The year 1959 got off to a great start when I found myself along with my three-year-old brother and one-year-old sister sequestered in a children’s home in Kent. I turned seven whilst there and in general we were looked after quite well. Having said that the image above shows a copy of “The Vikings” comic my dad sent me in the post that one of the carers ripped apart in front of me in disgust. Considering what usually happens in some children’s homes I’d say I got off pretty lightly.
The home was just a few stops down the railway line from where my Gran lived. She was in total ignorance of the fact we were nearby but the rather grainy photo shown above from a local newspaper taken in April of that year gave the game away and before we knew it we were on our way to bonny Scotland to be reunited with our parents. Looking at the photograph more closely I think we had a pretty lucky escape. That huge Easter egg in the middle looks more and more like it’s housing a face-hugger from “Alien” every time I look at it.
We ended up living in South Queensferry just a few miles outside of Edinburgh on the Firth of Forth. I took a trip back to the town a few years ago and the school I went to is still there although the cinema I used to frequent has now been converted into flats.
Here follows a few of the films I saw during my stay in South Queensferry including “Rio Bravo” which on occasion vies with “The Searchers” as my all-time favourite Western.
We finally caught up with the rest of the world and got our very first television set whilst living in Scotland. The most memorable program at the time was an early Gerry Anderson puppet show called “Torchy the Battery Boy”. As you can surmise from the images below it was the stuff of nightmares, especially for a severely disturbed young Sassenach like me. Also, the program was so badly produced it made Anderson’s next effort, “Four Feather Falls”, look like “Citizen Kane” in comparison.
This is my final “Maynards” blog for 2020. Normal service will be renewed in early January, although after the events of this year I’m not sure what constitutes normal anymore.
Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year!
Steve Mayhew 