In the 1960's I worked as an accountant in a Chartered Accountant's office and was involved in doing the Audit of Purcell and Betts on Aston Road North. The two Partners were Mr Mallabon and Mr Russell, both then in 40's or 50's, having served in WW2. Very well known and respectable firm of professional photographers. I have on the shelf next to me an excellent portrait of myself and my girlfriend, now my wife taken about 1967 or 1968. They did a lot of high class work for both families and contract work for companies. Remember them doing some Advertising work for a company selling the early hard shell suitcases. Coincidentally they also did the wedding photos for my wife's grandparents, circa the early 1920's when showing the Aston Road North address. In the late 1960's their near neighbour was ATV Studios and around the corner Radiation Gas Fires when Aston was a mixture of lots of companies. Just up the road was HP Sauce and Ansells Brewery (where I later worked), both around Aston Cross.
Just as an addition. Something I remembered about the Advertising photos regarding the early and innovative, at the time, newly marketed Hard Shell suitcases. Mr Russell came back to the office while I was there on audit and told us he had collected a couple of these "New" cases for the photo campaign. They had approached Hattie Jacques, famously large actress" and asked how much she would want to be pictured jumping on the case showing its undamaged strength. Her agent had asked for £1,500. This was about 1967/8, normal yearly salary in an office about £1,000 to £1,200.
