Great for football
I lived in Colbourne Avenue between 1959 and 1967 with my parents and grandparents. I was about nine years old when I used to go to The Avenue to play football with my friends. It was a fabulous area as the grass was nice and it was quite a way from the road so it was safe. You could usually get a few other boys to make up a couple of teams and down went the jumpers and coats and a game got underway.
Seen but not heard
My Nan’s sister and her husband, Queenie and Will Stimson, lived along The Avenue, and as a small boy we used to sometimes have Sunday tea at their house. In those days we wore our Sunday best and kept on our best behaviour, it really was the days of ‘seen but not heard’. My parents Eileen and Dennis were married at St Andrews in 1950 just up the road on Hillside.
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A funny family story
One funny story that I always remember was that my Mum was returning home from work one afternoon across The Avenue. with her friend Rene Chapman. They both had cleaning jobs at the newly built college block on Lewes Road. There was a large mound of earth where some work was being done, and my Mum saw these two boys pushing a three-wheel bike to the top and riding it down. She turned to Rene and said “Look at those two kids, if they were mine I’d tan their backsides!” Apparently Rene started laughing and my Mum turned to look again and said, “They are my bloody kids!” We didn’t get our backsides tanned but that story was told in our family for many years afterwards.
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I lived there in The Highway from 1953-1975. Cannot find any of my old comments or friends on this site now it’s changed for the worse.
Used to spend hours going through their comments till the iPad battery died
I lived in The Highway from 1945-1967, my parents moved there in the 1930s until 1999. For me it was a great childhood, our playgrounds were the Wild park, Stanmer park and a penny halfpenny bus ride to the beach. Bates nursery, which became Bate housing estate was great during the construction, for exploring and being chased by the night watchman (remember them).
I went to Moulescoomb School from nursery to secondary. I wasn’t the best pupil but got on well with the teachers. Mr Elphick (no relation,as he reminded me on more than one or occasions) was the head and was quite handy with his cane, after leaving you standing outside to contemplate what was coming.
I fondly remember Mr Gooders, Bunning (lovely man), Virgo and Darling among others.
The boys club run by Mr Dale was well supported and loved by many.
When Allen West factory turned out at 5.15 a continual steam of bikes poured out, as very few people had cars in the 1950s.
In all, Moulescoomb was a great place to live.
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