Historical Memories

Reflections on work, life and illness
‘If you turn out as good as your dad, you’ll be alright.
I hope I turned out as good as me dad’

Jim remembers performing ‘When the guardsmen are on parade’
dressed as a guardsman

Jim, a war baby, born in 1942.

One of his first memories was the family dog being killed by an army lorry. He remembers the church bells ringing to celebrate the end of World War 2. He had been coming home from Leicester on a horse and cart with his uncle Billy Wright from Barwell and they called in the Halfway House where Jim sat in the kitchen while his uncle had a pint. He started his school life at the ‘bottom school’ on Wood Street and at this time his mother was working at Nicholls and Wileman which was situated next to the school. He got into trouble for meeting up with his mother during playtime.

The family moved from Tower Road to Monty Street as it was known at the time and their house number changed three times - from 1a to 3 and finally 90. His mother and older sister both worked at Nicholls and Wileman and his father worked as a foreman finisher at Hodgkin and Power in Barwell.From the ‘top school’ he continued his education at Heathfield. He remembers on his first day at Heathfield everyone was being allocated their classes but Jim was left until last…he was known as Jim or James but had been registered Phillip Lord! Jim started his working life as a compositor at Ferry Pickering but found he had an allergy to the solvents being used and so began an apprenticeship as a bricklayer with J Pegg & Sons, a local builder. After completing his apprenticeship he went to work on the Channel Islands to work and from there he worked in various European countries before coming back to Earl Shilton. Unfortunately in his late 30s Jim was taken seriously ill. He did go back to work after this but could not do the physical work he had been used to and in the early 1990s a blood clot left him paralyzed and to date (time of interview) he passes his time doing computer graphics, family history and working as a volunteer at Age Concern UK.

After the death of his mother Jim and his dad continued to live together, his dad was a ‘born organizer’ - he was involved in sick and ‘divi’ clubs. People would pay so much into a sick club and if and when they were ill would be able to claim so-much a week. These schemes were often run from a local pub. Jim’s father was a member of the Earl Shilton Charitable Committee, there was also the Townland Allotments and the Alderman Newton Charity (Green coat charity) and a charity which supplied boots - these were obtained from Ollie Taylor whose shop was situated in the Hollow and the boots ‘were presented to you’. He also remembers the Forrester’s, the office ‘was up against Toon’s factory’. The Forrester’s organized two outings a year - the pantomime and a trip to Wickstead Park. Jim’s dad organised the Comic Football match at the Coronation in 1953 and if anyone was ill he would organise a raffle - ‘go and see little Billy Lord, he’ll sort you out’. Jim became a member of the Institute when he was 13 and at that time he was always known as Billy Lord’s lad.

There was a big age gap between Jim and his brother and sister - 14 years between him and Jean and 16 years between him and his brother. His mother died when he was 10 in 1953 and his sister was already married at this time. His dad died in 1968. As a youngster Jim played darts and dominoes and he was also a good crib player having gone to the pub with his dad from an early age. Joe Lucas, the landlord of the Plough allowed Jim into the pub as long as he sat in the corner out of the way. His father was only 5ft 1in and from a young age Jim was taller than him. His mother was 6ft 2in. That was my upbringing, ‘only me and my dad’. Billy Lord paid his son board and it was Jim who got him up in the morning for work. Jim did a paper round and they set out together each morning - Jim for Heathfield and his dad for work in Barwell. It was at this time that Jim started to ‘fill the hoppers in the stoke room’ at school and he was paid about 10s. As an apprentice bricklayer he earned 10 bob and at the end of his apprenticeship he was earning 30 bob. A friend of his working for the Coal Board was on 15 guineas a week and at this time Jim was on £6-£7. As a self-employed bricklayer, however, he could earn big money and at the time paid surtax.

Jim remembers as a young lad entertaining the troops billeted in Earl Shilton. He was part of a dance group, Dolly Hines being the pianist and remembers performing ‘When the Guards are on Parade’ dressed as a guardsman. He was a member of Monica Mason’s Sunbeams - ‘How the hell I became a Sunbeam?...’ He blamed it on his dad who was a committee member at the WMC club. He was never bullied. He remembers wearing green tights and Monica would hold up a big old coat and he was not allowed to ‘peek’ at the girls. From a young age he remembers reading poetry and singing songs. Monica Mason (at the time of interview) was still alive, her husband who had been a drummer, had just died (at time of interview). Jim never had a ‘proper’ pair of tap shoes - his dad would take a pair of lace up shoes to the factory and have ‘segs’ put on - one at the front and one on the heel and he was very proud of making ‘sparks’.

Jim never felt that he was a ‘child’. He was always surrounded by grown-ups. He shared a bed with his brother and his brother taught him to play cards. He doesn’t think his mother’s death ‘sank in’ - she had a bed in the front room and Jim had to knock the door to go in. At her funeral at Gilroes Cemetery he was intrigued by the coffin ‘going down’. She was cremated which was quite a rare thing at the time. For a long time after her death Jim still ‘expected her to be at home’.

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