This image of myself and my grandson, Tyler, was created by Georgia Rose Lucas who is the daughter of the late Sandy Denny. You can see Sandy, who was the lead vocalist of folk bank, Fairport Convention, watching us from the Norton Road bridge.
The pathway behind the academy, along side Lustrum Beck is one of my favourite places to walk.
Image and details courtesy of Paul Smith.
Did the Lustrum Beck run approximately parallel to Oxbridge Avenue where my alma mater (Grangefield Grammar School) was situated? Whilst I got several “O” levels (OK for 6th form!), I could not wait to leave and start work on BR at Darlington and Thornaby. (Got as far as Grade MS3 Down-South, but then decided to leave when a total ‘con-man’ and bully took over my small section, although I returned part-time, following the Hatfield disaster in 2000. (But WOW, DID those ‘salt-of-the-earth’ trackmen need some proper, formal training/testing!!!)
The only chap I remember that frequented the area was ‘Giggy Moon’, perhaps not a tramp but as a youngster you were always scared of him and perhaps he was picked on un-fairly.
J.
Whilst I never saw or met “Giggy” Moon, some Grangefield pupils had obviously done so and took him off (quite well I’d imagine!).
Giggy frequented the High St outside Sloanes Billiard Hall asking people for a cigarette (giz a fag )
He was harmless I think he ljved in Portrack.
I attended Grangefield Grammar school from 1960-65, obtaining Ca. five “O”-levels. HIGHLY foolishly, I did not select a 6th form and left. (However, much later in 1986 I obtained a Degree in Civil Engineering “with commendation” from Northeast London “Poly” in 1986. (Courtesy a wonderful BR Western Region Chief Engineer who kindly extended “Day Release” facilities!)
Giggy Moon was a harmless character who usually greeted you with Gig a fag or Gig a penny I think that is where his nick name came from. He sometimes used to attend the weddings in the Parish Church and sometimes managed to get into some of the photos, I know he did on my brother Maurice’s when the couple were getting into the wedding car outside the church.
Dave I met Giggy outside Sloanes Billiard Parlour on my way to the the Empire Cinema to see the film Man in the Iron Mask and he asked me for a penny, gigga a penny said Giggy which I did. When I was inside the Empire I could hear Giggy shouting and waving from the more expensive Circle seats, so his financial acumen was better than people appreciated.
A schoolmate of mine had his push-bike nicked. It was later found “on a tip at Portrack…”
I remember Giggy Moon and Tarzan, both of whom were harmless and friendly men. In Parkfield I also remember a guy called Billy Cockles who wasn’t friendly. I think he lived in the Teesbridge area. He would wander around the streets, yell at us young kids and we were terrified of him. I also remember Jimmy the Paper man who would carry his Evening Gazettes around the Parkfield streets until he had sold them all. He was also a good guy and he had a distinctive shout, something like Yee!, and people would come and buy their papers from him.
I seem to remember, perhaps wrongly, that Tarzan was able to punch a brick on the wall with no adverse effects. Maybe it was someone else!
Albert i think the tramp you are on about was actualy very nice old man we all called tarzen, he would walk around carring his tin “billycan” he was harmless and us kids would ofter talk to him, he would just appear and dissapear, i remember he always wore i big thick black overcoat! The word tramp is never used today and to be honest he was the last i ever saw.
All the best.
Derek
I’ve just remembered a story about the old tramp tarzen, he said he became a wanderer because of things he seen during the great war, so sad, even after all this time i remember a nice gentle person, if he didn’t find peace in this world i’m sure he would in the next world.
Amazing how the picture of the bridge over norton road is so wrong yet it can still stir memorries from so long ago.
Derek
I worked at the Malleable in the 1960’s and Giggy Moon was often seen walking past. He was a harmless soul and the kids would run away from him but I think he was harmless.
The drawing of Lustrum Beck was I think drawn through rose tinted glasses as I always feared it’s “dark depths” as it meandered past Swainby Road which was a real no go area for a boy from Newham Grange and a Grangefield Grammar School not😁
I remember Tarzan very well you could hear his Tarzan call around Durham Road Rec when he was in the area, a nice gentle person who talked to the kids. Another one of these travelling gentlemen was a man who would tell the kids stories about Gung Foo and his adventures, also stories of the detective Sherlock Holmes, He would gather a group of kids around him and we loved his stories as there was no TV in those days.
Ben i’m so pleased you confirmed my statement that tarzan was a lovely gentle person, only god knows what droves these folks to life on the road.
Derek.
I remember meeting the Storey Teller as we called him standing outside Newmans Butchers shop looking at all the pies, sausage rolls and pasties in the window and saying “I am not a greedy man but I could eat all these lovely pies ” I felt sorry for him but could not do much to help him,
Just another comment about picture, where lady is standing, that was a drop of about 15 to 20ft drop. As I mentioned where the man and young lad are standing just behind them was the big sewer, on left hand side was old concrete toilets, this picture shows the beck running just below the bridge, almost level with the footpath. Well the side leading down was quite steep, the brick wall you see was a heck of a drop. We did all sorts as kids but you never messed about leaning over that wall. And last but not least swans and ducks did swim in beck but also at this part of the picture I can tell you could see rats every day running about there. I’m almost 79 and this part of lustrum beck was awful, so sorry if I spoil things.
Derek
I would also like to add, the wall you see was very high, never clean, and from memory I think this was a sewer discharge here, and I always remember it never smelt very nice at this part. I grew up in Swainby Road with some of the greatest lads & lass’s.
Any one remember me Derek Casey?
Derek
I grew up in Swainby & Danby Road, this part of the Lustrum Beck never, never looked like this. As kids we kids would get our jam jars and catch tiddlers (fish). I remember none of us splodged under or near main road bridge, the picture doesn’t show the big sewer that went into the beck, just near were the two are standing, as beck flowed we could see the oil patterns from railway trains. As the beck flowed past Danby Road for a hundred yards or so it got quite deep, the little bridge that took you over into Tilery rec was the great attraction, that’s where we all splodged to get fish, blood suckers had all of us kids scared, when the rec grass was cut we all gathered it up, threw it under bridge till big heap appeared then we would jump from bridge onto grass for hours. The picture of this part of Lustrum Beck is nice but its never looked like it ever.
All the best.
Derek Casey.
A very ROSEY view and yes it would make an ideal jigsaw puzzle, wasn’t there a toilet block to the left of the picture as viewed?
Yes Albert a toilet to left with entrance to it almost opposite tennis court, and on the right behind the folks in photo a large sewer, it never smelt nice at this spot, and as I’ve stated none of us Swainby & Danby Road kids splodged there, banks leading down to beck were steep.
Derek
Yes the toilet block was sticking and there was an old tramp who used to hang around.
Norton Road never looked as picturesque as this, surely?
That would make a nice jigsaw
Brilliant picture. I didn’t know Sandy ever visited Stockton.
She was a great singer and I once met her brother Dave in London when he was at at Imperial College
When I was going to Richard Hind School in the 1960s, we used to go to Lustram Hall for sewing and cooking lessons on alternative weeks. Happy memories.
Wow great picture. Lustrum Beck looking very modern. Very different from when I lived there in 1954 as a child.
LUSTRUM BECK never looked like that in the seventies THATS FOR SURE.