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Broad Street

Noticed the other day, when I was in Birmingham, just how many hotels there are in Broad Street. Stayed at the Hampton by Hilton but could also have stayed at the Travel-Lodge, Premier Inn, Novotel, Jurys, Regency Hyatt, Copthorne (counting that as Broad Street). There may be others. Apart from the area around the NEC, I guess that Broad Street now offers the highest concentration of hotels in Birmingham. It's closeness to Brindley Place and Symphony Hall make it an attractive place to stay as long as you avoid being near rowdy nightclubs on a Saturday evening. Dave.
 
foxy1 said:
Hi Old Boy, I never met your cousin, as you say , i think he sadly died before i started at Faulkes, but i do remember Mr Cooper and Horace in the work room often talking about him and very fondly, i know he was very well thought of at Faulkes, i also remember a large Japanese sword, that was in pride of place in the shop, which i beleive was his,

Foxy1
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Hello, I was just doing a little research into Faulkes and I think you may be referring to my late beloved grandad, Horace Jefferies. Could this be true? Poppa, as he liked us to call him, as 'grandad' made him feel too old, passed away in 1998, but I'm interested in any connection to him. I was led to believe that my name, Deronie, came about from the sister of an employee at Faulkes. Are you able to shed any light?
 
Hi, yes Horace was Horace Jefferies, he was a wonderful kind man, and every one at Faulkes loved him , he was everyones favorite, he used to dance round the work room pretending to have a partner....he was very funny and made us all laugh, he taught me to alter and make fur coats in the work room, and was very patient with me, he was a master at pattern making, i have a photo of your grandad in the work room ,in a booklet we used to send out to customers, if you would like one i could get it scanded and post to you, if you want to know more call Robin Faulkes , he will tell you lots more or Wendy Faulkes, it would be lovely to chat to you, please feel free to contact me at my own Fur shop..Hertfordshire Furriers, many thanks Paul
 
My Brother in Law worked with Ernie Boswell and Horace Jefferies at Faulkes, his name was Howard Millman, I remember meeting them on a few occasions on works outings. It would have been in the 1950's
Nick
 
Faulkes furriers was a wonderful place to work, started in the 30s by Miss Faulkes and Mr George Faulkes, it became a family to work for, a very much up stairs down stairs with the work room, show room...(shop floor), and the Faulkes family, but it was very much a family, everyone had their place and the family new that, and treated us all as their family, they were very kind, paid well... given lunch..... and looked out for all their workers, it was really the very best family to work for, so many good memories for all who work for them, it would be so nice if we could here from more who worked at Faulkes or family who did to meet up some time.....for a nice get together, Robin Faulkes who still runs Faulkes furriers is still very much head of the (family), would be pleased to here from anyone who worked at Faulkes, or message me, Paul at Hertfordshire Furriers
 
fatfingers said:
Heres a few pics.

Also in Broad St, I remember Modern Exchanges, second hand guitar shop - which burned down in about 1978, and re-surfaced as Musical Exchanges, in Contitution Hill - and roughly opposite the Tow Rope was HMSO.
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I remember it well. It was a small shop almost opposite George Clay's Music shop. I purchased my first decent guitar from Modern Exchanges.....a 2nd hand Epiphone Casino.
 
Big Gee said:
David,

thanks for putting me right. Your memory's obviously a lot better than mine. You're correct - I did use the Ladywood Road entrance, and can't remember ever using the Hagley Road main entrance. I was at GD from 1957 - 63, the last 2 years being at City Road. City Road was plainly the lesser of two evils, if I can put it that way. Five Ways seemed a bit dingy and gloomy in comparison. I can remember Geoff Fletcher (music master at GD and choir-master at St Martins-in-the-Bull Ring) complaining that the acoustics in the hall at Five Ways were terrible - as if we cared. Anyway, it was a long time ago.

G
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Big Gee,

I was at GD after both you and David (1960-67) but spent time (5th year I think) at Five Ways. I agree that City Road was the better site. Five Ways always felt like the poor relation. It was interesting though. Routinely we would enter from Ladywood Road but it was possible to enter from Hagley Road. Did you ever try crawling under the stage at Five Ways? Lots of interesting items abandoned there. It took you to some sort of void at the back from where you could climb on to the roof. The initials and thoughts of former KE pupils and workmen were scratched into the lead roof. We added our own, careful to protect our anonymity - just in case. During our time at Five Ways one of our number advertised Five Ways for sale in the Mail, describing it as 'a desirable Georgian residence'. The contact given in the advertisement was the estimable Mr Trout, using his home 'phone number. It perhaps helps to explain why my year never seemed to be his favourite!
 
Stitcher said:
View attachment 79859Mid. 1950s
Five Ways again with Kunzles in the centre.
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Kunzles is a name from the past. One of our next door neighbours worked at Kunzles and occasionally used to bring us bags of mis-shapes as a treat. At a time when we usually made do with a pointed 2oz bag of sweets once a week it was a treat indeed. Mind you, I always preferred Cadbury's chocolate. I recall a school trip to Cadbury's long before the money making Cadbury World was thought of. As we went round the factory the ladies working there gave us lots of the chocolates they were making and at the end we were all given a free tin of chocolates.
 
Should this post have been on the George Dixon Grammar School thread in stead of this thread?

BrumBum said:
Big Gee,

I was at GD after both you and David (1960-67) but spent time (5th year I think) at Five Ways. I agree that City Road was the better site. Five Ways always felt like the poor relation. It was interesting though. Routinely we would enter from Ladywood Road but it was possible to enter from Hagley Road. Did you ever try crawling under the stage at Five Ways? Lots of interesting items abandoned there. It took you to some sort of void at the back from where you could climb on to the roof. The initials and thoughts of former KE pupils and workmen were scratched into the lead roof. We added our own, careful to protect our anonymity - just in case. During our time at Five Ways one of our number advertised Five Ways for sale in the Mail, describing it as 'a desirable Georgian residence'. The contact given in the advertisement was the estimable Mr Trout, using his home 'phone number. It perhaps helps to explain why my year never seemed to be his favourite!
Click to expand...
 
Well, it was a response to posts from yourself and Big Gee under 'Neighbours and Streets' I think, but it would fit very well under the thread about GD - as might your post and that of GD. Does the forum allow posts to appear in two places?
 
That would be highly criminal if they was demolish that complete complex ,as one is saying
the hall of memory , the fountain , and baskerville house to be done away with , come on you brummie people
that is the only centre sho peice e have in brum dont tell me the icon is new street station or the big dome selfridges white building
they are as bad as the old libary they have just demoed and that wwas a completed waste
thats our iconic centre peice ,
there again we are copying our american counter parts wih huge sky scrapers we may as well after all e are slowly becoming americanise
and people cannot fore see it changing and the city growing fast and so is the fast pace of life hence all the gun carnage and gang land
very sad indeed
 
That fountain was beautiful and it was sad to see it go. I loved the coloured lights at night. It was replaced with one which looked like a pile of old satellite dishes with some pieces of statues in them! That one is in storage now. ( I hope they don't bring it back ) Ellbrown posted a photo of it during the Dollman stores (?) open day.
rosie.
 
Probably struggling to keep the water supply up. They are at the moment taking very large underground pipes from Elan Valley through Stourport en route to Frankly reservoir due to the increase of water now needed.
 
Another view of the old fountain and the collonade, J.
 

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  • Collonade, Broad St May 1959.jpg
    Collonade, Broad St May 1959.jpg
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The Hall of Memory..jpg

The Hall Of Memory was opened by H.R.H. Prince Arthur Of Connaught on July 4th 1925. It is built from Portland stone and almost all interior and exterior fitting were Made in Birmingham.
 
Hi All,
Does not the Hall of Memory deserve a thread of it's own? Otherwise it will get lost among the night clubs etc of Broad Street.
Old Boy
 
Old Boy said:
Hi All,
Does not the Hall of Memory deserve a thread of it's own? Otherwise it will get lost among the night clubs etc of Broad Street.
Old Boy
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Hello Old Boy, you are correct of course but it is so easy for a thread to change content and I would think it would take a team of moderators working full time to control it properly.
 
rosie said:
That fountain was beautiful and it was sad to see it go. I loved the coloured lights at night. It was replaced with one which looked like a pile of old satellite dishes with some pieces of statues in them! That one is in storage now. ( I hope they don't bring it back ) Ellbrown posted a photo of it during the Dollman stores (?) open day.
rosie.
Click to expand...

The Spirit of Enterprise fountain has been in storage since at least 2010.

Here it is seen in 2009 before the new library was built.



And in 2012 in storage at the Museum Collections Centre during an open day.



The closest working fountain to Centenary Square would now be in Central Square, Brindleyplace.

This was Centenary Square in August 2017.

 
broad stre ll.jpg
A short sentence with this one says the vehicle was purchased in 1912.
 
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