Bristol in the 1960's and beyond..

Well up until the age of 17 i was always out with my mates doing what you were but you must of been bored as **** when you came in for the rest of they day

 

I remember those green buses with fondness wize...
Do you remember the older ones with running boards?
Jumping on or off at the lights, running to catch up and just managing to leap on.
No Knowle West conductor ever dared issue a ticket. If the fare was 1/- you gave
him 6p and said 'Keep the ticket'. You got a cheap ride and he pocketed the 6p!
Eat your heart out shiny!

 

'but you must of been bored as **** when you came in for the rest of they day'

Shiny - Behave.
There will come a day when you'll think - 'was I ever that daft' to make such a comment.
But you're not daft - just a bit 'wet behind the ears'.

Don't take offence - At your age we were all equally 'wet behind the ears' .

 

Wiz,

Another blast from the past and a little present for you from me and Leslie Crowther - do you remember these? I do, just.

 

Amazing how the picture of the Tramways Office looks like Bruges or any central European city.

I remember the green buses very well as a kid. They were always late and the route I was on (3) used to regularly struggle to get up Red Lion Hill.

If it wasn't for work purposes I wouldn't want to own a mobile phone. Come to that I wouldn't have a land line either, or answer the door to cold callers etc etc

Rant over !

 

My dad worked for Bristol Bus Company as a conducto,r based in Highbridge, and I loved going with him on the last evening bus up to Bristol to see the lights from Bedminster Down. Remember going to Bristol for christmas shopping and our neighbour parking her car in the basement of a bombed out building left from the war and Broadmead being under construction. My dad also took me to Bristol to watch the first flight I believe of the Bristol Brabazon, does anyone else remember that local historical fact?

Heady enjoyable days!

 

Well health and safety was **** in those days and there was no drink driving law

 

Invermere Mike,
I was there for the first Brabazon flight, stood by the Brittannia Cafe. My Dad worked on and later Concorde.

What did we do with ourselves? Many things already mentioned above.
Here's another one. I ran a subbuteo league in Filton Horfield and Patchway for three/four years. At it's peak we had two divisions of 12 teams. Played on Sunday evenings home and away just like real league football. Imagine riding your bike from Filton to Patchway on a cold, wet January night. you were three down inthe first ten minutes because your bloody hands were frozen.

Bloody great times, no mobile phone, no bunjee rope attached to your parents, allowed to go on trains to City away matches anywhere in the country.
Wish I could live it all again but the memories are there forever!

 

The other thing about our generation was watching all these things that Shiny says he can't live without grow.

We have seen the internet evolve, the car moving on from something that anybody could attempt to fix, to something that you need to be a computer genius fix! I took my car into the garage a few years ago and they attached it to the Internet which sent a patch down from Germany to update the software on it!

We saw the birth of video tapes from Betamax upto blue ray disc.

Games consuls from the old Atari space invaders to the confusing things they have now, where you have to have the fastest fingers to use.

Mobile phones from the size of bricks to tiny things back to what we have now.

Football you either watched Match of the Day highlights on a Saturday night, the big match highlights on a Sunday. Apart from the World cup the only other game live was the FA cup final with the build up starting with its a knockout. I can remember getting snacks and stuff like that and making a day of it.

So sorry Shiny I believe that we lived the life at our generation.

But in 20-30 you will be saying this to some kids but probably by teleporting to their home in USA in minutes

 

you're right ROD, Shiny doesn't even comprehend how many geezers our age cant even get anywhere near the internet let alone post on a forum.

I can remember watching star trek and thinking ' just imagine if one day those communicators became real' its not even 20 years really.

You got such a shock coming...

 

Talking of Subbuteo, I played it from around 6-7 well into my 20's and I used to love waking up on Xmas morning to new teams as present or buying new ones or accessories with Xmas or birthday money
The Co-Op at Fairfax House by the top of Union St always seemed to have the best selection of teams, sets and accessories, although finding them, or your way out was always a challenge !
I had around 60 teams, plus fence, 4 x floodlights, TV gantry, ball boys, manager (complete with sheepskin coat!!) the corner kickers and throw in mannequins....

Happy days

I also had the Cricket and Rugby editions

 

For cricket game I had "OWZAT" which had two "dice" but in a barrel shape each with 6 sides.
The one batting rolled first and scored 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 or "Owzat"
If "owzat" the bowler rolled his. Not out, lbw, caught, bowled, stumped, no ball.
I used a full cricket scorebook and spent many hours on my own playing England v Australia Test matches. And never cheated because that defeated the object.
I don't have Subbuteo any more but still have Owzat and play once or twice a year mostly in winter when it's throwing it down outside.

 

You must have come from the rich side of town! We had to make do with sawn off stumps of pencils!

 

I'm sorry but they way life is now sounds so much better than how it was back in the 60/70/80 etc..

 

Little dark blue tin with slanty writing !!!

I also had Pocket Soccer which came in a green tube... (not like test tube babies!)

 

No doubt it was great wiz, i think everyone will say there childhood was the best, im looking foward to the years to come, With the way technology's going wont be long before we can hover and teleport.....