Shops of yore

Hi MisterD-Di, That's a name I have not heard of for years. It's great how these shops come to life again on the forum. Was Mills & Mills a paper shop too ?

Hi & yes. Mills & Mills (stationers) were at the Bottom of Trinity St. Only 'Wake', fish-mongers were further down on the corner. My friend Michael Mills, had a twin David, so when they were in line at school, they were Mills & Mills Hey! "Don't worry, I shall keep my day job!"

Finally remembered! John Carroll, 24 Warwick Row Phew!

You're dead right MrD-Di. Mills and Mills was the stationers in Trinity Street. I should have remembered the name as a girlfriend was the manageress!!! Or maybe that's why I was trying to forget!!

Another shop down that lane at the bottom of Trinity St. : Tuck & Blakemore, Tool merchants. I bought a steel ruler there; lost it when my haversack fell off the pillion seat of my motorcycle. Worse than that, my dad's rugby boots were also in the haversack... he was not too pleased... anybody find a pair of 'Cotton Oxford' boots and a Rabone Chesterman steel rule, around 1969... on Fletch Highway?

Does anyone remember 'Rich & Smith' of Earlsdon Street? My grandmother bought her first TV off them in the late fifties and later on my mother rented a set during the late sixties & seventies. Are they still in business ? I notice in a recent picture in an earlier post that the 'Parsons Nose' has disappeared from the bottom of Bishop Street (the late night chip shop serving revellers on their way home after a night at the clubs). When did this happen? I have many memories of walking along Corporation Street with a tray of faggots, peas & chips to round off the night in the very early seventies. Also the 'Farmer Giles' in the Burges where we used to go on a Saturday afternoon after Highfield Road for a 'spesh' (special) s&k pie, chips, peas, a cup of tea and bread & butter for the princely sum of 2/6d!

In the same row of shops as Dixon's do any members recall the pet shop about half way down which had a parrot on a stand and a brick built 'pond' in the centre containing scores of goldfish ?

There was a pet shop roughly opposite the Locarno. It was on the corner where you went from Smithford Way to the West Orchards car park. It was called Fanshaw's. I went to school with the son of the owners, a lad called David Fanshaw. I do recall going into the shop frequently when I was a child. They had cages with lots of puppies & kittens, and I believe I do recall the goldfish pond.

I thought it was a little further down towards 'Boots' (later to become What Everyone Wants) - but you've probably a better memory than I have. In my era the star of the show was the fruit bat !

Hi Vernon, I agree I believe it was further down and I'd forgotten about the fruitbat ! It was in a cage and ate grapes a lot if I recall

Fanshaw's was definitely on the corner, about halfway down Smithford Way. There was a newsagent on the opposite corner. The shop with the fruit bat was the one in the City Arcade, the first shop on the left as you passed the birdcage. It later became Virgin Records.

Perhaps the bat flew between the two shops... or were there two of them? Certainly the one I remember was in Smithford Way. You never forget the amusement of watching it hang the 'right' way up to take a pee.....

That splendid link explains it all. I hadn't realised that Fanshaws also owned the City Arcade shop, so the fruit bat probably did get moved there from Smithford Way. I recall it was in a cage upstairs, next to one with a toucan in it. This was in the late 60s. My memories of visiting the Smithford Way shop go back to about 1960ish. Mrs Fanshaw was always in the shop and she was really nice to all us kids. If David was there we would sometimes be allowed to handle some of the animals from the cages at the back.

Hi Wearethemods, Farmer Giles was a regular haunt of ours on a Saturday morning if you didn't mind the steam bath with it. 2 Vienna steaks and 2 Sausage and chips with butties were our order of the day, and a cuppa from the giant teapot!