Spon End

Hi Dutchman, very good pic. It's interesting to note that the sash window upstairs seems to be fully open. I wonder why?! See my earlier comments about what the builders said.

Good maps Heathite. It's interesting how little it changed from 1750 to 1807. It was beginning to change rapidly by 1850 and was very different by 1890.

My Spon End photos here

Some of the bricks from the old Plaza cinema are underneath the garden store/workshop at the end of my parents' garden in Canley Road. How did they get there, I hear you all ask? Well, I'll tell you. When my father retired, one of his first projects was to build quite a large single-brick building across the end of the back garden. I helped him build it. Before the concrete base was poured into the footings, we needed a load of hard-core (by hard-core is meant rubble, to remove any confusion). It was expensive to buy it officially, so early one Saturday morning, I said "Leave it to me, Dad". I rode down to the Plaza, which was being demolished, on my 650cc BSA, and bribed the workmen. Cash speaks louder than words, so several cubic yards of rubble was put into the back of a lorry, I left my bike on site, and got into the passenger seat and directed the driver to the rear of our house, and the rubble was dropped into place. Then we went back and I got my bike. The whole job was done in about an hour. I paid the two chaps four green ones. I daresay that wouldn't happen today: "Phwoor, we can't do that, 'elf 'n safety!". It's ironic that in earlier days, my parents used to visit the Plaza when they were "courting". Little did they know that one day some of that building would be in their back garden!

I moved down to Coventry in 1972 and it was still Jacksons Radio then. I can't remember whether it was still there in 1974 when I moved into Dover Street though.

OL - they're still listed at 101 Spon End in the 1975 Telephone Directory, but not in the 1976 book

Love the photos MR, they took me back to the Broom, Four Pounds Ave. and the Plaza, what a dump. Sat in my first double seat at that place - say no more !

Thanks MR, I do have a vague memory of going into the shop when we moved but couldn't place when

Great stories Slim and Dream

I would put the painted words a little earlier, late fifties, maybe there is a lot more background to this story. Pendleton had already stated he wanted the town to be shut down at ten o'clock. No extensions of licencing hours, or late night restaurants with licences. The town had a lot of unrest because of the 'indian' (the name of the day) influx. It was felt he was encouraging more, I could say more on this but may be it's in bad taste today. In Barras Lane in 1949, a guy turned a house into 5 bedsits, each with separate kitchen and bathroom. I rented one of those flats for more than ten years, so was close to Spon End and the city centre. Remember seeing a couple of shows by the Earlsdon players, fairs on Hearsall Common etc. Yes, it was a nice place to live in the fifties.

Looking back, I feel the entrance to the Plaza was very strange. I suppose when I was young it was like climbing wide stairs to enter a space ship.

I remember a few cinemas like that, Pix (in my day, perhaps not in yours)

It was done so that the seats at the back would be higher and have a clear view of the screen.