Pond Street shops

[St Petre 85]

Pond Street, 1975.

 

1. Does anybuddy remember seeing the sightless blind bloke, selling newspapers outside the ‘thrupenny bit’ shop, at Ponds Street bus station? He was stood in full-length, tightly belted greeny-grey gabardine cooat. He usually faced towards the distant Odeon picture palace, with the ‘You Are Here’ button-press thingumabob thing atween him and the Flicks. I often saw this man on Saturday evenings, with copies of the star tucked under one arm, with Green ‘Uns tucked under the other arm. His hands were as black as night, due to the handling of his papers, and also from the metal money he received from his customers. I felt sorry for him.

 

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2. Brook Newsagents. Harold Brook, Sheffield born (thought I’d get that in first) had a few newsagent shops. I think I’ve been in the one on Howard Street, on the left going upwards, just below the Davy’s shop that made tasty tongue sandwiches… spot on with a spot of mustard.

 

Another Brook’s paper shop was in a row of shops on Ridgeway Rooad, bang opposite Hollinsend park. Before playing football (jumpers for posts) on Sunday afternoons, we used to go into Brooks’s shop to buy, spice pop and consumption tubes. I always did enjoy playing football with a lit cig dangling from mi gob. Bobby Charlton, Billy Bremner, Alan Birchenall, Eddie McCreadie and Bryan Conlon smoked, I’ve seen ‘em do it.

 

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Harold Brook had earlier been a football player, playing for Sheffield United. He scored a goal in the original 7-3 Bouncing Day Massacre, against Sheffield wednesday in ‘1951-52’ season. The Blades missed a penalty in that game. In the return game at Hillsborough United won 3-1. Despite conceding 10 goals to United that season wednesday were promoted back to the top division…Derek Dooley scoring a boat-load of goals. United were promoted as champions the following season, with Harold Brook as skipper, and as captain.

 

During Harold’s second spell at Bramall Lane he had a Sports goods shop on London Road. This was a joint venture with Jimmy Hagan.

 

Despite rumours to the contrary, Harold Brook and Joe Shaw didn’t become business partners in a car-dealership called Brook-Shaw, in Union Street nor in Gibraltar Street.

 

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Harold Brook, during his career, had played for;

 

Sheffield United

 

Manchester United

 

Queens Park Rangers

 

Sheffield United – again

 

Leeds United – he helped Leeds to promotion in 1956

 

Lincoln.

 

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After his retirement from football Brook was a captain and president of Dore & Totley golf club

 

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Thanks for the memories Brooky, although I never got to see you play…mi Dad should have pushed harder, and more often.

 

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I stand to be corrected on any of the above, apart from the last sentence. LOL.

 

Re smoking footballers Mr.Z, you missed out Jimmy Greaves.

[jackanne 10]

I delivered to supermarket 1970-1975 and it was presto then.

[St Petre 85]

i used to work at the round kiosk in pond st .menzies newsagents then at showboat bingo just below fiesta nite club

 

I don't know how to transfer it to here but the kiosk is at Picture Sheffield s44525.

[iansheff 86]

I delivered to supermarket 1970-1975 and it was presto then.

 

Don't know then, but on the thread I linked, two people worked there one in 68 and one in 72 both saying they worked at Thrifty.

[zakes 68]

Pond Street shops.

 

1. The thrupenny newsagent shop.  1 2 3

2. I remember a cafe. . . on the top platform A & B. I think. The cafe opened at 5 or 6 in the mornings. The cafe only sold tea and tooast. It seemed the clientele were bus drivers, conductors, inspectors. . . and me at times. lol. I wonder if Mr. C. T Humpidge ever went in theere. lol.

3. Anybody remember The Lyceum Hotel (Tennants/Whitbread) on Pond Hill? It was lower down, but on the same side as The Penny Black which hadn't been built by then. Also on that side of the road(hill)was the Corporation building where people used to pay their rent and rates.    1 Pic

4. There was a mention of a blind bloke who sold packets of lavender and matches at Cambridge Arcade on Pinstone St. /Union St. Here is a pic of him outside the Pinstone St. end of the arcade. I have a better photo somewhere in my extensive collection of Sheffield history stuff. I'll dig it out sometime.    1 Pic

5. St Petre.
Thank-you for reminding me of Jimmy Greaves. I just named a few footballers off the top of mi heead. I could name a boatload of footballers I've seen smoking during my illustrious career of autograph collecting. . 1968-74. I do have a thread about collecting autographs of footballers and cricketers. I have neglected the thread, but may return to it in the near future. You can always remind me. lol. Just for you. . .

Jimmy Greaves.

Every time I came across Jimmy Greaves He was with the Tottenham team on their travels to and from away matches. I've never been to White Hart Lane. . . perhaps because its not the REAL lane. The REAL lane is in Sheffield 2.

 

I've come across Greaves at the Grosvenor Hotel, and later at The Hallam Tower Hotel when Spurs have played in Sheffield. On those occasions, I and a handful of other autograph would be waiting on platform 1 at Midland Station on Friday evening, for the Spurs team to arrive on the Master Cutler train that usually arrived just after 19:00. After the players had boarded their coach, we'd dash in an attempt to get to the hotel before the coach arrived. We had loads of pictures for the players to sign. Dashing to the Grosvenor via Howard Street was easy-peasy. Believe it or not, dashing to the Hallam Tower was often easy too. The thing is, when the players had boarded the coach, there was still the kit man and usually the twelfth man having to collect the 'hamper basket'with the player's kit from the train, then to wheel it along the platform, then to the coach. these few minutes is all we needed to cross the road from the station to board the Nr60 bus up to the hotel.

 

We'd get a few more signatures outside the Hallam Tower Hotel. Saturday morning we'd be back at the hotel well in time for the players to take their after breakfast walk, usually to the shops at Broomhill. We'd then wait for them coming back to the hotel. Our next chance to get signatures was when the players came out of the hotel to go to the match. Our last chance was to get the signatures was when the team came to the station to travel back home. Platform 6 at 18:00.

 

If more autographs were needed, I'd bunk it (not pay for ticket) and travel as far as Chesterfield with the team. Ditto with Arsenal, Chelsea, WHU and others. All good autograph collectors always had the annuals, Topical Times (Tops) and Charles Buchan Gift Book. Our pictures in folders were cut out of Goal, Shoot, Jimmy Hill's Football Weekly, Tiger and Jag, Football League Review etc. Anyway,  during those times I witnessed Jimmy Greaves, Phil Beal, and Cyril Knowles smoking. Knowles was a heavy smoker. . . Rothman's King-size.

 

We had to travel about to get signatures because a team may play in Sheffield, and as (bad)luck may have it, the following week more photos of that team may appear in the magazines.

 

I recall one occasion trying to get Spurs signatures, it was on Doncaster station. It was a friday evening and Spurs were playing next day at Leeds. Anyway, The Yorkshire Pullman arrived. We couldn't get on the train because Pullman staff manned the doors. The windows that opened were too small, so we couldn't pass our annuals and folders through those windows. . and that's even if the players wanted to sign. The Pullman, for whatever reason, always stood in Doncaster for about 20 minutes. Anyway,  on this occasion Greaves got off the train and signed our stuff for us. He had a fag dangling from his gob. We two were well surprised by this, because Greaves was usually reluctant to sign his autograph. The following day we were at Wakefield Westgate station waiting for the Spurs team going back to London from Leeds. We travelled with them as far as Doncaster.

 

We were genned-up regarding ticket inspectors and ticket collectors at ticket barriers at stations. We got the gen from other autograph collectors who had been at it years before us. When I first started to collect I was avid to learn everything. Each time I learned something new. I never bought a train ticket, and to get off stations we had a big wad of platform tickets.

 

We were always busy fridays and saturdays. Some weeks I'd go boozing in town on those evenings, but would collect my autographs mornings, afternoons and early evening. I could work around it.

We also did the Eastern Line between Retford, Doncaster, York regular.
Leeds to Doncaster via Wakefield
Sheffield, Chesterfield, Nottingham, Derby, Leicester
Mancunia
On rare occasions, Liverpool and Birmingham.

 

My record for getting teams signing in one day, is 7. It happened during 1969:

Notts Forest
Leicester
Millwall
Derby County
WBA
Orient
Newcastle Utd(I met Lord Westwood that evening)

 

 

Phew, I'm gagging forra smoke. The same brand as Ontonian. . . Parkie's plain. lol.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, some ciggy smokers:

George Eastham
Gordon Bolland

pipe smokers:
Jimmy Armfield
John Ritchie

Cigar smokers
Jack Charlton
Jim Scott.

 

 

 

[St Petre 85]

Thanks Zakes. Interesting about the Spurs team getting the 6pm train back to London as the games usually finished 4:45.  After a shower etc and the coach ride to the station didn't leave much time to visit the player's lounge for a bevvy, even at the Lane. Hillsbrough being even further.

[Chap BLADE 10]

My first job when I left school in 74 was as a trainee manager at the Threpenny bit papershop ,it belonged to Menzies at that time ,they also had another shop on one of the platforms and the stores and offices were in the factory buildings behind SUT place 

 

I left over a  row with the manager who wouldnt let me swap a shift even though at 16 i`d worked him double shifts to help out and the lad i wanted to swap with was ok with it .After i phoned him and told him I was done he was ringing my mam asking her to talk me into going back but the deed was done and i had a new apprenticeship  in the bag two days later 

[zakes 68]

Pond Street shops.

 

St. Petre    post 55.

 

Lol, Yep, the teams always arrived at Midland station in time to catch the 18:00 train back to London from platform 6. The London clubs plus Southampton, Brighton and Portsmouth caught the 18:00 train after playing in Sheffield on a Saturday. The teams usually arrived at about quart' to six. Some players bought the Green ‘Un that was usually out at that time. The only times I can remember when teams got the train with only a few minutes to spare were.. Luton and Southampton.

 

Luton had lost 2-1 at Bramall Lane in 1971, and Malcolm McDonald was being a mardy bum at the station. Eric Morcambe was somewhat deflated, but did sign autographs. There was a photo of him in one of the football annuals in an article about him being chairman at Luton Town.

As for Southampton, they came to the station having played at sheffield wednesday in 1968-69 season. There were traffic jams in Sheffield that tea-time due to the weather conditions. I remember at the match, snowflakes were falling the size of 5 Bob pieces. I think the match ended 1-1.

Believe it or not, teams like Gillingham and Brentford caught the 18:00 train in Sheffield, after playing away at Rotherham. I remember the Gillingham chairman, Sir Basil Haywood signing a photo of himself for me. It was an article about him in the Football League Review, a freebie magazine in football programmes.

 

Welsh teams usually got their train home from platform 8.

 

For more football snippets please refer to one of my threads. . . Collecting Autographs.  

 

[TinStar 0]

I remember the best chippy on there. On' t ramp haha. Going to get the bus as a kid with my mum. She would buy me a bag of chips to have open and a can pf pop. Sometimes if the bus driver was feeling in a good mood he'd let you on the bus with your chips. 

 

I also remember the Minerva cafe which my nan liked to go in. My mum hated it though. It was a proper greasy spoon. 

 

I remember Scoop shop they sold dried foods and sweets etc. The girl who baby-sat for my sister and I worked there. We also went in Scoop to buy sweets and stuff when we caught the bus to my grandmas house. This was the mid to late eighties and the nineties though. Not as far back as 1975. 

 

The Supermarket at the end of the Ramp Presto we'd always go in there on the way home for anything that mum needed haha. 

 

I always wondered what was beyond where the supermarket was as we never ventured that far. 

 

The Top Rank bingo hall has always been there as well. Is that now Mecca? I can't remember? 

 

The GPO that was on Pond Street I don't know if it still is today. 

 

Was there a Salvation Army building on there at one time as well? 

 

The Do it All wallpaper shop that was on there as well. 

 

Is that whole area a multi story car park now? 

 

Thanks for the memories and nostalgia everyone 

 

Tin Star.   

 

 

 

 

[Chris nad 0]

On 13/11/2017 at 19:57, Geo-atkinson said:

 

Supermarket was Presto

It was called Thrifty when I was provisions manager there !