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Birds Custard Factory.

Hi Pam, Yes indeed there was another factory in Bradford St, and if I remember right it was known as the devonshire works.
At one time my three brothers and myself all worked there, and my sister worked in the laboratory, making and testing new flavours. O0
 
Thanks postie i can now phone my Aunty and tell her she was correct as she and my uncle have been arguing about it for months ??? Nice work if you can get it tasting food :laugh:
 
Bob Monkhouse's grandad was one of the founders I read somewere
 
I think you're a bit out on that one Jim
I don't know if there was a factory in Bradford Street but the Devonshire works was the main factory in Digbeth, you can still see the name on the wall above the entrance ;)
 
HI Jerry, You are quite right, my big sister has just put me right. :-[
The factory in Bradford St was the Miller Works and that was where the Coffeee and Cereals were made, the Custard was made at the Devonshire Works in Digbeth. O0
 
Bob Monkhouse's grandfather was the founder of Monk & Glass custard powder firm, I can see the packet now, it was yellow and had a monk in a brown habit carrying a glass dish of custard. We nearly always had M & G when I was a child but I think the firm must have been merged with another as it seemed to disappear.
 
Sylvia is right about Bob Monkhouse and his connection to Monk and Glass Custard powder, we used both Bird's and M&G in our house and I remember the packet just as Sylvia does. Here is a website with a mention of Bob Monkhouse's connection www.televisionheaven.co.uk/bobmonkhouse.htm The other partner was an interesting
fellow called Glasscock who made a pile of money and retired to Tintagel in Cornwall
where he indulged in many things Arthurian and built this amazing place full of
things to do with King Arthur including several stained glass windows. I visited Tintagel in 2003 and it was late in the afternoon and just a couple of people were around the
castle which is not a tourist trap at all. I would like to have seen the King Arthur Halls
but it was too late. Here something about Mr. Glasscock https://www.tintagelweb.co.uk/King Arthurs Great Halls2.htm

Didn't know the companies of Bird's and M&G were merged and I also didn't know that they invented "Hundreds of Thousands"... for cake decorating! You learn something everyday.
 
Birds Factory

In the 1960s Birds moved to Banbury. Some years later the red and yellow 'chicks' that were on the railings in Digbeth were removed and taken to the Banbury site. They are still outside the factory now. The company is now part of the Kraft group and the custard and desert business has, i believe, been sold. Kenco coffee is now produced in Banbury. The brand when it was in Birmingham was Maxwell House. It was then part of the huge General Foods of America corporation. Many factory workers and their families moved to Banbury in the 60s, myself included. During the transfer a number of Alanways Coaches (Birmingham company) used to travel up the old A41 carrying the workers, who had moved, back to Birmingham to work everyday. After about 18 months all machinery had been removed and the processing started in Banbury. As far as I recall there was also another factory/ warehouse in Bradford street near the bottom of the hill. I believe that at one time it may have been the home of 'phosphor bronze' a metal working company.
 
Hello Colynda, thank you for the information about Bird's very interesting. Banbury is a lovely place to live. I had an aunt and uncle who lived at Edge Hill, I just loved to visit them.
 
birds custard

can you clarify the travel arrangements. Why did the folk move to Banbury before the machines.I thought they were coached to Banbury each day and brought back again until many of them settled in Banbury
 
Birds factory move

Just to clarify things. The Banbury factory cost £7 million and work began on July 29th 1963. Workers began moving during 1964 and the factory was officially opened in October 1964. Approx. 600 staff moved and the shortfall was made good because at that time Banbury was an overspill town for London. The new plant was in operation by Autumn 1996 when an open day was held. Because new equipment was provided at the new premises and then other machinery was removed from Birmingham and installed alongside. There must have been people travelling in both directions during the relocation. It would depend on if their job had moved or if they had moved house. In my fathers instance he travelled back to Birmingham, hence the reference to Allenways Coaches. I know it was during the winter at some point because the coach was nicknamed 'the icebox'.
 
Birds Custard

Nothing to do with the move but I seem to remember reading that Birds Custard was one of the early cases of food allergy. One of the Bird families wives was allergic to eggs, and Birds Custard was made using cornflour instead of eggs. When I lived in Belgium I used to see Birds Custard labelled "egg substitute"

As an apprentice electrician in the late forties I worked in the houses of two of the Bird family.

george
 
Hi George, I had a school mate that worked there as an apprentice electrician in the late forties named John Pegg, he moved to Banbury with them.
 
My Dad worked at Birds from early 1950's until he retired. When the factory moved to Banbury, Oxfordshire, the whole family moved down here. Still lots of brummie accents to be heard around the town, factory has changed ownership a few times over the years and is now Kraft Foods.
 
What a great read guys and girls, type birds custard into fire fox/Google,
and you,re covered in it,cant find the monk picture as yet even though i remember it. regards dereklcg.
 
my ex mother in law worked at the birds factory in the 1950 till it moved aswell. her name was rhoda suiter (richardson)
colin
 
Re: Birds Factory

colynda said:
In the 1960s Birds moved to Banbury. Some years later the red and yellow 'chicks' that were on the railings in Digbeth were removed and taken to the Banbury site. They are still outside the factory now. The company is now part of the Kraft group and the custard and desert business has, i believe, been sold. Kenco coffee is now produced in Banbury. The brand when it was in Birmingham was Maxwell House. It was then part of the huge General Foods of America corporation. Many factory workers and their families moved to Banbury in the 60s, myself included. During the transfer a number of Alanways Coaches (Birmingham company) used to travel up the old A41 carrying the workers, who had moved, back to Birmingham to work everyday. After about 18 months all machinery had been removed and the processing started in Banbury. As far as I recall there was also another factory/ warehouse in Bradford street near the bottom of the hill. I believe that at one time it may have been the home of 'phosphor bronze' a metal working company.
Click to expand...
Just to confirm that the gates are still there even if part of the factory has been put up for sale. Living on the south side of Banbury we only get a vile smell blown down to us from the coffee production if the wind is from the North and is strong. Usually the poor souls living to the North and East get it!
 
I remember Monk & Glass custard powder very well, my mother favoured it over Birds. The packet was bright yellow and the monk's habit brown.
 
Same here Sylvia. I remember Monk & Glass very well and it was good. You had to be a bit careful with Bird's Custard at times since if you didn't mix it correctly it wouldn't thicken. As a child I was fascinated by the packaging
on our groceries. I remember the little girl with the curls on the Chivers Jelly Packages along with a large perfectly formed jelly. She was in a party frock if I remember rightly, the Monk and Glass Monks, of course, The Sifto salt
container with the little boy chasing the bird to put salt on his tail.
 
Re: Birds Factory

hi David happy new year.
i was a HGV driver,and traveled the highways and byways, always new where i was when approaching Banbury,even when on the m40 with the wind in the right direction.
happy days regards Derek.
 
Re: Birds Factory

colynda said:
In the 1960s Birds moved to Banbury. Some years later the red and yellow 'chicks' that were on the railings in Digbeth were removed and taken to the Banbury site. They are still outside the factory now. The company is now part of the Kraft group and the custard and desert business has, i believe, been sold. Kenco coffee is now produced in Banbury. The brand when it was in Birmingham was Maxwell House. It was then part of the huge General Foods of America corporation. Many factory workers and their families moved to Banbury in the 60s, myself included. During the transfer a number of Alanways Coaches (Birmingham company) used to travel up the old A41 carrying the workers, who had moved, back to Birmingham to work everyday. After about 18 months all machinery had been removed and the processing started in Banbury. As far as I recall there was also another factory/ warehouse in Bradford street near the bottom of the hill. I believe that at one time it may have been the home of 'phosphor bronze' a metal working company.
Click to expand...
Grt thread i worked for a company as it goes bronze and all the special metals, we got taken over by an American company,all our jobs safe,started in brum,moved to redditch,then we got sold out. happy days,
don,t know if this pic helps of Bradford st. regards dereklcg
 
hi all.. nice pic here of the birds custard factory outing...

astoness

pic courtesy of carl chinn
 
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