Aylesbury, England

[Sundae]

Cow in the open and hiding cow.

[Sundae]

Thame is in full bloom.
Mum wanted a photo of hanging baskets. Not sure why.
But I indulged her.

[Sundae]

Window-lusting.
Bread & cakies.

[Sundae]

Meringues and sparklers.

[Sundae]

I know that children often get useless presents to mark "special" occasions. Which usually don't occur until well after said present has disappeared. But this little tooth holder snagged my imagination.

I do not expect to acquire it in any form other than a photo, because it looks like I won't even have the excuse that the twins are being baptised.

[Sundae]

Last time we came to Thame, we ate at Cafe Bobo.
We didn't this time - didn't eat out at all, but here are the menu boards outside.

[Sundae]

Mum and I were accosted merrily by a "charity" worker on the High Street on the numerous times we walked up and down.
Now I rarely give on the street unless I can identify the charity. Far too many people take your money for "good causes" when in fact the majority of money simply funds bonuses for people collecting money.

But he was so jolly and complimentary that I thought it was worth a handful of coins to get some photos.

[Sundae]

And finally...

Back in Aylesbury I pose with Norman Stanley Fletcher.
Well, a statue of Ronnie Barker.
He's looking up at the Aylesbury Waterside Theatre, as he had his acting debut in this town.

Excuse the background; they are building the supermarket I start work in on 8 August!

[Chocolatl]

Those meringues look to die for.

What does the term "free house" mean?

[Sundae]

Most pubs in England (can't speak for the rest of the UK) are affiliated to a brewery.
This means they stock the brewery's chain of beers. Even the chain pubs will often have a "Guest Ale" these days, but that's quite recent.

A Freehouse is where the pub is owned outright by the Landlord, even if he does not manage his own pub. The menu will be set by the pub if they serve food, they can choose when to serve food and when to stop. And they can source their drinks purchases from wherever suits them (although many will buy in "packages" - like you get on satellite TV but instead of sports-drama-free telephone calls it's Fosters-Tetley-Schweppes)

I'd always rather go to a freehouse if it's managed well.
But some chains have set their stalls out as cheap and consistent. The McDonalds of the pub world, but with better decor.

[BigV]

that sounds like my local brewpub setup. I think you can usually get other beers besides the house brew when you go though.

[Carruthers]

I think that you'll probably remember the Maggi Soups factory at the bottom of the High Street, Sundae, but when I was a kid it was known as Nestles. That might be before your time. God I feel old!
Prior to its Nestles incarnation, it was known as the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company and my grandmother, who died some years ago, always referred to it as 'the milk factory'.

Anyway, here it is showing suppliers arriving with churns of milk. I think it must have been prior to WW1 when the picture was taken, but I wouldn't want to say that for sure.

I've added a screen grab from Street View, of the site as it now stands, and sections of the original perimeter wall are still quite evident.

Google Street View - Aylesbury.

[Bloke]

Not seen this thread before!
I used to live in Tetsworth (a small village about ten minutes from Thame) and my best mate's wife used to work in the Spread Eagle. Now I live in a village just outside High Wycombe. Great seeing all these pics!

[Sundae]

Hey, Carr, thanks for the photo.
It was always Nestles to us (not Nest-lay!) and a friend's Mum worked there. In fact one of her colleagues was the advocate of walloping children with a spoon, mentioned in another thread. When my friend's sister made a hash of mashing the potatoes, so there were still lumps in them, said friend told her Mum the next day that she should have dumped the hot pan, contents and all, on her daughter's head. Ah, the eighties...

Dads worked at Hazell, Watson & Viney, and his warehouse was pretty much opposite there, although set too far back to see it.
Mum and I have speculated since that Dad's extraordinary fondness for Tesco is that it allows him to follow what was his old route to work. Illness is making his visits less frequent now, and moving to the town centre might stop them altogether. Which is sad, really because he obviously enjoyed them.

There was something like a visitors' day at Hazells when I was about 12.
Of all of us, I was the one closest to my Dad and the one who really wanted to see where he worked.
But it was in the Summer, and I'd been out in the sun too long the day before and had sunstroke. They all trooped off merrily, leaving me with a sick-bucket, a glass of water and closed curtains. I would have cried but it would have hurt too much.

And hey, Bloke.
Maybe one day we should have a Bucks GTG!
I know Tetsworth. I had driving lessons when I lived and worked in Thame, so I drove around the countryside endlessly.

[Carruthers]

Thanks for your response, Sundae.

My dad's uncle, long since departed this mortal veil of tears, also worked at HWV. He lived opposite Nestles and never walked more than a hundred yards or so to work all his life.

All the big employers like HWV, International Alloys and the Rivet Works, have gone haven't they?

Must dash, lunch is on the go. Will post another pic this afternoon.

Carruthers