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Welcome to the Guestbook
Feel free to add messages relating to the site and the school. The only rules are: real names only, no personal attacks and no unrelated messages (inappropriate messages may be edited/withdrawn without warning).

It would be appreciated if you gave an email address, where you now live and said when you were at the school, but you don't have to.

Plase note that if you click on an email address below you will need to replace ~DOT~ with . and ~AT~ with @ in your email program. The Guestbook presents these this way to avoid email address harvesters collecting your email addresses from the page. I know it's a pain, but it's very much better than the alternative.

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There are 500 messages in the guestbook
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Viewing messages 61 to 70

Alan Whittaker(53-59) | alan~DOT~diwhittaker~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Hi All,
Reflecting back does anyone remember the charity model of a black labrador which sat in the entrance to Binns store for many years? I think its name was "Hobo" and any donations were for guidedogs for the blind

Thu 12-Jan-2023 15:29 - Langford Budville, Somerset

Alex Patterson VUA 1946 - 1951 | ad1935ap~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Hello Mike and all readers,
Apropos of T & G Allan’s and fountain pens, the discussion inspired me to checkout my old fountain pens and one newer version. I still have my Parker Junior, and my Esterbrook from High School days, both from T and G Allan’s in King Street I’m not 100% sure about my Schaeffer although it is a close contemporary of that period.
I used my Esterbrook filled with green ink on an history homework submission in my newly adopted leaning to the left handwriting. I got a decent mark from ‘Piggy’ Wade but a terse comment, “Straighten up your writing, use traditional ink. Unmitigated swank!!”
More recently, my eldest daughter, Katherine, bought me a Mont-Blanc fountain pen with a calligraphy tip so I can continue my ‘unmitigated swanky’ writing. She didn’t buy it at T & G A’s but at some store in Toronto and my writing doesn’t seem to lean to the left anymore.
My Parker Junior was a gift from my Mum before I entered High School and I was surprised to find that I wasn’t the only boy with a fountain pen, in fact I was a bit disappointed. One of my favourite pens was my Biro which was frowned upon by Charlie Constable. It was an early model, which tended to leave blobs of ink at any place in a sentence and was quite messy. My Aunt had a convenience store opposite Swan Hunter’s in Wallsend and she would often get unusual things, such as the Biro, in exchange for ciggies from foreign crew members of ships in for repair. She got the Biro from one such customer. She also got me a leather bomber jacket which I wore when I was still in High School until I was in my twenties. Sorry about wandering off topic…I do that frequently these days.
Anyhow, I’ll talk to you soon,
Regards,
Alex

Sun 8-Jan-2023 06:03 - North York, Ontario, Canada

Alan Whittaker(53-59) | alan~DOT~diwhittaker~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Mike, you surely have suffered greatly over the last couple of years. May I send my best wishes for your full recovery.

Ref T&G Allans I think "The Pen Shop" name was adopted after The War. I remember Conway Stewart pens but they were out of my league, I used the less expensive Platignum variety! I think both pens are still being manufactured.

Ref barbers,the father of Sutton Estate resident Malcolm Cottenham (Ex High School) had a small barbers shop down past the Nook.He later moved to an even smaller premises on Chichester Rd near the Chi Pub. He gave me my first "bob cut" and told me that my hair was so thick and strong I would never lose it! Well he got that wrong!!

Wed 4-Jan-2023 11:21 - Langford Budville, Somerset

Mike Todd

"Ouch!" is right - February 2021 I was rushed to hospital in the middle of the night. They weren't sure what it was (at one point, the record show they suspected an aortic aneurism, but later it as gallstones)

Sent home, ended up again the following week and confirmed perforated gall bladder - then sepsis - followed by emergency surgery and a week in hospital.

Had acute kidney infection, and on the edge of kidney failure - and recently have had kidney blocked by a stone. Had two bouts of lithotripsy - still not fully recovered, but still here :-)

I remember the barbers in Binns, although I was usually at a barbers in (I think) Imeary Street.

There used to be a ships chandlers towards the Mill Dam - and was there a surplus store somewhere round the Market Place - but I don't think either was the one you were talking about.

And T&G Allan had a big pen section if I recall - but greetings cards, books and trinkets (great for buying Christmas Presents).

I haven't been in the Morpeth store for a while, but they definitely had a goodly collections of pens.

Tue 3-Jan-2023 20:10 - Rothbury

Bruce Graham | bsgraham~AT~btinternet~DOT~com

Mike.

Ouch!! Your medical episode sounds very scary and nasty.

All of the memories of Binns etc on King Street strike multiple cords with me. In addition to being fascinated with the pneumatic money transfer system as a lad I recall that upstairs there was also a barbers shop. So when at the age of 14 I decided that I would like to have a crew cut - all the rage in those days - I didn't dare go to my regular barber who would have sent me home for a permission chit I'm sure. Like Alan Whittaker ( a few tears later) I had by then started a paper round at Minnikins on Quarry Lane so was able to afford t go to the barber in Binns and have the deed done. My Mother was not amused!!

I didn't know that T&G Allens began as "The Pen Shop" but I used to delight in going into their very large pen department and admire all of the beautiful fountain pens that I couldn't afford. Conway Stewart is one brand name that springs to mind - or am I making that up?

Though not on King Street you oldies may recall a shop on the corner of the market place opposite St Hilda's that specialised in seaman's uniforms and accoutrements. Darned if I can remember the name of the shop.

Bruce

Tue 3-Jan-2023 18:59 - ruskington lincolnshie

Alan Whittaker(53-59) | alan~DOT~diwhittaker~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Hi All,
Ref T&G Allan,I think the company still has a shop in Morpeth as well as 20 plus Pen Shops in the UK

Tue 3-Jan-2023 16:02 - Langford Budville, Somerset

Mike Todd

Hi, All - thanks for the best wishes - and compliments of the season to you all.

Alan's comments about Binns etc brought back many memories. While Binns no longer exists in SS, I think it does (or at least did) continue in its original location in Sunderland, but taken over by House of Fraser.

I do remember the pneumatic system - always fascinated me. A similar system used to be used at Foyles bookstore in Tottenham Court Road.

On Fowler Street there was a grocery store (may even have been managed by my Grandfather!) which had a different system - overhead cables that took money to the cashier raised up and in the corner of the store.

And yes, the Binns' lift had to be precisely positioned - with the manually opened/closed gate.

As for T&G Allan - the company still exists! While the only store remaining under that name is in Morpeth, following a management buyout a few years ago, the company's original business (specialist pen shop) still operates all over the country (as "The Pen Shop", which was actually the original name of T&G Allan when it first opened in Newcastle)

I'd read about the major redevelopment of the SS town centre - and I think some of the demolition is nearly complete.

And to Alex - thanks for your wishes re my health. It's been a difficult two years, and the 1000 pages of medical records have been whittled down to about 500 by removing duplicates and blank pages.

Still going through them, but learning a lot about the events surrounding my ruptured gallbladder and subsequent sepsis. I don't think we realise what is going on behind the scenes when you're in your hospital bed!

As Bruce says, our Alma Mater has been very successful in its redevelopment, including the preservation of the 1936 building.

It's been a while since I visited, but I'm hoping to get there this year some time.

All the best to all the stalwarts! A Happy and comfy 2023 to all!

Tue 3-Jan-2023 15:40 - Rothbury

Alan Whittaker(53-59) | alan~DOT~diwhittaker~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Hi Everyone,Happy New Year.
Bruce's mention of Binns and T&G Allans got me thinking. I believe both stores closed in the mid 90s.
In 1959,whilst waiting for my entry into the RAF I had ajob in the hardware dept located in the basement of Binns.A 6 day week(Wed early closing) 9am to 6pm for which I was paid the princely sum of £3-1s-8d !!
Does anyone remember the Lamson Tube system which used compressed air to send money/bills cartridges to/from the various departments to the Accounts on the top floor?
The two customer lifts were also unusual in that they were lever operated by an Attendant who had to judge when to release the lever so that the lift stopped level with the outside floor!
How about the restaurant on the 2nd floor where genteel ladies of the town went to be seen enjoying afternoon tea and sandwiches?

Those were the days!

Tue 3-Jan-2023 11:45 - Langford Budville, Somerset

Neale Backhouse | nealebackh~AT~gmail~DOT~com

Hi Mike
Compliments of the season to you.
Alex and Bruce's enthusiasm has awakened me from my lethargy. Alex and Bruce can never leave this good Earth. They will ever be required to keep us well informed about what's going on in good old Shields.
Living on this Island causes everyone (well at least me)to become blase about the rest of the world.(shocking statement I know).I've become a "pass my book and slippers" kind of person.But not a pessimist thank goodness. Liz and our irrepressible grandchildren keep me well engaged.It's a new year so let's hope it brings something that we can all cheer about.
Best wishes, Neale.

Mon 2-Jan-2023 00:10 - Victoria BC

Bruce Graham | bsgraham~AT~btinternet~DOT~com

I join with Alex in wishing the compliments of the season to anyone who looks at this page.

He is much better informed than I am about the developments in our old home town. Re-developing King Street - I wonder if Binns is still there - probably not. And what about T&G Allens?

I was thinking recently about the amount of housing development that will be needed in the town. In the harsh years after the end of WW2 the money was somehow found to build huge new Council housing estates But the earlier developments - Sutton Trust Estate and the council housing at Horsley Hill and Cleadon and around our old school were all built in the 1930s. I know that there has been a lot of demolition and new building in the Prince Edward road area clos to the Nook but there is a lot more to do.

At least our alma mater has been successfully developed and even managed to retain the core of the 1936 building. I recall that the road leading from Centenary Avenue that formed part of the new Council House estate was called "School Approach.

Talking (as Alex was) of New Year celebrations I wonder if the tradition of "fist-footing" persist?

Take care all.

Sun 1-Jan-2023 16:11 - ruskington lincolnshie

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