Hi, I stumbled across this thread and forum while looking for photos of the house I lived in as a child to show my children! I lived in Regina Lodge from (I think) 1972/3 to 1977.
My Dad was a groundsman with the dog track, and the house came with the job.
At that time the house was divided into two, we lived in the smaller part to the left, and a large family lived next door, a couple of generations I think, but with three small boys that my brothers and I used to play with. They did indeed have a pony in the garden! We used to open our "breakfast room" window and the pony would stick his head in for snacks.
When we lived there it was fairly run down, we didn't use all of the rooms, I think simply because it was damp and hard to heat, and we didn't have enough furniture to fill all of the rooms!
I do remember the bells beside the fireplace that we were often told off for touching because they were still connected to the big kitchen in the other part of the house, and would ring next door.
I remember a large stained glass window on the staircase, with birds, maybe peacocks? One little piece of glass was missing and had been taped up with brown tape.
I also remember sitting on the bedroom window seat to watch the speedway, My brothers and I loved that.
My Mum hated living there, I think because it was cold and damp, and we moved ro Redditch to a "l
ovely new council house with central heating", when I was 7 years old.
I have such lovely memories of my time in that house though, I think my Mum does too, now. My Dad died in 1987, and a lot of my early memories of him are in that house.
Maybe one of these days I'll go and have a look at it again. I live in Greater Manchester now.
Jeanette
www.lazyseamstress.blogspot.com