South Shields Sanddancers Forum

photo of an old token from allens store at laygate
http://www.southshields-sanddancers.co. ... e_coin.htm

Remember them well, I don't think I would have had a school uniform without my mother's stash of Allen's "funny money"!

Got my first dining suite from there 1980 something.

School clothes we were all Provi cheques in our house.

That was until me muther worked out how much she was paying back.

Clothes shops...Fowler Street 70's, something BOUTIQUE and that shop that sold all the indian style joss sticks, clothes, chimes and stuff.

I got a few pair of loons from there. Green denim/canvas with indian style embroidary up to the knees

White and purple tie and dye grandad vests. Wrangler Jeans ( pink thin cordaroy)

Topped off with calf length zip up boots from Riddicks.

Went to school in mocassins once.

What a sight

Axeman. Was the shop called "Beau Brummels"? I didnt use the place, but it was put out of buisines due to staff giving mates "special" discounts. Those who didnt get the special discount, just nicked the stuff.

Yeah that was it Jim.

I remembered this morning, but you beat me to it.

Beau Brummels, I think it was further up Fowler Street at one time, closed, then opened again on the corner.

Run by two guys if I remember rightly.

I think the next corner up was the Indian/hippy type shop. Don't suppose you can remember the name of that.

Bought an Afghan coat from there as well.

Well named, coz when it rained and got wet, I used to smell like a dog.

They was another small shop across the road from Beaus as well. further down next door to Hintons ( where I used to work ) was it Watsons or something like that.

I remember I got a cool Wrangler jacket from there.

Axeman wrote: further down next door to Hintons ( where I used to work ) was it Watsons or something like that.

I remember I got a cool Wrangler jacket from there.

Was it called Chris B. Watsons?

Yeah thats it

Chris B Watsons

We used to get deliveries to Hintons behind The Ablemarle.

Remember one day guy from Chris B Watson sneaking out of their back door looking to get a 'free sample' out all the delivery stuff lined up in back yard.

Cheeky Monkey

Hintons ah those were the days.

I don't know if anyone can remember, but just round the corner from Fowler Street, going into Kepple St, there used to be a delivery hatch in the pavement.

It was a delivery chute into the cellar storeroom.

Used to get packs of beans etc sliding down that chute at god knows how many MPH.

Good rugby training.......... if I played it.

Packs of flour from Spillers. they used to catch on a portruding nail or something and burst open on the way down.

I used to come out of there looking like Marleys Ghost.

It was just one big laugh the time I spent there, especially with the girls round the back and all that.

Smallest store Hintons had, but it made more profit per square foot than any of it's other stores.

I'm not sure if it was one of Shields first self serve supermarkets or was that Hadrians Stores ?.

Marsden Road, now Gurnhams.

Firstly what a great site - wonder if this reply will be read tho'

I used to go around ALLENS with my mam and loved mooching around there, when it changed hands to Hedley Young it went right downhill imo

Axeman the boutique in Fowler Street was MONIQUE I think??
Always remember gawping in the window as a kid and not being able to afford anything in there! (still got a strong wiff of joss sticks though)

Babooshka wrote:Firstly what a great site - wonder if this reply will be read tho'

I used to go around ALLENS with my mam and loved mooching around there, when it changed hands to Hedley Young it went right downhill imo

Axeman the boutique in Fowler Street was MONIQUE I think??
Always remember gawping in the window as a kid and not being able to afford anything in there! (still got a strong wiff of joss sticks though)

Was Allens the shop where when you paid, the money was sent through a series of tubes to the cash office and your receipt came back the same way?

Pooter wrote:

Babooshka wrote:Firstly what a great site - wonder if this reply will be read tho'

I used to go around ALLENS with my mam and loved mooching around there, when it changed hands to Hedley Young it went right downhill imo

Axeman the boutique in Fowler Street was MONIQUE I think??
Always remember gawping in the window as a kid and not being able to afford anything in there! (still got a strong wiff of joss sticks though)

Was Allens the shop where when you paid, the money was sent through a series of tubes to the cash office and your receipt came back the same way?

I'm not sure but I think they used to do that in Woolworths down King Street??

They used to do it at Binns. I think they were called Lamson tubes. All of the big stores in Newcastle had them. I remember them when we used to go to Isaac Waltons for school uniforms.

I don't know if anybody remembers the Cash Clothing Company in King Street, they also used money tubes.
I used to buy my powder blue jeans there, they were all the rage in them days.
they were a better quality there than anywhere else.

Cisco

Can remember looking at an old picture of Laygate and Allens was once a theatre maybe that explains the quaint layout of the place.

They had the cash tubes in Binns I can remeber them. and going upstairs to the tea room with my Mam for tea and cakes and seeing my Headmistress from Westoe All girls school there. Don't have stores like that anymore shame

The subject of these cash tubes was covered in another post some time ago.
They had them in the Co-op Emporium, Westoe Road when I worked there in the early fifties. One or two other places had them also. There was also a similar type which were catapulted along wires in other smaller shops.
One of my jobs at the Co-op was to start up the machine each morning which powered the system. It was a very large and powerful machine, must have cost a bomb to run (electric powered).

as far as I remember the smell of joss sticks came from A JOINT which as well as being a place for hippy clothes sold OZ and International Times and of course got raided by the police!!!!! I always remember the Hippy Park near Wiggs and Minchellas where lads and lasses used to show off their hippy threads

Yeah that place in on the corner in Fowler Street was full of hippy stuff....got my Afghan coat there. And my joss sticks and cones.

Still not sure if it was called MONIQUES though like Babs suggested ????

Think it's Cash Converters or something now.

You should of seen my bedroom about that time.

Dark Blue carpet, Purple bed clothes, Purple Wallpaper and a Blue Light Bulb. Could hardly see a thing. I wonder if that's why my eyes are shot now.

Weird environment though when MEDDLE was playing by Pink Floyd.

I actually wore a bare patch in the carpet where I used to sit with my headphones on.

AHH those were the days.

Babooshka wrote:

Pooter wrote:

Babooshka wrote:Firstly what a great site - wonder if this reply will be read tho'

I used to go around ALLENS with my mam and loved mooching around there, when it changed hands to Hedley Young it went right downhill imo

Axeman the boutique in Fowler Street was MONIQUE I think??
Always remember gawping in the window as a kid and not being able to afford anything in there! (still got a strong wiff of joss sticks though)

Was Allens the shop where when you paid, the money was sent through a series of tubes to the cash office and your receipt came back the same way?

I'm not sure but I think they used to do that in Woolworths down King Street??

Yes, Allens did have that cash handling system - it fascinated me as a kid!