Wardown Park Luton

A Memory of Luton.

In the days when we had "real" winters, (where did they go), Wardown Park Lake would freeze over and we would walk out over the ice and make slides. One year there were ice skaters on the lake and I borrowed an old pair that I had found in the attic but I had no ankle boots, also the clips would not hold on my shoes therefore the experience was not a great success.
Sledging was a different story when we would start our run from the the trees at the top of Popes Meadow and on a good day our speed would carry us across the Old Bedford Road and into the Wardown Park entrance.
In the summer we visited the Museum where in one room there was a bee hive with the inlet passage under a glass screen allowing us to peer through at the worker bees going in and out. The hive was there for years but whether they were the same bees I don't know.
The putting green was a favorite too but nothing could surpass fifteen minutes on the paddle boats. I can still hear the boat house staff calling us in with a, "Come in number 5 your times up" .
The all school's sports day was held on the oval sports ground with it's tiered concrete viewing terraces. I was selected and competed for Denbigh Road Juniors one year, I can't think why as couldn't run or jump particularly well,I expect they were short of entrants.
In the summer "Stanley Thurston's" fair would arrive for one week, we had no money to spend but watched the dodgems, the whip and swing boats. Hardly anyone won on the air rifle range, hoop-la or coconut shy but it was good fun watching.

John Russell
12th June 2016