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Dennis Road Secondary Modern Boys School

ChrisSullivan said:
The story is fascinating and has gone into the file at the back of my head for future reference.

I didn't know your mom was a war widow!!
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Thanks Chris.

My mum, Lily, married Edwin Webb and she was made a war widow at the battle of El Alamein in 1942. https://www.cwgc.org/search/certificate.aspx?casualty=4040977 She then had a relationship with Edwin's brother, Dennis Webb, he was my dad. Dennis died at RAF Colerne on Christmas day 1964.

Graham.
 
Chris,

Here is a little more nostalgia for you Chris, its only just short of showing South View Terrace. It does show Cooks the Castle & Falcon and Butlers Garage with a tram thrown in for good measure. It was taken in 1949.

Phil
 

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Thanks for that Phil,

There is quite a lot on that I had forgotten about; I'd forgotten that there was a kind of filling station between Cook's and the lane to the Castle and Falcon (is it still there by the way?) and that there was a post box at the top of our lane to South View Terrace.
But it takes in a lot; you can just about see near the post box, Reynolds cafe - I used to work there when i was 14 washing dishes - and maybe York's Shoe Shop next to it but the tram covers the music shop which I wrote about before and the Locomotives which we had a view of the back wall of - in fact it shouldn't have been called South View Terrace at all as the view was taken away when they built that place - maybe Locomotives View Terrace.
On the right you can't quite see the grocers next to Cook's and the fish and chip shop next to that - Johnson's fish and chips; I heard from Jeannie Johnson a couple of years ago via e-mail but she disappeared again. Up the alley was was a place called the Wood Wool or something.
We seemed to have had everything in that little neck of the woods!!
I'm attaching a photo taken around the same time or maybe a year or two afterwards which gives you a closer look - in the background the big houses which were next to Reynolds cafe and I believe this was taken on a Christmas Day or Boxing Day so the bus in the background would be a rarity; notice the bit of snow and Chou Chin Chou on Ice which was at the Birmingham Hippodrome. That is me with my space gun wearing a Dan Dare outfit and a cowboy hat sticking up my dad - probably taken by my mom and she didn't quite get the McDougal's advertisement which is on York's wall and thinking about it he must have been paid a tidy penny to allow that. The tiny advertisement under my elbow is for the Aston Hippodrome which showed kind of sex shows.
Chris.
 
Chris

Though many of the buildings remain, they are mostly different businesses today. Even the Castle has a different name, from there to St Pauls rd is the same except the church went a few years back. From the Castle to Ombersley Rd it is all new and not for the better. The last time I was down that way it seemed to be all scrap yards.

Phil
 
What I find puzzling is why they would demolish St Paul's Church - I am not religious but the Germans couldn't even bomb it so what's the story on that; I mean if they wanted to get rid of a church what was the matter with flattening the Methodist Eyesore of a Church on the corner of Lime Grove further up - where I was in the Boy's Brigade.
 
Chris,

I think it was the same old problem "bums on seats" or in this case the lack of them, but like yourself I think this a poor excuse for the wanton destruction of a lovely old building.

The place they moved to is a shared building with another church. The fact that this church looks like a shed only strengthens my conviction that it was a crime to demolish the other.

Phil
 

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I agree - I did my one man show in a disused church in Edinburgh once called The Bedlam; this was before I did it at the Festival there and I remember thinking they had put the building to good use even though I hadn't exactly packed the place out; 4 men and a dog I seem to remember.

I can't leave this blog without mentioning where I am and what is happening around me - I think that is one thing a site like this should be handy for.

I have lived in Los Angeles for nearly 14 years and this is the 4th general election I have been here for but this day is special.

Every where you go there are people standing on the streets holding banners and sometimes you pass the voting places and there are queues outside and the level of excitement and anticipation is at a level I have not experienced before; Starbucks are giving away free coffee and parking restrictions have been lifted on many streets; it really feels like a day in history. I don't get to vote as I haven't taken citizenship but I obviously take an interest.

It's too early tell but they are really expecting a change and a record turn out.

It always gets complicated as there is a difference between what we would do in Britain where we would put an 'X' on a piece of paper and here - here they have a list of the things they have to vote for which sometimes goes into a few pages but there certainly is an air of being at a carnival about the place.

Bit of a change from the doom and gloom of the last few weeks.

Chris.
 
Graham,

I noticed the names at the bottom of your messages - Shakespeare and Burbidge; I'm sure you know this but Burbidge was Shakespeare's leading actor and I'm just curious.

Chris
 
Chris I didn't know that about Burbidge.

The names at the bottom are my G G Grandparents on my mother's side, Joseph Shakespeare born at Knowle (not far from Stratford) in 1821, married Ann Burbidge at St Philips church, Birmingham in 1842. That's all I know about them and haven't found anything on that side of my family earlier than 1821. It would be wonderful if there was some connection to the actor. Maybe someone on this forum will be able to help me past 1821?

Graham.
 
Chris thanks for that link to the actor Richard Burbadge and as you say it could be one of my ancestors Burbidge.

Spelling mistakes in the records are very common as at some time someone had to write it all down from verbal information at the time of birth, and with the many different dialects it must have been easy to miss-spell a given name. My grand son's sir-name is d'Haenens and yet there are members of the same family with the name Dhaenens on their records. This is only a slight difference but one due to a mistake that has been made at some time by a person in the registry office, one that will give future family members grey hair tracing their tree.

Graham.
 
frederick said:
Graham,
the Shakespeare connection is becoming even more interesting.
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Good morning Fred, your message came in while I was typing a reply to Chris. Yes it is getting very intriguing and well worth further investigation. Even on the Webb's side there seem to be strong connections with Shakespeare and we originate from the village of Blockley not all that far from Stratford-on-Avon.

Graham
 
a lot of my relatives are O'Sullivan and why we are just plain Sullivan is beyond me - it came from the Irish for one eye or hawk eye O'Suileabhain.
 
No I don't recognise him - Cromer Road?? Now that was the continuation of Brighton Road unless I'm mistaken (I remember that from my telegram boy days).

I think living over there he would be out of the catchment area of our schools but as he was probably Irish/Catholic I probably saw him at mass.
 
Chris,
you are right it was the continuation of Brighton rd he lived on the right hand side he came to work were i was working if i remember his family were fresh over from Ireland 1960 ish he was a big lad he was a teen ager when the photo was taken the other one in the photo is an old friend i was at his 65 birthday party in August that was an excellent night at the St Johns Hotel Solihull he said to me were are you staying he dident know i said i am staying with you his wife had aranged a party with a surprise she had asked his old friend to come to the party.
 
They look great - can you give me a few names specially to the one with all blokes on.

Chris.
 
Chris,
the line up left to right Mickey Hemings Barry Phelps Jim Kinnard me Micky Hands and Barry Valentine they were tool makers but in business and retired i met them when Tony Reid my friend was in the same class as some of them at collage and have been friend ever since.
 
were they all from Dennis Road - if so what ages would they be?
 
My old school Dennis Road Secondary Modern Boys School although buildings are is still there its now called
Anderton Park J & I School.

Famous students including me obviously, Ha Ha! where European Cyclist Champion our own GRAHAM WEBB, Aston Villa Captain ALAN DEAKIN, International Film Director singer dancer Chris Sullivan, *the actor PIKE from "Dads Army" and truly our own PMC1947 (Phil) whom gives us all a great deal of pleasure on this site.
Sorry I'm not sure whether we had a school badge, after the war we wore rags and wellies with holes in!! Its all on the Dennis Road School thread. My brother John was in the final year when they ended the Senior Boys school about 1965 I believe.

Edit. This statement may not be correct *
 
bobsummers said:
My old school Dennis Road Secondary Modern Boys School although buildings are is still there its now called
Anderton Park J & I School.

Famous students including me obviously, Ha Ha! where European Cyclist Champion our own GRAHAM WEBB, Aston Villa Captain ALAN DEAKIN, International Film Director singer dancer Chris Sullivan, the actor PIKE from "Dads Army" and truly our own PMC1947 (Phil) whom gives us all a great deal of pleasure on this site.
Sorry I'm not sure whether we had a school badge, after the war we wore rags and wellies with holes in!! Its all on the Dennis Road School thread. My brother John was in the final year when they ended the Senior Boys school about 1965 I believe.
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Bob,
I didn't realise Ian Lavender went to Dennis Road, when was that ?.
 
Was anyone at Dennis Rd. School, 1943/1944, in Tubby Harris's class.
I can only remember Tich Rainbow, (his family had premises in Clifton Road), the Jones's, (their family had the green grocery shop on the corner of Ladypool Road and Colville Road), I was also in the 10th. Co. Boys Brigade at Moseley Road Methodist Church, any one else still around.

Barry Martin
 
Hi Barry

I was at Dennis Rd a good few years later than you, would the Tich Rainbow's family firm been Rainbow Removals. I knew of them but I didn't know them.

I knew Ray Jones from the corner greengrocers on Ladypool Rd. He used to use the same club I did The Brunswick. Sadly I heard he died a couple of years back.

Phil
 
Barney martin said:
Was anyone at Dennis Rd. School, 1943/1944, in Tubby Harris's class.
I can only remember Tich Rainbow, (his family had premises in Clifton Road), the Jones's, (their family had the green grocery shop on the corner of Ladypool Road and Colville Road), I was also in the 10th. Co. Boys Brigade at Moseley Road Methodist Church, any one else still around.

Barry Martin
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I was at Dennis Road then but in the infants/juniors, Tubby Harris was still a teacher when I was in the seniors, I remember once when his class went on strike and walked out although I can't remember what the punishment was. Rainbow's moved us when we left Newport Road.
 
Ref; Tubby Harris at Dennis Road School.
In my view he was not a good disciplinarian, all that I remember him asking us to do was read our books!, but as we were not the top class,
probably not a lot was expected of us !!, I remember one of his party tricks was to throw the blackboard rubber hard at anyone who really upset him, also as the lads were always breaking or pinching his cane, he would cut a thin branch from a hedge on his way to school. I think he suffered with his stomach as he would send someone for Beechams Indigestion Tablets, which he would swallow by the handful!.
we all left school at 14, which I did in July 1944, and started work as a motor mechanic at Prestages Ltd.,the Vauxhall dealers in Holloway Head.
My problem was that I had been at a very good school in Cheltenham for 2 years, and I suppose that I expected a lot from a teacher?.
Barney Martin
 
Hi
I did not go to Denis Road but remember lots of lads who did among them Chris Sullivan & Cadeau, I have just looked through all the postings & pictures, really great to see some of them.
One thing that stuck out for me was no one mentioned little Mr Hennessy didn't he teach there as well as at Clifton Road.
I also remember Alan Chance at Moseley Road baths jumping in from the spectators area, I think Dennis Herbert did it as well.
Other names that I picked up on were Terry Ward, Les draper, Geoff Potter, John Britten & Roy Oswell(living in Spain),John Brown(he was in bad car smash where a couple of young lads died) & Brian Garey.
Hope to hear some more on this old school.
Cheers
Dave Rock
 
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