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Is it possible to show that map further down Adderley Road, please? I sometimes use a garage there opposite The Grove by Adderley Park, it’s a single storey building with a flat roof but has very heavy steel reinforcements in its structure. I’ve long wondered about it’s original purpose and...

I began using Robert Tuckey several years ago because I got so fed up with the rubbish I was getting at supermarkets. Beef, lamb and pork that tasted of very little, flavourless chicken that was full of water, bacon that shrivelled away to nothing in the pan and sausages that seemed to be made...

If anyone is looking for a good butcher I highly recommend Robert Tuckey at Furnace End near Coleshill. They slaughter local beasts on the premises and the meat is aged beautifully. Their sausages are the finest I’ve ever eaten, their bacon (which they smoke themselves) is just as good, they...

In my teens I had to make frequent visits to a particular bank for my employer. One of the cashiers I’d chat to there was a very pleasant, large young lady who unfortunately suffered from what looked like really quite bad psoriasis. She was absent for a few weeks and when I saw her again she...

A very merry Christmas to everyone here. Remember, if you love someone, tell them while you still can.

I’ll second that. I used to go there in the 80s and I remember it as a dark, warren like place. Interesting.

R.I.P Lynne

I think there’s various theories as to why Hitler never authorised the use of poison gas to be used against Britain. Obviously, he was well aware that should he do so the favour would most likely be returned tenfold. I believe he had himself been gassed in WWI and knew its effects first hand...

I remember doing just the same thing.

From before my time, a very sweet reminder to “Post Early“ from 1951.

That would be Escalado

Many happy returns, Janet!

Here’s a link to view a collection of Argos catalogues from previous years, the earliest being 73/74. Simply click on a catalogue and you can view it page by page https://issuu.com/retromash To get a rough idea of prices compared to today you can use the Bank of England’s Historic Inflation...

Nice tin, Viv. I’ve just got back from walking the dogs in the woods, no snow but plenty of mud.

A silly little thing perhaps, but some of the nicest things about Christmas are. At some time in the early/mid 1970’s when I was a child, the BBC showed an award winning, short animated version of A Christmas Carol and my elder brother or sister (I can’t remember which one) recorded the audio of...

Does it look anything like this, Vivienne? I bought it a few years ago and kept it in use since then, I couldn’t part with it as I think the picture is wonderful. Mind you, the metal it’s made of is paper thin so I don’t know how long it’ll last.

From 1989, Michael Buerk presents four interesting programmes about the history of Birmingham. Whether the place has improved in the following 34 years is a matter of opinion.

Thank you, Vivienne. Do you know, I was never entirely sure what my job title was in the time I was there? I asked and was told “Mounter” and that seemed appropriate for some of the work I did (making the “mount“ for the stone to be “set” in) but as I did other work it’s anyone’s guess, really...

Janet, it’s really nice to hear that someone can stay in the trade they like for so long. It‘s been a few years since I visited the place and I think it’s time I did so again, Christmas is the best time to visit.

When I worked in the Jewellery Quarter there was a chap at our place who worked a few days each week as a polisher/lapper. He was an old boy named Bill with one good eye, an arthritic gate and a fag (seemingly) permanently in his mouth. He would sit for hours, absolutely motionless apart from...