Coventry gambling (Casinos, Betting Shops, etc)

I remember the Bimbo Casino on Victoria Street, our punk band (variously called The Bogmen, Good Shot Madam, Pieces Of Pottery and finally Distorted Youth) used to rehearse upstairs c. 1980 - 82. Alan Blank let us use it for free as long as we bought him a bottle of 'something' every now and then. He was a nice guy who I seem to remember had a bad heart or something similar. There were a number of photos taken of us and we recorded hours of stuff on a reel to reel tape machine - sadly my Mother threw all the tapes out when there was a flood in the shed they were being kept. When I asked why she chucked them, I was informed they were covered in mud and there was a dead rat on top of them ....if that were a cover of a punk LP no one would believe it was real !. Here I am as a teenage hippy punk upstairs in the Bimbo - probably playing the Velvet Underground's 'Sister Ray' !

Hi everyone. I know most of you must think this is a pointless topic but I can always remember going into Ladbrokes bookies for a bet when I was a youngster back in the late 90's. But I've been trying to remember where it was back then. You had to climb up some stairs to get there and at the side of the shop there used to be a balcony. Does anyone on here remember where the hell it was? It's been bugging me for ages. I know the city has changed a bit since then but I'd loved to know where it was because of nostalgia. Thanks. Richard Steed

Trinity Street. Same side as The Silver Sword pub. Corner of New Buildings.

No. That's the new Ladbrokes. The one I mean is not there now. I think it was where Greyfriars Walk is now, just before it was built about ten years ago. Can anyone confirm that there used to be a Ladbrokes there before Greyfriars Walk was built back in the late 90's?

Mmmmmmmm. The only one I remember was the one in Trinity Street. That had the steps up to it. Used to work opposite and used it regularly in the 90's. Can't say I remember a Ladbrokes in the area you refer to. It's bugging me now as well!

Where is Greyfriars Walk? Never heard of it.

I had to look it up Seems like it's City Arcade

Well maybe it's changed that much you could be right. Was it the only Ladbrokes in the city centre back in the late 90's? Do you have any photographs of Trinity Street back then?

No. I can definitely confirm that it wasn't Trinity Street. There must have been two in the city centre at the time. The one I'm thinking of on level 2 in an old shopping centre.

Was this down by the 40 Thieves restaurant/nightclub?

Unfortunately I've never known Coventry enough to know about it's nightclubs. I can tell you though, when you walked up to Ladbrokes and walked round to the side of the store, there was some graffitti on one of the walls that said '8T7' meaning it was written in 1987. I can remember that. I can remember they bulldozed the whole lot down just over a decade ago. I'm convinced it used to be where Greyfriars Walk is next to Shelton Square. I just would like someone to confirm it. I'm a fussy old fella.

Have no idea about Ladbrokes, used to take my bets to Hertford Street Post-office (opposite Empire) back in the early fifties. Red House coaches from Pool Meadow took people to Ascot, few miles from Ascot, picked up four people, broken down car, first one aboard said, is this coach going down 'the golden road', nothing else spoken. Coach went silent. Arrived at Ascot, dropped the four people off, the coach came alive, a horse called the Golden Road was in the third race, ridden by Gordon Richards, the man who had uttered those words, duly won easy, everyone on coach came back pockets full of money. Be lucky.

There's not been much redevelopment at 'city arcade' over the years - they did the Argos store in the 1990s (20 years ago) and recently demolished the office building on 'Rover Road' that was connected to the market. There used to be a large curry house upstairs in that area.

So where the hell was Ladbrokes on the second level in that old shopping centre with a roof back in '98? This is spooking me out.

I remember at the end of the City Arcade there was a staircase up to Nello's night club, did that continue round the bend at the top and join up with the other upstairs shops around the square?