Games We Used To Play

[dimmy]

Do indeed Phil, trouble is I now want to know how far we used to walk alongside the brook over Hassop Road over Beeches Road and where then, was it the sandpits and beyond to St.Margarets where the toads were where you used to shoot at them with your webley? On another link you mention our unbelievable stupidity
(I call it risk taking) of playing on the ice in the sandpits quarry which we were warned by our teachers not to. A similar dice with death was the canal accessed down the Aldridge Road just past the allotments where we used to walk on the ice until we heard it crack and then we would dash back. That's probably why I can't win the lottery.

 

[oldMohawk]

Hi Dimmy - I never got as far as St Margarets but played often in 'the woods' next to the school which were very boggy where we collected frog spawn etc. I did fall through some ice in that other marvelous big park we had namely 'Sutton Park' which has a big thread on the forum. I mentioned my 'ice mishap' in a post click/here.

 

[Steve1954]

Hello - can you repost these pics again. Got a feeling the girl could be my Mum !!

 

[Pedrocut]

A new craze game, says Mr. Cube.
(Evening Despatch, January 1950)

 

[AnnakE]

Do indeed Phil, trouble is I now want to know how far we used to walk alongside the brook over Hassop Road over Beeches Road and where then, was it the sandpits and beyond to St.Margarets where the toads were where you used to shoot at them with your webley? On another link you mention our unbelievable stupidity
(I call it risk taking) of playing on the ice in the sandpits quarry which we were warned by our teachers not to. A similar dice with death was the canal accessed down the Aldridge Road just past the allotments where we used to walk on the ice until we heard it crack and then we would dash back. That's probably why I can't win the lottery.

Thanks for the information!

 

[Richard Dye]

Those swings weren't so bad in the middle but on the end it was terrifying!! They used to see how many could climb on at one go. I liked the type of roundabout in the background, there was one in Lightwood's Park, also a cobweb shaped one. In Summerfield Park there was a witches hat roundabout, it used to go quite high but the lads kept lifting it off it's pole so it was removed.
rosie.

We used to spin the roundabout as fast as we could so that everyone got flung off! Last person on was the winner.

 

[Donbogen]

We used to spin the roundabout as fast as we could so that everyone got flung off! Last person on was the winner.

Yea hanging on for dear life on the 2 roundabout s in Aston Park one of which was spider yet we went back next day and did it all again every day in summer hols NO RAIN than when we got bored it was off to Aston church overgrown graveyard to play war and hide and seek
proper kids with snake belt and pockets full marbles 303 rounds catapult army jack knife and ball bearings to use in catapult Dad used to bring them home from Lucas a one man army best days ever

 

[Richard Dye]

Yea hanging on for dear life on the 2 roundabout s in Aston Park one of which was spider yet we went back next day and did it all again every day in summer hols NO RAIN than when we got bored it was off to Aston church overgrown graveyard to play war and hide and seek
proper kids with snake belt and pockets full marbles 303 rounds catapult army jack knife and ball bearings to use in catapult Dad used to bring them home from Lucas a one man army best days ever

Ah, catapults! Used to make them with my scout knife, used 1/4” square rubber to propel and the tongue cut out of an old shoe. Fire anything with that but for damage and accuracy used steel ball bearings (although very precious) for maximum pain.
We would go from Handsworth Park to St Mary’s graveyard for hide and seek especially at the end of the day when it was getting dark. I think we were all scared to death!

 

[Morturn]

We used to spin the roundabout as fast as we could so that everyone got flung off! Last person on was the winner.

There was an older lad over Short Heath Park, Robert who would get in the middle of the cobweb roundabout and would spin us around at an astonishing speed. He did it so fast you would feel the blood drain from your head due to the angular momentum. I can remember almost passing out.

 

[Richard Dye]

There was an older lad over Short Heath Park, Robert who would get in the middle of the cobweb roundabout and would spin us around at an astonishing speed. He did it so fast you would feel the blood drain from your head due to the angular momentum. I can remember almost passing out.

We would all try to get to the center of the wheel because the centripetal force was lower, although you would gradually slip to the outside where the force would be crazy! Great times at zero cost!

 

[Smudger]

Ah, catapults! Used to make them with my scout knife, used 1/4” square rubber to propel and the tongue cut out of an old shoe. Fire anything with that but for damage and accuracy used steel ball bearings (although very precious) for maximum pain.
We would go from Handsworth Park to St Mary’s graveyard for hide and seek especially at the end of the day when it was getting dark. I think we were all scared to death!

I once killed a blackbird with my catapult, never fired it again. I love birds & the many birds in my garden give me great pleasure.

 

[Morturn]

We would all try to get to the center of the wheel because the centripetal force was lower, although you would gradually slip to the outside where the force would be crazy! Great times at zero cost!

Robert, the older boy by about four years who would push insisted we sit on the outside under pain of death.

 

[Vivienne14]

Monkey bars. They were made out of scaffolding pipes. We had a tier of them and a single row of different heights. The tier was the equivalent of a climbing wall today. Spent many lunch nreaks hanging upside down on them. The single bars were our favourite, where we'd try to outdo each other with tricks. The bars were worn to very shiny from hands swinging round them, Underneath them the ground was tarmac. Not a soft fall if you came off.

Us girls would tuck dresses into knicker legs before using !

 

[Astoness]

Monkey bars. They were made out of scaffolding pipes. We had a tier of them and a single row of different heights. The tier was the equivalent of a climbing wall today. Spent many lunch nreaks hanging upside down on them. The single bars were our favourite, where we'd try to outdo each other with tricks. The bars were worn to very shiny from hands swinging round them, Underneath them the ground was tarmac. Not a soft fall if you came off.

Us girls would tuck dresses into knicker legs before using !

View attachment 197793

we would also do that before doing hand stands up the wall viv

lyn