Your first job in Coventry

I worked in a Radio, Television & HiFi shop for a company called RES, at 13 City Arcade, as a salesman. We sold televisions and radios downstairs, and very expensive HiFi kit upstairs. I used to go out to Jill Hansons record shop in my dinner hour and buy the latest chart singles - then return to the shop to play them on some really hi-end equipment that wasn't really designed for such frivolity! I remember the manager one day deciding that the open staircase leading to the upper sales room needed the addition of a "vanity panel" attaching to the underside. Myself and another salesman were given the task of priming and painting the sheet of hardboard that was going to be used for the task. However, we thought it would be a good idea the paint "footprints" (the five-toes, sole & heel variety) up the centre of the wood first, so they appeared to be walking up the stairs. We both thought this was hilarious - but, what we didn't appreciate was that when the top coat was applied, the footprints would still show through. This wasn't noticed until the wood was actually fixed permanently in place and it took some explaining when it was spotted by the General Manager on his next routine visit! (I wonder if they are still there?)

I started my first job just after my 14th birthday as a GPO Messenger boy (telegram boy) behind the main GPO site in Greyfriars Lane, it was the the first few days of January 1947. For someone who had only lived in Coventry less than a month it was not the ideal job, I seemed to spend an awful lot of time asking for directions. It was great when I had telegrams for the fish merchants in the Barracks Square, that was well within my local knowledge. Besides the extreme nature of the weather (weeks of ice and snow) was the lack of warm outer clothing (no uniforms) and the big heavy cycles they gave us to ride. But the job had perks, I had to deliver to Ivy Farm Lane and left my cycle at the bottom of Charter Avenue and walked the rest of the way, in places the snow was well up my thighs. When I reached the house the owner said that I was the first person they had seen in three days, & gave me a shilling tip. My best tip ever was at a house in Moor St, the man opened the telegram and said with a big smile "my mother in law is dead" and tipped me five shillings - unheard of wealth. I had joined the GPO because I wanted to join the engineering dept, we had been told that future recruitment would come from us messenger boys. However sometime in July/August we found out that they were taking on lads for the engineering and missing us out. So about half of us walked out and got other jobs. On my 15th birthday I signed my indentures as a toolmaker, and so entitled me to day release at Coventry Tech, for which I am forever grateful.

Hi BrotherJoybert, my granddaughter got shot in the Criterion Theatre two weeks ago (in a play on stage I must hasten to add). I wonder if you saw it. Regards, Artful.

My first job was in the Patent Department at Courtaulds in 1962. I started as an office junior and worked my way up to secretary - remember the days of shorthand typing ?? If I remember correctly my first pay packet was approx. £4 and 7 shillings (that was a good wage back then). I stayed there for approx. 6 years. Office life was so much different then to what it is today. No computers then! We had a mix of electric and manual typewriters and you were called in to your boss to take dictation - sometimes it was a case of fingers crossed that you could read your shorthand back - lol. I remember the building we were based in was separate from the main building. If you didn't feel well - you were sent to see the nurse - and I remember you were always given a glass of hot ginger with a pain-killer - and it always worked ! Happy times.

Hello Polly

Hello Polly, from me too & thank you Dutchman

Hello Dutchman and Philip - and thankyou for your welcome.

Looking for info on Rowleys Green I found the following

I see you have the same sense of humour like me, next time my daughter goes to town I ll get her to see if they are still there.

When I left school at 15years I started work at the AEI (BTH) and what a shock that was we had to be at work very early , smoked filled bus every morning, I was always late, it was a real mission just getting to work, after getting off the bus in Broadgate run to lower Ford Street then make my way through the Factory to the Lifts then to my work station on Read street 4th floor(RS4) I could not wait to leave school but after a few weeks at the AEI I wished i could go back. After being introduced to the two ladies who sat at a bench inspecting. They greeted me with"arr ,he is sweet ,come here and give us a cuddle" they sure did that ok they caressed me in such a way it would not have been allowed today, but it delighted the rest of the work force and It sure broke the ice. After that they took great delight in ragging me when they could but all in good fun. My direct boss was a charge hand (second in command to the Foreman) his name was Frank Wilson, we got on great and he was a good engineer, taught me a lot but me being me I was into mischief and soon I began to mimick him. He Smoked and he would stand at his job smoking a fag and because he was using both hands the fag was held by his lips and as the smoke billowed up his nose he would manoeuvre the fag using his lips from side to side in order to prevent the smoke from reaching his nose and eyes And then the coughing would start, "take the fag out Frank" I would shout to no avail he could smoke it down to the last little stub. Beats me how he did it. Although I gave Frank an hard time I had a lot of respect for him even though one day he chased me and gave me a thick hear. I played so many tricks on him I began to feel sorry for him. I Glued his tea mug to a fly press, and when he reached for it during a tea break he pulled the handle off. I must say at this stage I always had another mug in hand , I was always spurred on by the rest of the lads. One of the best tricks I did was to drill a little hole just below the rim of the mug , as he always put his mug on the drill press situated to the right of him it was easy to work out which side to drill the hole. We all watched with bated breath as he reached for his mug of tea and began to drink, tea started to poor from the hole and ran down his Cow Gown. But no reaction ? He replaced the mug and turned over the pages of the News paper he was reading. Again he began to sip from the mug. He did this three times until " what the b----- hell " he shouted every one was laughing and I began to run. A spare mug of tea was placed on the press, he saw the funny side so all was forgiven, until the next prank . At tea break I would get the tea for Frank, at the sound of the bell he would make for his desk next to the press, he would pull out his chair (the chairs used had a locker under the seat) this day while he was away from his bench I filled his chair with the ball weights from various bench presses. They were very heavy. The bell rang and Frank returned grabbing the back of his chair but the chair did not move. "Who did this " he shouted , he did not have to look far I got marched into the office for that one. Unbeknown to me one of the lads had closed his padlock, locking the balls inside and then poured in a fast setting glue into the key way (the lock had to be cut off, I owned up to putting the balls into the chair but not glueing the lock, they did not believe me. I did all sorts to him, i tied string to a row of dustbins the other end I attached to his chair the other side of his bench, all fell quiet after the bell had sounded, Frank got to his chair pulled it out from under the bench to the sound a four dustbin lids clanging. it's not allowed now . Christmas was very special and I have great memories, every one took in a bottle of some sort of sprit the ladies brought in the mince pies and most of us had a great time ,things went on that I could not begin to remark on in this post, no matter how much I skirt round the topic, the topic would be obvious so I will not continue with that line. The likes of that era will never or could never be repeated (health and safety) fond memories for me . On a sad note, not long after I had left AEI I found out that my ol mate Frank had passed away, I can still him now at his bench, he was one of life's Gentle men. Colin.

My first job in Coventry was selling pies at Highfield Road during half time! I cannot repeat some of the hygiene issues I discovered!! Leanne

Although I lived in Coventry my first job was in Bedworth. My uncle was manager of Newdigate Colliery and as he believed in the future of coal he persuaded me to take an apprenticeship in colliery engineering. I loved it. I loved working on the huge steam winding engines, painted green and red with spotless paintwork and gleaming copper and brass. Twin banked double expansion cylinders raise 8 tons of coal 1000 yards in a matter of seconds. I loved working underground learning to maintain and repair all sorts of mining machiery. To start with I was butty to Perce Bonham he was like a second father to me and what he did'nt know about mining machinery was'nt worth knowing. After I served my time I had a butty, Brian and I was able to pass on to him what I had been taught. Sadly after an incident underground I no longer wanted to work there so I left and was conscripted to the army. I was first sent to Korea to shoot at "Commies" and later to Kenya to kill Mau Mau. After I left the army I worked at Binley Colliery but it just was'nt the same so I left before Thatcher decided to close nearly all the coal mines...Les

The wonder of Woolies Not exactly my first job but but such a good time job. One of my jobs I had to do as an Maintenance engineer was to check and recharge the Fire extinguishers throughout the store. Their we're two main types in use, one discharged Foam and the other discharged water. The water type was operated by striking the knob on the top of the extinguisher. This story involves the water type. I had just started courting my Girl friend who is now my wife. I had already made a good impression with the bandage incident. And so, It was a very busy Saturday morning in the Store, just under the cafeteria stairs their was a little room were I used to charge the fire exstinqishers Around the removeable top of the extinguisher was a row of holes (the holes were there to release pressure if by some reason the extinguisher had been used but the nozzle was blocked) if the nozzle was blocked when unscrewing the filler cap the gas would escape without the cap becoming a projectile . To continue , I was filling an exstinqisher , after filling the main body with a mixture of water and a form of bicarbonate I then had to insert a bottle of Sulfuric Acid ( this bottle had a dent at one end and a neck at the other ) for some unknown reason I put it in the wrong way round, I then started to screw on the cap and then I felt a crunching sensation . Because the Acid bottle was inserted the wrong way the neck of the bottle broke, then Acid poured into the mixture which then started to produce gas which started to escape from the partly screwed cap (the gas came from the escape holes) . Now to stop this extinguisher from discharging it was the norm to invert so only gas came from the nozzle but in my case the gas was escaping from the holes around the cap and like an idiot I inverted the extinguisher In an attempt to stop it working. Now the rest of the neat Acid was forced out of the holes and spraying my shoes, my trouser my arms. When it had stopped I quickly made for the cold water to wash off the acid from my arms, not thinking about my shoes and trousers. Wow I thought "that was a close one " I started to clean up and I thought that was that. Some time had passed when I was aware of a smell ? Emanates from my lower region, I looked down to see smoke pouring from my trousers and shoes ( not real smoke as such but a coloured Gas) "Oh no my pants are being burned away" I thought. I began to panic , I need to get my pants off, now. I ran up the stairs making for our workshop looking down as I ran I could see bits of my pants falling off. Guess who I bumped into on the stairs." Hello Jackie I said " she looked down at my feet , "can't stop need to get my pants off" I was now looking like a poor mans version of the Hulk, she must have thought "what have I let myself in for with this I Q zero". Got my pants off in the privacy of the workshop, washed the bottoms in the sink, having no other pants with me I had to put them back on. Checked my body for damage but the pants took the full brunt, my boss came in, he had just spoken to Jackie on the stairs and she had told him what had gone on. He took one look and said "you are so lucky you did not do yourself any damage, you had better go home" can you imagine what I must have looked like, my trousers had disintegrated just below the knee no socks on and bleached shoes, it's a wonder the driver of the bus let me get on , I think if I had a cap I would have had it filled with coins from nice people who thought I had fallen on hard times.lol. I wonder what today's health and safety would have said about that one? No safety Glasses no Rubber apron or rubber gloves? Wow that would have been the wonder of Woolies. Colin.

Hello Les ,such an interesting story, in an earlier posting on here I mentioned the Mau Mau uprising. You did not say if it was you that had been hurt underground or was it an incident that you had seen ? It would appear that you have an interesting life? Hope you have more to tell. Colin

Yes, I have just read your latest escapade RKid. You were definitely a cat in your previous life and had nine lives. Only you could survive the way you have. It must be pretty quiet for you these days or are you up to something and not telling us the latest ?