small world!

[jem45]

Well what a funny trip i have just had in homebase in colchester! There i was looking at wallpaper for my landing merrily muttering to myself as you do. Behind me in same aisle was an older couple, the bloke was obviously bored started chatting to me about making decisions. His mrs pipes up i have decided in this paper, he has decided he dont like it! Ended up i discussing with them her colour scheme blah blah and between us we picked out perfect paper for her front room and armful of samples just in case. It turns out they were originally from stratford with lady worked in tate and lyle. Common memories of fish stall outside greengate pub and yep pie and mash!!! I do find most of my trips out result in a laugh, this was one of them.

[DougT]

Jayne

It is a small world and there are many of us who have moved out into the "wilds" of Essex from Newham over the years and it is probably quite easy to find people close to where you now live who originate from the Newham area. I went into a shop in Hadleigh a couple of weeks ago and the assistant and customer were sharing memories of East Ham High Street!

Doug

[jplant1]

Well hang on to your memories of the Green Gate. Thursday when I passed it was being converted into another Tesco Metro (they also got the Pigeons on Romford Rd last year!). The Castle, just across Barking Rd is now BetFred. The loss of pubs in Newham has accelerated quite markedly this year.

[MBrennan]

Doug,

My uncle Derek & Aunt Brenda live in Hadleigh. They previously lived in Haldane Road since the 60s (although Ron was born in Hameway). It would be an even smaller world if the customers you mentioned were them!  

[jem45]

Doug

I know its lovely, think that is why i feel so at home here because there is always a fellow cockney not too far away. When we moved from chelmsford my son changed school and has made friends with a lad who dad is from west ham. We get on like house on fire and his dad is true claret and blue! Can't believe the greengate is now tesco what a shame. Was saying to my best mate from school who i meet up with twice a year about taking a trip down memory lane and meeting up at stratford but, think somehow want to remember as it was. Sure alot has improved cause blimey some bits needed too! Will see on that one!

[harry]

We moved down here to Thundersley in Essex obout ten years ago,been passing the time away at times with a chap ,a local window cleaner who,s name I thought was Fred.
Having addressed him as such for a few years one day he mentioned talking to a friend called Terry,who had the same name as he,it transpired that I had been calling him Fred
After  finding that his name was Terry,I asked him where he lived before he moved to Thundersley,he told me he came from Custom House he lived in Royal Road and went to Shipman Road school.
He then told me his surname was Fisher and I the found out I went to Shipman Road school with his elder brother Ray Fisher,Small world eh?.
Regards Harry .I.

[Phil S]

Pubs are shutting everywhere not just Newham.  I know of at least 4 that have shut in Essex.

One in Tollshunt became an Indian Takeaway
Another was knocked down and houses built on the site
Another near Danbury is now an Indian Resturant
Another in Mersea became flats

It's happening everywhare

[Bill Sharpe]

A few years ago I was in Jacksonville in Florida - I was having problems with my car and stopped at the first garage I came to. I noticed that the bloke that was fixing my car had a London accent and we got talking. It transpired that he went to Pretoria Road School albeit he left just before I started there. We arranged to meet that night in a bar where we met his English wife. She also came from the East End and being interested in family history she told me of her lineage. You cannot imagine how shocked I was when it turned out that her Grandmother was my Grandfathers sister. making us second cousins. This happened about 15 years ago, as a result of what she told me my Dad was able to get back in contact with many of his long lost cousins who had moved to Barking.

[MBrennan]

Re pubs closing down, I mentioned that I broke a bone in my elbow about 7 weeks ago. I was unable to drive so got the free Tesco bus. There was only me and an older woman on there. We got chatting and she said she guessed that I wasn't from Kent as 'people are a bit funny here' I said no I was from East Ham. She said what a small world as she was originally from The Robin Hood in Dagenham (Longbridge Road) I said I knew it well as we moved there from East Ham, just around the corner to The Robin Hood - in fact, I went to Saturday morning discos there when I was about 12. She said it had been knocked down and was now an Aldi (or Lidl, I'm not sure which).


Mark

[harry]

Hi ,my post should have read Roy Fisher not Ray!!.
Harry.I.

[ed styles]

 Many Years ago we were on holiday in Bournemouth, and decided to take the kids to the pictures, whilst we were lining up I saw something relating to Poole near Bournemouth , and my thoughts strayed back years before this about a guy who I worked with when I was Boatbuilding in New Zealand ,and he told me he came from Poole.
One minute later I turned round to see how the Queue was doing ,and he was stand right behind me, spooky or what ! ******** and no I definetly hadn't seen him before that moment.

          Ed

[Phil S]

Cherry Tree, Rainham = Tesco's Express

[MBrennan]

The Cherry Tree was another 'Landmark' pub like The Robin Hood. It seems a lot of these places will exist by name only, similar to Gardiner's corner.

I'm tring to remember which bus used to say 'Rainham, Cherry Tree' on the front - was it the 87?

[isy]

Hi everyone,

Yes it is a small world, I was born and brought up in Manor Park/East Ham and my husband in Forest Gate, we moved to Colchester when we got married in 1966.

Imagine our amazement when we moved out here to the Costa del Sol on meeting a guy in our local country market who when we got talking to him about the Hammer it turned out that he was the official photographer for the Hammers and was on the open topped bus when they won the Cup Final.

Also, we went on a trip with the local club here and were invited by another couple to join them for dinner, during this meal it transpired that we all came from the East End and that they had met at Dennis Drew Dance Studio in Manor Park a couple of years before us.   We have become good friends.

As you say small world.

Irene

[Jenny P]

We had a really strange coincidence this year in Australia.  Our son lives in Sydney and we were visiting and travelling around a bit.  We were at a place called Halls Gap, between Adelaide and Melbourne, part of the Great Dividing Range, we'd climbed up to a look-out point and got talking to the only other people there and discovered that she and I were both born in Queen Mary's at Stratford!