Last year's nostalgia trip.

I visited my brother last year and I stopped at a couple of places on the way that brought back childhood memories of journeys from Lincolnshire to Somerset and back during school holidays.

Banbury was one of Dad's favourite stopping places to use the loos and buy Banbury cakes from one of the many cake shops there. Alas I didn't find any on this trip. (Cakes that is). I did find the (most peculiar) single person gentlemen's urinals though.


A Fine Lady from (one of several versions of) the eighteenth century rhyme. Nobody is quite sure whether she was a member of the local Fiennes family, or represented the Queen of the May who would lead Pagan May Day processions.



Banbury Cross, but not the one from the rhyme because this one was built about a century after the rhyme first appeared.



King George the 5th (I think). He lives at the base of the cross along with King Ted the 7th and Queen Adelaide (aka Queen Vic).



Taken in the late fifties, Dad's delux four door limousine parked roughly where I parked on my journey, with the cross in the background. There were four of us plus luggage and it took us about nine hours in those pre-motorway days to get to Granny's house. Such fun!



The splendid dome of Saint Mary's church.



Another view of the church tower showing the imposing entrance.



Two hephalumps at a nearby restaurant. Presumably the poor things are chained up so they can't wander off.



Bill the Bard. I thought he was much taller.



Next stop, Waltham where my brother and I grew up and went to school. For those of you who are fans of Strictly, it is the village where Kevin and Joanne Clifton grew up as well.

The windmill lost a sail in a gale during WW1. The one the other side was removed to balance it and it ran as a four sailed mill for decades. The badge of the junior school I went to showed the mill with four sails.



The mill was later restored to full working order with six sails and the school badge was changed accordingly.



During WW2 the mill was used as a Home Guard lookout tower. Then the air ministry turned up with sledgehammers and axes because they thought it was a hazard to the (very) nearby bomber airbase. The farmer saw them off with threats of violence and a shotgun. The airfiled is now long gone, but the mill still remains.

On reflection, I prefer her with six sails. Windmills, like ships, are always referred to as female.



The local All Saints church, diagonally opposite from where my family and I lived. We never got a lie-in on a Sundegg morning once the bell-ringers started to perform their craft.
I once went up onto the roof of the tower during a school trip.



One of the locals enjoying a day off.



Memory lane. There used to be several air raid shelters along here where my friends and I would play.




After that I headed north to York where my big brother now lives.

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

Lovely photos and history of your trip down Memory Lane, Fruitcake

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

Good photos well described Fruitcake. I especially loved the one of the old Austin. I would love to own one now. If I had large enough premises it would make a good restoration project.

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

I love old photos, especially where there is a "then and now" aspect.
Dad had been promoted to manager of the newly opened Abbey National Building Society branch in Grimsby, and the A35 was actually a company car.
Apart from a problem with one tyre, I don't remember it ever breaking down in all the years Dad had it.

I bought one in the seventies for a fiver, the day before its tax and MoT was due to run out, repaired it, got a new MoT, and sold it for forty quid. Not a bad little earner.
I too would love one now.

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

I love the shape of that motor Fruitcake, and I'm sure if someone set up producing those vehicles again (perhaps with electric or hybrid engines) I'm sure they would be popular. People seem to be gravitating to the Fiat 500 and smaller vehicles these days, and it would be nice for the UK to produce a vehicle here again like in the old days. Keep it totally British, using British engineers and parts. I believe that companies that get too big and global lose their soul!

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

I think the shape of a lot of the older cars like the Austin, Rover, and Wolseley are so much nicer than the straight lines and angles of modern motors.

I think you are right, seatbelt, airbags, electric power, and the surface covered with micro solar panels like the Aussie "1000" mile race jobbies would be a winner.

So when are we going to go into business together then?

Re: Last year's nostalgia trip.

Once upon a time I would have given it go Fruitcake, but now I'm just trying to squeeze the last bits of enjoyment out of what has been thus far, an extremely entertaining and enjoyable stay on this planet.....