Dawlish Rd
A Memory of Selly Oak.
I was born in 1960 in Great Barr but moved to Dawlish Rd in 1964 until 1968 with my elder brother Brian. My mother, Irene, ran the shop and my father Dennis worked at GEC Witton. I went to Tiverton Rd School and we lived in the 'Mace' grocery shop next to the school entrance. I went to Tiverton Rd swimming baths nearly every day. We used to take the bus to the Lickey Hills and played very often in Raddlebarn Park or Cannon Hill Park. I also remember playing in the University grounds, the canal and railway track. Pretty dangerous I guess. Playing in the condemmed back-to-back housing also presented a hazardous childhood! At the top of Dawlish Rd was an outdoor market that we used to buy small bags of peanuts from a plump balding chap in a brown shopcoat, a chip shop where we bought scraps of batter and a newsagent right at the corner, I think. Anyway, I have not been down there too much since.
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Karen Roberts (Nee Pittaway)
The roller skate with a plank across it was what I remember, going down that hill at the top school.
Do you remember the Hollywood family?
terry and ....er... with a sister I think.
Yes Mr Pierce at the outdoor, fat man with a snuffle.
Happy days! we were next to Esthers haberdashery, cant remember her daughter but yes remember the windows shaded out lol.
Do you remember Joy Deakin? We left there when I was 6 or 7 but my grandparents lived there longer .
Tiverton rd baths were where we spent most time.
Im not too aware of much else as I was only 6 or 7 when we left.
My grandparents lived in Northfield and we went there on the 63 bus.
My mother died in January but my Dad is still alive though in Tamworth.
I also remember the newsagent just around the corner on Bristol Road where I used to buy sweets with my sixpence pocket money, and the cinema where we used to go to on a Saturday morning to watch the matinee every weekend.
Happy days!
Sadly I have lost both my parents recently. Its sad there is no one left to ask about these things.
Do you remember the cinema shows at the school and the little bars of chocolate we got. I was in Mrs Parsons class at school she used to call me pitta patta because I was so tiny and my name was Pittaway.
Do you recall that we went to see a film about how chocolate was made and then we had to write an essay about it, the winner received outers of Cadburys chocolate?
And I won the prize but the teacher had me share all the bars with the class!
All this chocolate making my mouth water lol..
I remember when it was really cold we had cocoa from a big metal jug I can still remember the smell it was lovely.
My Mum and Nan(Higgins) also worked as barmaids at the pubs on the Bristol Rd.
Nan and Grandad lived at the Raddlebarn end of Dawlish Rd which is where 'our' park was.
I blogged about my Selly Oak family at"
http://cockneyclarkclan.blogspot.com.au/2010/12/26-exeter-rd-selly-oak-birmingham-29.html
Cheers
I helped Mrs Homer with the cocoa in winter and cordial in summer at playtime.
In those early years there was a bit of a rock garden at the top of the hill then it was all concreted over. I tried skipping down it, tripped up and broke my arm. It was also good when they painted hop-scotch on the ground too.
All your talk of chocolate shows how well Mr Cadbury kept us sweet, and Paul, I swam at Tiverton Rd most days thanks to a free pass(again sponsored by Cadbury).
I also remember a boy called Karim Shaffi ( I think) lived across the road from the school, the first Asian family in Dawlish Rd.
Cocoa has never tasted as good as it did back then.