Peoples Stories - Bevendean History Project
Brian Donaldson Bevendean & the Self-Build Bungalows
Working as a newspaper delivery boy for Mr Topping
Mr Topping was brilliant I had been a newspaper boy since I was about 9, we weren't allowed at that age, but we used to hide from the men who looked for us. I did a morning, evening and a Sunday round. We used to take stuff round; we used to sell sweets and fags (cigarettes). We used to collect the money sometimes. You imagine today you would be frightened to walk down the road with a shilling in your pocket. There we were, boys with pockets full of money that we had collected. Yes, Mr Topping was a straightforward man he let us get on with it and everything worked very well.
Mr Toppings Shop
If we stand and face the shops at the top of the Avenue and start from the right, the one that is there now the plumbing man Bird Heating that shop is almost the same as it was in the war, it was a fish and chip shop then but it wasn't open during the war. It re-opened after the war as a fish and chip shop. The shop itself is virtually the same.
Then you come to the next one which was a proper shop, it was a bakery although they didn't bake there, they sold bread and cakes.
Then you had a bit on the corner where the grocery man is now, the first one was a double one, very small and Mr Rodbarb who lived in The Avenue mended boots and shoes and the man in the other one used to mend furniture, I never knew him but that is what he did.
The first one round the corner which was a proper shop was the hardware shop, they sold everything and they were very, very good. Then there was Mr Topping, the same full-sized shop. These shops had the doorway set back from the front line of the building.
Next door to Mr Topping was the grocer, which was different because the front was flat, for some reason or other it was a straight front with 2 flat windows and a door. Then you've got the next one which was not open for a while, it was a wine and spirits shop, an off licence, which opened soon after the war and that stayed open until life changed and all these tins came into the supermarkets. Then you had the greengrocers on the corner I think that was someone called Winfield. Then there was another one that was a proper shop that was a haberdashery with wool and fabric.
The one at the end which was a shop was shut during the war, it was a hairdresser's, it opened up again soon after the war in the fifties. It was opened up by the wife of Arthur White the TV man who did a lot of acting with his brother and a lot of advertising on TV; they ran that shop for quite some time.
Next to it used to be garages, that bit has had flats built on it. The other end was the same with 2 garages. So Mr Topping shop was in the front and slightly to the right of centre.
We did not use the shops higher up in the estate. After we had completed the self-build scheme in Heath Hill Avenue the grocers which was up there was like your modern shop where you went round and loaded your basket. We used to go there every Friday and get our shopping, and that went on for a number of years until eventually they closed. Otherwise all you wanted was in the parade of shops at top of The Avenue.
Shops at the bottom of The Avenue
The Butcher which is where the chemist is now was run by a fellow who lived in the self-build scheme. It was his dad shop in the beginning, and he joined his father, it had been a butchers shop for years and years. It was a very good butcher, a family butchers and we used it a lot. There was also a sweet shop come paper shop, a grocer and another little greengrocer.
Local Facilities in Bevendean
There was a community thing run by man called Smart who lived in the Avenue. That had little pool tables and they organised camping days and that type of thing that was pretty good. That was on the grass where the school field is now it was suitable for anyone up to about the age of 18. It was like a youth club. Then of course there were a couple of football teams organised by local people, Bevendean Badgers was one which in those days were very full.
Bevendean Church
I was never really a churchgoer, the only time we used the church was for my son, the first boy christened in there. We used to go to the Christingles regularly and anything important we would go to but other than that we didn't actually go to church.
I am talking about the church in Norwich Drive. It was the church which stands there now because that church was virtually a self-build church built by the local people. I think a lot of it was built by the local people I know a lot of bricklayers who worked up there at weekends. Yes I think a lot of that was done by the local people.
Doctors on the estate
In the early days our Doctor was right at the bottom of The Avenue, it was the one on the uphill side, and it is still there now. That was the first doctor I had until I was in my early twenties. Then because my wife went to the other one I ended up going there as well. It eventually moved to Stanford Avenue and is now over at Preston road, and we are still with them.
Community events on the estate
We used to have bonfires on the Farm Green every bonfire night until somebody put the mockers on that and stopped doing it. And of course in those days although I never joined the scouts, the scouts were pretty strong and they used to have a lot of events up there, Saturday events and things like that, it was good fun in the Scout hut. You know John Amerena who comes round to give you bits and pieces from the Moulsecoomb club, he and his wife ran that for quite a while and they used to organise a lot of those events.
The local pub, The White Admiral, used to open a bar up there (at the Scout hut) and it was very comfortable.
The White Admiral Public House
I remember the White Admiral a lot during the self-build scheme, Saturday dinner times and Sunday dinner time is when we had a break and we all went up to The White Admiral and played darts. We used it quite a lot in the evenings it was nice to go there and it was very sad when it disappeared. Yes we used to use the White Admiral a lot in those days.
I did not really participate in any organisations or clubs. From a very young age my son played football, he was quite good, and I got involved with the football club that was called the North Rangers. We used to have a lot of meetings and I used to run the team everywhere in those days to matches. That was the only thing I got seriously involved in being on the committee. The only other thing we were involved in was when someone else had organised events and we went out for the day or evening.
Hobbies
Motorbikes and cars were my hobbies. That is where most of my time went, messing around with cars and bikes.
Work as a Carpenter
I did my apprenticeship for five and a half years and I passed that well, I got a prize for being the best apprentice on the South Coast. Then I went straight into the Air Force and did my National Service. I came out from there and then got onto the self-build scheme. Before I started working for myself I worked for 7 years on the Brighton Marina. I have run a couple of businesses, but basically I was trained as a carpenter and joiner. But if you've got anything in here (up top) you branch out into all manner of things in the building trade.
Work on the Brighton Marina
I got talked into working on the marina, no one wanted to work there but I got asked to go and see the project manager and I went to do my mate a favour and I was talked into starting. I started as a Carpenter Foreman for 3 or 4 months and then they made me a section Foreman. In the early days I worked on the retaining wall on what was known as tunnel one. Then I was down the bottom a lot of the time and did one of the run-ins that the cars go down. I also did the yachtsman's toilets and I did culverts and all manner of things when I was down there.
I was supervising shuttering, drainage and all manner of things, in the early days. When they started construction there was obviously a lot of work to do forming the place, but it isn't anything like that now. Most of the stuff that we did has gone from sight and been covered over.
Travelling in and out of the estate
In the early days I had a motorbike and then I had a motorbike and sidecar. When my daughter was born in 1961 or 1962, I bought my first car and have always had a car up until now when I no longer have one. I always had a car or a van one or both.
We didn't use the buses in those days, only when we were going somewhere when we did not want to use the car, otherwise we went everywhere in the car.
The Local Farms
All I can tell you about that is watching and playing up there, where there were cows and sheep. I knew the lady from the farm though not seriously. She was the only one who had a car and she used to drive up here in a Vauxhall car because the gate was near the end of Upper Bevendean Avenue. I used to come up here to deliver the papers, there was a row of cottages over there, where farm green is now. There were 5 or 6 I can't remember now but they were occupied, some still by the farm workers but even in those days there were not so many staff and 2 or 3 people actually worked at places like Alan West. I used to deliver over there to the cottages which were on the farm over the road from where we are now, the far side of Auckland Drive. The woman I'm talking about was probably Mrs Allcorn but I never did know her name. All I can say is that she was always dressed like a farmer with her hair in plaits down the back; she always wore a checked jacket and horse riding trousers.
I can remember the farm buildings, the cottages and the barn right over there which became a church, but in those days when you were young you never studied them, they were just there. You just went in and out and did what you had to do and then cluttered off.
I didn't know any one of our age who lived on the farm, not one.
Mr Topping was brilliant I had been a newspaper boy since I was about 9, we weren't allowed at that age, but we used to hide from the men who looked for us. I did a morning, evening and a Sunday round. We used to take stuff round; we used to sell sweets and fags (cigarettes). We used to collect the money sometimes. You imagine today you would be frightened to walk down the road with a shilling in your pocket. There we were, boys with pockets full of money that we had collected. Yes, Mr Topping was a straightforward man he let us get on with it and everything worked very well.
Mr Toppings Shop
If we stand and face the shops at the top of the Avenue and start from the right, the one that is there now the plumbing man Bird Heating that shop is almost the same as it was in the war, it was a fish and chip shop then but it wasn't open during the war. It re-opened after the war as a fish and chip shop. The shop itself is virtually the same.
Then you come to the next one which was a proper shop, it was a bakery although they didn't bake there, they sold bread and cakes.
Then you had a bit on the corner where the grocery man is now, the first one was a double one, very small and Mr Rodbarb who lived in The Avenue mended boots and shoes and the man in the other one used to mend furniture, I never knew him but that is what he did.
The first one round the corner which was a proper shop was the hardware shop, they sold everything and they were very, very good. Then there was Mr Topping, the same full-sized shop. These shops had the doorway set back from the front line of the building.
Next door to Mr Topping was the grocer, which was different because the front was flat, for some reason or other it was a straight front with 2 flat windows and a door. Then you've got the next one which was not open for a while, it was a wine and spirits shop, an off licence, which opened soon after the war and that stayed open until life changed and all these tins came into the supermarkets. Then you had the greengrocers on the corner I think that was someone called Winfield. Then there was another one that was a proper shop that was a haberdashery with wool and fabric.
The one at the end which was a shop was shut during the war, it was a hairdresser's, it opened up again soon after the war in the fifties. It was opened up by the wife of Arthur White the TV man who did a lot of acting with his brother and a lot of advertising on TV; they ran that shop for quite some time.
Next to it used to be garages, that bit has had flats built on it. The other end was the same with 2 garages. So Mr Topping shop was in the front and slightly to the right of centre.
We did not use the shops higher up in the estate. After we had completed the self-build scheme in Heath Hill Avenue the grocers which was up there was like your modern shop where you went round and loaded your basket. We used to go there every Friday and get our shopping, and that went on for a number of years until eventually they closed. Otherwise all you wanted was in the parade of shops at top of The Avenue.
Shops at the bottom of The Avenue
The Butcher which is where the chemist is now was run by a fellow who lived in the self-build scheme. It was his dad shop in the beginning, and he joined his father, it had been a butchers shop for years and years. It was a very good butcher, a family butchers and we used it a lot. There was also a sweet shop come paper shop, a grocer and another little greengrocer.
Local Facilities in Bevendean
There was a community thing run by man called Smart who lived in the Avenue. That had little pool tables and they organised camping days and that type of thing that was pretty good. That was on the grass where the school field is now it was suitable for anyone up to about the age of 18. It was like a youth club. Then of course there were a couple of football teams organised by local people, Bevendean Badgers was one which in those days were very full.
Bevendean Church
I was never really a churchgoer, the only time we used the church was for my son, the first boy christened in there. We used to go to the Christingles regularly and anything important we would go to but other than that we didn't actually go to church.
I am talking about the church in Norwich Drive. It was the church which stands there now because that church was virtually a self-build church built by the local people. I think a lot of it was built by the local people I know a lot of bricklayers who worked up there at weekends. Yes I think a lot of that was done by the local people.
Doctors on the estate
In the early days our Doctor was right at the bottom of The Avenue, it was the one on the uphill side, and it is still there now. That was the first doctor I had until I was in my early twenties. Then because my wife went to the other one I ended up going there as well. It eventually moved to Stanford Avenue and is now over at Preston road, and we are still with them.
Community events on the estate
We used to have bonfires on the Farm Green every bonfire night until somebody put the mockers on that and stopped doing it. And of course in those days although I never joined the scouts, the scouts were pretty strong and they used to have a lot of events up there, Saturday events and things like that, it was good fun in the Scout hut. You know John Amerena who comes round to give you bits and pieces from the Moulsecoomb club, he and his wife ran that for quite a while and they used to organise a lot of those events.
The local pub, The White Admiral, used to open a bar up there (at the Scout hut) and it was very comfortable.
The White Admiral Public House
I remember the White Admiral a lot during the self-build scheme, Saturday dinner times and Sunday dinner time is when we had a break and we all went up to The White Admiral and played darts. We used it quite a lot in the evenings it was nice to go there and it was very sad when it disappeared. Yes we used to use the White Admiral a lot in those days.
I did not really participate in any organisations or clubs. From a very young age my son played football, he was quite good, and I got involved with the football club that was called the North Rangers. We used to have a lot of meetings and I used to run the team everywhere in those days to matches. That was the only thing I got seriously involved in being on the committee. The only other thing we were involved in was when someone else had organised events and we went out for the day or evening.
Hobbies
Motorbikes and cars were my hobbies. That is where most of my time went, messing around with cars and bikes.
Work as a Carpenter
I did my apprenticeship for five and a half years and I passed that well, I got a prize for being the best apprentice on the South Coast. Then I went straight into the Air Force and did my National Service. I came out from there and then got onto the self-build scheme. Before I started working for myself I worked for 7 years on the Brighton Marina. I have run a couple of businesses, but basically I was trained as a carpenter and joiner. But if you've got anything in here (up top) you branch out into all manner of things in the building trade.
Work on the Brighton Marina
I got talked into working on the marina, no one wanted to work there but I got asked to go and see the project manager and I went to do my mate a favour and I was talked into starting. I started as a Carpenter Foreman for 3 or 4 months and then they made me a section Foreman. In the early days I worked on the retaining wall on what was known as tunnel one. Then I was down the bottom a lot of the time and did one of the run-ins that the cars go down. I also did the yachtsman's toilets and I did culverts and all manner of things when I was down there.
I was supervising shuttering, drainage and all manner of things, in the early days. When they started construction there was obviously a lot of work to do forming the place, but it isn't anything like that now. Most of the stuff that we did has gone from sight and been covered over.
Travelling in and out of the estate
In the early days I had a motorbike and then I had a motorbike and sidecar. When my daughter was born in 1961 or 1962, I bought my first car and have always had a car up until now when I no longer have one. I always had a car or a van one or both.
We didn't use the buses in those days, only when we were going somewhere when we did not want to use the car, otherwise we went everywhere in the car.
The Local Farms
All I can tell you about that is watching and playing up there, where there were cows and sheep. I knew the lady from the farm though not seriously. She was the only one who had a car and she used to drive up here in a Vauxhall car because the gate was near the end of Upper Bevendean Avenue. I used to come up here to deliver the papers, there was a row of cottages over there, where farm green is now. There were 5 or 6 I can't remember now but they were occupied, some still by the farm workers but even in those days there were not so many staff and 2 or 3 people actually worked at places like Alan West. I used to deliver over there to the cottages which were on the farm over the road from where we are now, the far side of Auckland Drive. The woman I'm talking about was probably Mrs Allcorn but I never did know her name. All I can say is that she was always dressed like a farmer with her hair in plaits down the back; she always wore a checked jacket and horse riding trousers.
I can remember the farm buildings, the cottages and the barn right over there which became a church, but in those days when you were young you never studied them, they were just there. You just went in and out and did what you had to do and then cluttered off.
I didn't know any one of our age who lived on the farm, not one.
31 July 2017
continued
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