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The corner sweet shop

These were exciting places to kids of a certain age, 1940's/1950's, before rationing ended a place of looking and imagining, after a place where a penny could light up your young life, who remembers if you had a sixpence (Tanner), what new worlds would be open to you and how you got the shopkeeper to stretch up to the top shelves and mutched in front of the glass, displays. Long lost worlds for milions of us war babies never to be repeated.
paul
 
Russell Powis said:
Hi
I was at YGS from 1958 to 1965 and for all of those 7 years, a lunchtime visit to the tuck shop after school dinner would be part of my daily routine.
Yes you are right about how we used to save bottles of pop by ripping and writing on the labels.
I also remember the frozen and even better the semi-frozen Jubbly's.

I also seem to remember you could buy single cigarettes (never tried, too scared)!!
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Russell......do you remember me?? Ron Tennant of Severne Road, Acocks Green. We both attended Yardley Grammar School,me from 1959-1964.We were also in the same 110th Scout Group in Gospel Lane & attended many campings together with Kim (Cyril Heath),Captain Stacey (?) & Bosun.Please get in touch....I've just saw your photo in a book about Old Birmingham.
Ron (now living in Belgium)
 
Re: The corner sweet shop medina Rd

Well Blacksmith! You bring back memories to me. I recall meeting Mrs Wooley on a couple of occasions around 1969/70. I met her because My Mom (Mrs Holt) bought the corner shop and she kept it in much the same as you describe in your recollections. We had a shed which we kept the 'pop' in and I recall there being a very weird banana flavoured one.
i returned to Tyseley from The Liverpool area where we moved to in 1979 and was gob smacked to see Yardleys gone and houses in their place. The old sweet shop was converted to a house by my Mom and Dad as profits dwindled. But it did look somewhat uncared for when I last saw it!


As a lad growing up in the Medina rd/Havelock rd area I still recall other special places and people. Anyone remember 'Pam's' an emporium type shop at the lower end of Havelock Rd? I believe their son Mark went on to become a major player in the strongest man circuit. Also Havelock rd had a further claim to fame in that it was the home of 'Astro' the 'toaster' of UB40 during his formative years.
i actually attended the Leys secondary and was there during the change over to Yardleys.
i recall climbing over the gates of the sports field of The then Yardley Grammar, to use their pitches and goal posts, the top end of which is now occupied by the new Yardleys school.
I have intentionally not mentioned family names but I do hope readers out ther will post and recall their memories.
 
I remember the sweet shop down the road from us on Moat Lane in Yardley. We as nippers would run in and say "got any broken biscuits" then "WELL MEND EM" HaHA! Of course like everything else there, long gone, think its now a betting house! John Crump Parker. Co USA
 
I was a "Grammar Grub" from 1959 until 1964 at Yardley Grammar School,Tyseley,Birmingham. We were called "Grammar Grubs" by jealous former class colleagues from junior school who had failed their 11 Plus! I remember the corner "tuck shop"...lovely cosy place that I was in a lot. Usually at morning break time it was forbidden to go across to the "tuck shop" but I did anyway!
The Yardley G.S. playing fields were very big & contained rugby pitches,hockey pitches,tennis courts,a running track & a long jump pit. Also there was the dining room building where we went for our morning bottle of milk & also our school dinners.I remember in about 1960/61 some "joker" secretly putting maggots in our drinking straws & so when we sucked in our milk we also got a wriggly white beast as a bonus! LOL!
On e-bay now & again there is a video or DVD available about Yardley Grammar School & it's history.I love it & I also sent one to my sis Christine Tennant who attended Yardley 4 years after me.
 
oldbrit said:
I remember the sweet shop down the road from us on Moat Lane in Yardley. We as nippers would run in and say "got any broken biscuits" then "WELL MEND EM" HaHA! Of course like everything else there, long gone, think its now a betting house! John Crump Parker. Co USA
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We would say to the local "chippy", Got any chips left? Well that's your fault for frying too many!
 
I'm on here as "patrolleader". Any old Yardley Grammar School pupils remember me by my real name Ron (Ronnie) Tennant?? I left Severne Road Junior School,Acocks Green in 1959 & started at Yardley G.S. in September 1959 until July 1964. I left school on Friday 10th July,1964 & started work at Bakelite,Tyseley on Monday 13th July.My Printing Dept. boss was John Stretton.
 
There used to be a corner shop at the top of All Saints Road where you could get for 1d a small block wrapped in paper that tasted like a sweeter version of khali.
 
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New member.....please be gentle!! Looking through everyone's "shopping" memories brings a couple back for me, based in the Olton/Acock's Green area in the 1950's. I went to Dolphin Lane Primary School in Acock's Green (now called "Oaklands"), and many's the afternoon when I would walk down Dolphin Lane after school to catch the "Midland Red" bus home to Olton (Summerfield Road). Opposite the bus stop was a Grocer's shop called "Tustin's", and I used to buy a sheet of rice paper for a halfpenny!!

Sweets came from a proper little corner shop run by Jim Beck...his was the little shop virtually under the bridge at Olton Station. Loose sweets from the jar, Corona bottles of pop that you got 2d back on, when you returned the bottle. Big memory at Jim Beck's shop, however, was that it provided me with my first "employment", as a paper boy. I had to be at the shop for 6.30am, and Jim would have my bag all ready with the correct number of morning papers, and the big card with delivery details. Conveniently enough, the round (which started just near the shop) followed a route around Olton - Ulverly Green Road, Castle Lane, Highwood Avenue etc., ending on Summerfield Road just near my house. Finish the round at about 7.45am, gobble down breakfast, and then back on the pushbike (bought from Roberts' cycle shop, on the main road in Acock's Green as a reward for passing the 11-plus)....hopefully getting to the pedestrian bridge over the main GWR line near the top of Dovehouse Lane in time to see the 8am express from Snow Hill pounding its way to London Paddington.

I'd better end here, I can see the nurse approaching with my medication....... ;-)

Happy memories!!!
 
Hi Welshsaddler. Your memories are very familiar ones. Regular trips to the sweet shop were for me and my friends the norm if we had a few pennies in our pockets. We were talking about the new £1 coin yesterday. It's supposed to look like a 'thruppenny' bit. So it started us off trying to work out how many quarters or two ounces of sweets we could get for threepence in the 1950s. The sums were too difficult to do (!) so in the end we just agreed we'd be able to get 'a lot' for threepence. You were lucky getting a bike for passing the 11+. I just got a 'well done'. Keep posting your memories, we all love a trip down memory lane. Viv.
 
Meant to post my sweetie loves and hates. First one (pear drops) hated, second one (milk bottles) absolutely adored. We have a 'fake' old fashioned sweet shop in our high street and although many of the sweets look the same, they don't quite taste the same. Or maybe that's just me. Viv
 

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I was a pupil atFormans Rd School 1946-1950 and remember Jukes and Trumams shops. On the first day of the month when sweet coupons started Jukes shop was always full. One person would use his coupon and the other would pay, and then divide the sweets. The next week the position would be reversed.
 
Iforgot to say that Jukes shop was right next to the school in Reddings Lane,the buliding on the corner of Weston Lane and Reddings Lane was a post office run by Mr wadsworth, his son went to our school.
 
caggyken said:
Iforgot to say that Jukes shop was right next to the school in Reddings Lane,the buliding on the corner of Weston Lane and Reddings Lane was a post office run by Mr wadsworth, his son went to our school.
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I started Yardley grammar in 1952. The man who ran it at the time was a Mr Clarke. So we called it Clarke's. But I remember the older students referred to it as "tru's". So I assume they hadn't long left in 1952.
 
Holtie said:
Re: The corner sweet shop medina Rd

Well Blacksmith! You bring back memories to me. I recall meeting Mrs Wooley on a couple of occasions around 1969/70. I met her because My Mom (Mrs Holt) bought the corner shop and she kept it in much the same as you describe in your recollections. We had a shed which we kept the 'pop' in and I recall there being a very weird banana flavoured one.
i returned to Tyseley from The Liverpool area where we moved to in 1979 and was gob smacked to see Yardleys gone and houses in their place. The old sweet shop was converted to a house by my Mom and Dad as profits dwindled. But it did look somewhat uncared for when I last saw it!


As a lad growing up in the Medina rd/Havelock rd area I still recall other special places and people. Anyone remember 'Pam's' an emporium type shop at the lower end of Havelock Rd? I believe their son Mark went on to become a major player in the strongest man circuit. Also Havelock rd had a further claim to fame in that it was the home of 'Astro' the 'toaster' of UB40 during his formative years.
i actually attended the Leys secondary and was there during the change over to Yardleys.
i recall climbing over the gates of the sports field of The then Yardley Grammar, to use their pitches and goal posts, the top end of which is now occupied by the new Yardleys school.
I have intentionally not mentioned family names but I do hope readers out ther will post and recall their memories.
Click to expand...
I'm a new member - joined a few minutes ago. I attended Yardley Grammar School from 1955 to 1962. I remember very well the sweet shop at corner of Medina Rd and Havelock Road - this being on the boys' side of the school. I must have spent a fair bit of my pocket money there!
Interestingly, I also spent time in Liverpool - I was at Liverpool University from 1962 to 1966. Of course, I am/was very familiar with Yardley GS sports field. Although it was a rugby school, we guys used to play soccer on the fields, during every break! Iam now 79 years old, and have lived in South Africa since December1970.
 
dave martin said:
I'm a new member - joined a few minutes ago. I attended Yardley Grammar School from 1955 to 1962. I remember very well the sweet shop at corner of Medina Rd and Havelock Road - this being on the boys' side of the school. I must have spent a fair bit of my pocket money there!
Interestingly, I also spent time in Liverpool - I was at Liverpool University from 1962 to 1966. Of course, I am/was very familiar with Yardley GS sports field. Although it was a rugby school, we guys used to play soccer on the fields, during every break! Iam now 79 years old, and have lived in South Africa since December1970.
Click to expand...
Dave, welcome to The Forum, enjoy!
 
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