Street "Entertainment"

During our school lunch hour, I often used to come into town 1947/51 to run various errands for my Mother etc. Does anybody remember the extemporary "entertainment" provided on a piece of bombed waste land at the start of Corporation St (Hales St end), behind the pub on the corner and behind the prefab that housed Elizabeth the Chef and her fantastic cakes (before she moved up town). Big crowds used to gather during these lunch breaks to watch an escapologist, escape from a greasy tarpaulin bag, wrapped in chains, I think padlocked at the ends, for the interested, very dirty, bronzed and naked to waist he-men - I think somebody passed the hat round, anyway I don`t think I ever saw them get moved on. One other free demo that used to fascinate me was in the West Orchard open market, where a chap on one stall used to have a board covered in "scumble" paint on which he used to push up and down a rubber toll, which formed the sort of lines you used to get on varnished woodwork.

It's before my time but this picture of the area was taken in 1949:

Cor! that`s it to a "T" Now if you can show a picture, just to the left a bit to show the junction and all the pub (forgotten the name - never in it) and then reverse the picture, on the right day you should see the crowd collected there. Also can`t quite read the sign on the prefab shop - was it Elizabeth the Chef then? - no queue!

The pub was officially known as the "Wine Lodge" when the picture was taken but has had several names since.