Mr Patel’s

Alas, poor Mr. Patel. If he could see his shop now he would turn in his grave. When we first moved here in 1982, Mr. Patel’s was our nearest corner shop and many was the evening I would walk 100 yards down the road to buy a can of Carlsberg Special Brew to take the edge off. He and I would discuss a test match with India, who if playing, would be on the radio for the duration of the game. An enterprising chap, he was one of the first to set up video rentals, but this was not enough to secure a long and happy life. He moved on to that big cash and carry in the sky about 20 years ago and bit by painful bit the shop has drifted into dereliction. A compulsory purchase order was slapped on it before Christmas and it’s up for auction on 31st April with outline planning permission for a four bed house. A big job for somebody.

Shut that door!

A stroll round to Queen’s Rd to buy some parsley for the Moules Marinere I’m cooking later, took me past two corner shops and prompted me to record the others in the immediate vicinity. Within an area that can be no bigger than an acre there used to be myriad shops selling pop, crisps and sweets, limp vegetables and alcohol, some cashing in on the video rental boom in the mid eighties. Most have changed use to domestic houses now, but here’s a selection that I can just about identify. I’ll release them over the next month, individually, to keep up your excitement!
SW1 Hairdressers has not been in the current ownership for long, and has the look of a business in decline. There is a heavy mesh at the window to keep out intruders, but it has the effect of frightening off, would be customers, as you can’t see into the darkness they cause. The shop used to be an unlicensed ‘one armed bandit’ emporium back in the early ‘80’s, then an Antique Shop, before becoming a Hairdressers about 15 years ago. Up until recently it was run by a very camp man and he catered for the blue rinse brigade and was always busy. You could hear him gossiping from my house 200 yards away. “Ooooooooooooooooooooo, really!”

Hokey Kokey.

I pulled up at the lights next to an Ice Cream Van this week and was amazed at how little they have changed since my own career as an Ice Cream Man, killing time in the summer holidays. Still on offer was the ‘99’ and the ‘Oyster’. Even the boxes of wafers and cones looked exactly the same. How on Earth can they make a living in these days of marvellous Hagen Daas and Ben & Jerry’s available at all hours from Supermarkets?
For your amusement I have included a picture taken in 1972 of my pal, John Littlejohn, now a U.S.A. resident, and me on the right, with two cameras around my neck. The 35mm rangfinder camera was a Contax 2 and the twin lens reflex a MPP Microcord. I sold the Contax, but the Microcord bounced out of a shopping bag loosely fastened to the rack of a moped in Crete some years later. Gone forever, as have Suncream Dairies, my employer.

The Last Post

In the constantly changing urban environment, that is Queens Road, one thing remains a steady constant. This post box, now at a rather jaunty angle, probably following a dice with a delivery van, has been a link with the outside world since Clarendon Park was first built. Even in this age of super fast internet connections and e-mail, the humble envelope and stamp combination still has its place, be it to send a birthday card to a mate in a far flung place or to partake in the greatest pleasure available to the self employed, sending a clutch of invoices off at the end of a busy month. Odd how we take that red 2 inch x 10 inch slot so much for granted and grumble at a slight rise in cost every year. I actually think its pretty good value to be able to spend 30p and have something delivered to the other end of the country for the next day.... hopefully.

Hot Pork Fat.

Hot Pork cobs with apple sauce and fried onions. Impossible to resist on a crisp, but cold Saturday morning as the aroma wafts down Queens Road ever intensifying as you close in and watch the knife slice through the tender meat. Even a vegetarian would struggle to walk past Archer & Sons, the butchers. Sean roasts a pig outside the shop every now and again. Maybe one he’s got spare, or a cancelled order. Whatever, its usually all gone by 2 o-clock. At £2.50 a cob its money well spent. Part of the business is hog roasts and it keeps him pretty busy,especially in the summer. See: http://www.hogroastuk.com/
Pictured is Simon. Simon is, bizarrely, a hairdresser by trade, though has clearly given up on his own locks.

On All Fours.

We are privileged in Clarendon Park to have a ‘real’ garage, staffed by chaps who have the ability to repair anything from classic to modern. There, in oil stained overalls they toil in all weathers under the watchful eye of Terry, the proprietor. They do MOTs which is very handy, though they are a bit efficient, if you catch my drift. None of that ‘I’ll let it go this time, but get it sorted for your own good’ malarky. The building itself is interesting. I think it was once a tram garage and wears a faded plaque above the door, too eroded to read. Trams did once run along Queens Road and the place would be far better if they still did. Before Terry took it on it was known as Reggio garage, after Reggio in Sicily, ‘Mafia Country’ as Tony, the old Italian owner once confided in me. Tony specialised in Citroens, along with his son, Tony and grandson.... you’ve guessed, Tony. Tony senior had a lovely DS 23 Automatic, which one day he intended to drive back to Sicily. I had a DS 23 Pallas at the time which seemed to spend far too much time round there. In October Tony and other members of the Leicester Italian community used to buy a lorry load of grapes and make their own Italian wine in his garage at home in Knighton. I was invited to witness the event once and sampled a glass, or two. I believe it was an acquired taste!

Light Frost on Queens Road.

Following the great success of the Grand Central Station ‘Big Freeze’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwMj3PJDxuo a scaled down version took place today on Queens Rd. Ignored by most, the event was almost a flop. To star in a flop is always a good career move as negative publicity is no worse than good publicity. The three stars await international recognition. In case you hadn't noticed.... It's a film. Click on the arrow, bottom left. A first amongst the collective I think.