputation for being, kind,funny and able to get the best out of his pupils. Mr Dalborough took sport and ran the school cricket and football teams as well as boys handicrafts which seemed to revolve around construction of cane baskets some of which eventually made it home ! Other staff members I remember were Mrs McGee,Mr Carmel,Miss McLellan,Mrs Howell , Miss Parks and Miss Horne. The school was well equipped and had a small sports field at the rear with a long jump pit.
Just pass Bell Lane School was Marshall's the sweet shop which must have made a fortune, followed by a furriers which had large white lined window frames (Mr Melman ?) which enabled children to practise their Harry Worth routine involving holding up an arm and a leg as per the intro of the eponymous comedy programme. Next to that was Myers the wet fishmongers and on the corner another delicatessen which sold delicious Everest ice lollies(Mr Salt ?)

Back to Brent St : HC Heard's Chemist was on the corner of Heriot Rd and I believe had a large china apothecary jar with gold writing as a centre piece above the counter and this shop was subsequently taken over by Mr Shulman, a charming South African gentleman. Slightly further up was small drapers which conveniently had a long hallway at the entrance of the shop which was most convenient when waiting for a 240,83 or 125 to go to school and it was raining. There was also a dry cleaners in which the smell of dry cleaning fluids was almost overpowering and made one glad to leave. Next to this was Holbrook's fisheries which was largely open air with deliveries of ice (from Gatti's ?) in a yellow and blue truck being a source of wonderment to a small child. After the fishmongers was Hawes brothers another traditional grocers. Around the late sixties I believe there was a short lived discotheque in this part of Brent St called Sloopy's which as I recall was not welcomed universally.

Even then Hendon was very cosmopolitan place and I enjoyed the company of Irish Indian,Burmese,Italian,Israeli,Polish,Cypriot,German and , Greek neighbours in a neighbourhood which had varying levels of prosperity, but where there seemed to be little friction. Please forgive an inadvertent conflation or mistakes in years but as I frequently remind myself , it was a long time ago !

Having added some detail, or at least I hope it was, in a previous post, I thought it worth adding a few more recollections of Hendon in the 1960s:Parsons St had an excellent if small record shop which I recall was run by Angus McKenzie , a distinguished sound engineer in which there were 2 booths lined with the obligatory peg board insulation for listening to the latest offerings of the time. Working up Church Rd from the Parson street end, I recall the Nat West Bank on the left hand side followed by a dry cleaners Scotch/Sketchley then Joseph and Taylor, a traditional stationers and book shop with the attendant smell of newly printed books which I recall was run by a kindly Welsh gentleman .

A stand out childhood memory was visiting the child health clinic in The Burroughs located to the right of the Town Hall which always smelled of furniture polish and surgical spirit and coming away with various orange vitamin potions after having innoculations. Hendon library,next door, was well endowed , particularly in the children's section which fortuitously for us as children, was run by Eileen Colwell MBE - a pioneer of children's library services.

There was also a record shop in Hendon Central in the 1960s, Farrow's on Watford Way, up the hill from the Tube station. It, too, had pegboard-lined listening booths.

I remember Miss Colwell very well. Many happy hours spent in her Story Hours being read aloud to at the Library. She also to let us help stamp the cards that went into books being taken out to indicate the return date.

I also remember those 'orange vitamin potions'. They were called Haliborange tablets, I think. Very small (so children could swallow them, I assume) and very orange in colour and taste.

D.S. Farrow was at No. 22a Watford Way; next door to Hounsom Ltd, which was Hendon Central's main music shop throughout the 30's 40's 50's and 60's. I had bought many a 78 record from there.A few doors up at 26 and 26a was M. S. Lukin which was a 'Music Studio'.
In the 50's at No. 8 Parsons Street, was Cavalcade Studios; where the photograph I had entered into the Hendon Camera Club's competition had won 'Print of the Month' and was displayed in the window (mentioned previously above).

Great memories I went to bell lane school and left in 1960 after the 11 plus. I well remember the sweet shop next to the school and used to get my comics there as soon as they came out, sometimes they had weird and wonderful free gifts in them . I had my hair cut in Mr glinos in bell lane and went home with my head surrounded by bees or wasps attracted by the sweet sickly stuff he put on my hair. there was a record shop opposite the odeon cinema at the quadrant where I sat in the booth to listen to latest releases, Up church road were the offices of the hendon and finchley times, the local newspaper and on the other side of the road a fish and chip shop .I used to go to the empire pool wembley to see th ice hockey and got off the 83 bus on ,the way home to get my 4 pennyworth of chips and wallk home eating them. Mrs Williams had a tea shop in brent street in the late 50s early 60s and there was the Christchurch youth club who had a pretty nifty football side in the late 50s. As I got older I discovered mannings lounge in brent street and flowers bitter. life was never the same again.

I too went to Bell Lane School, from April 1938 to Easter 1947. In 1945 was made a prefect for the boys, and in 1946 was promoted to Captain. The shop next to the school was called "Jones" (in my days) and when Mr. Jones retired it was run by Mr. and Mrs. Brown; their two sons, Bernard and Kenneth and daughter Brenda went to the school too. I used to do an early morning paper round from the shop; my round took in Alexandria Road, Victoria Road, Second Avenue, Strafford Road, and First Avenue. In Alexandria Road I delivered papers to the family home of the Compton family; the famous sportsmen brothers, Denis and Leslie Compton, used to go to Bell Lane School too in the Thirties. One morning I remember Leslie gave me a two shilling tip. The Greek hairdresser ,Mr. G. Glinos, his son attended school at the same time that I was there. As for hair cuts, they were sixpence in my days and you had to sit on a board put across the arms of the chair; then go home with itchy pieces down your back between your shirt/vest and skin. I also used to do special evening paper delivery, six days a week (Yes, even on Saturdays) of The Evening News, Evening Standard and The Star to the home at 16 Green Lane of the famous film producer Emeric Pressburger (A Matter of Life and Death, The Life of Colonel Blimp, Red Shoes, 49th Parallel etc).he gave me his autograph. In 1946 I was invited to spend Christmas morning at the home and there I met Ralph Richardson; I got his autograph. On other occasions I had tea with Mrs Pressburger and her daughter Angela; and have their autographs too. You mentioned the fish and chip shop on the corner of Sunny Gardens; during the war when cooking oil was in short supply they fried in dripping (a unique taste).
I too was supporter of the Wembley Lions Ice Hockey team in the 1950's, with players such has Sonny Rost, Kenny Booth and Roy Shepherd; they played against other teams from Harringay, Brighton, Nottingham and Paisley. (Happy days!)

Glad to hear someone remembers the Hendon and Finchley Times' office. My first newspaper job was there in the 1970s.

Senior moment in my previous post 1960 was the year I left school for good I was actually at Bell Lane 1948 to 1953 with memories of British Bulldog and Hopping Barge in the playground and a strange art teacher called Miss Lassock who asked us to draw a pobble. Yes the wembley lions with their ace front line of Kenny booth, les strongman and les anning , I think they played streatham as well . I can remember the odeon at the quadrant, of course, but seem to remember another cinema, was it the Classic, down a road off Brent Street which showed more off beat films. also was trying to remember the name of the road at the end of brent Street which when you went up had the church entrance on your left and then further up on the left an alleyway which led to Hendon central park where I seem to remember they had a big festival or celebration in 1953 or 1954 and all us kids got celebration mugs. More interesting to me was Dennis Compton scored 278 for England v Pakistan on the same day !

The church that you refer to is the C of E Christ Church, and the road is Heriot Road. Yes, the alleyway further up the road led to Queens Road and Hendon Park. Heriot Road was one of the roads that I used to deliver early morning newspapers for Bennett's Newsagents at a time when 'Doodle-bugs' were coming over. I was serving in the Royal Air Force at the time the 1953 Hendon Show was being held; I managed to get a long weekend pass and attended the show and took a number of photographs. As for ice hockey which I followed twice a week from 1954 to 1957; the teams then were the Wembley Lions, Harringay Racers, Brighton Tigers, Paisley Pirates and Nottingham Panthers, and that is who Les Strongman used to play for then along with their captain Chick Zamuck. Most of the players were Canadians.

My late brother Paul Morris used work at the Hendon Times as a photo developer.

Don't recall the name. When did he work there?

How I remember bell Lane School. Miss McLellan who had a beret over the saddle of her bike could smack or throw the blackboard eraser at us. Loved Mr Bell. I remember Mr Kew. I remember Friday afternoon's finishing with assembly and in my recollection we marched out at the end to either 'Onward Christian Soldiers' or 'Scotland the Brave'. I have no idea at all why either song was appropriate.

I wonder if anyone could help me please, a friend of mine, his mum owned Dorice the hairdressers in Brent St. He is desperate to find a photo of the shop front
Many thanks x

Re Dorice Hairdressers at 188 Brent Street. See the Frith photograph 'Hendon, Brent Street C1955' the shop is on the right hand side, where the sunblind is pulled out; next door to S. G.Thaine, the cycle and electrical dealers, you can see some bikes on the pavement outside.

The hot metal days. Seems like a different planet now.

I remember Paul Morris he used to process my rolls of film. Really nice, polite young man. Really sad to read he passed away.

Hi pmaidment1, I used to work there as well. I started to work there on 10th March 1969 and was greeted by Miss Anita Hammond who is alive and kicking to the day. I left in March 2016

That is quite an innings. I was there in 1973. Were you a photographer?

You've all got a much better memory than me! Iived in Danescroft Flats in the early 50s,went to Bell Lane school and my parents owned Danescroft Bakeries on Brent Street. Does anyone remember that bakery?

Yes Indeed I was , did we know each other?

Given the dates, we may well have run across each other.