Steevo:
By the river in front of the old cafe , also directly across the road in the old cattle market . Many a happy night spent there in the 80s , can’t remember the pub in town , grab a granny night was a cert .
Thanks Rigsby, any ideas what is there now so I can find it on Google maps? Apparently the cattle market used to be in Tolney Lane but I seem to remember being more in the town centre than that.
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Coming from the south up through town , hang a left for the A617 for Mansfield . 200 yards down the hill and it was on the right immediately before the river bridge . As I said before the old cattle market was directly opposite the lorry park . I did well to remember all that , it’s over 30 years ago . Dave
Coming from the south up through town , hang a left for the A617 for Mansfield . 200 yards down the hill and it was on the right immediately before the river bridge . As I said before the old cattle market was directly opposite the lorry park . I did well to remember all that , it’s over 30 years ago . Dave
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Will have a look and try to jog the old memory!
The lorry park in Edmonton was in Willoughby Lane, over the bridge and down the lane. There was a gatehouse that was manned by a man whose daughter often accompanied him logging the vehicles in. Opposite the gatehouse was the toilet/washroom in a portacabin type building. As well as the pub over the bridge there was also a good chippy that was run by a Greek or Turkish guy, sold great ribs ‘n’ chips! The Basildon company I worked for used to haul the cookers for Mains Gas next door and they had an arrangement to park their trailers in the lorry park. Used to take the cookers all over the country (often reloading in Mains Gas in Padiham) as well as also trucking electric cookers out of Belling in Enfield. Wouldn’t mind a pound for every night I spent in the lorry park ready for an early start! The Tesco store is where Mains Gas used to be, I haven’t been round that area for years but you say that Ikea stands where the truck park used to be.
Hey john.
I used to do the same job.I was subbing for jeakins out of basildon when i drove for snaylams of bolton.Happy days.
Oldham was a good night, used when i was on bullens .granellies cafe, public baths pubs and finish in Baileys. liked it so much i live nearish there now,Juniper berry was a bloddy good pub and always ate in the cats whisker cafe for me tea.The best ones are sadly all gone, glad i dont do it anymore.
I had some cracking night’s on Coalville. Charcon kerbs at Bardon Hill just up the street. Busman’s canteen or sit-down chippie. Big choice of pubs, and it would have been rude to limit oneself to just the off one, or two… or half dozen…
Never had any concrete nicked, but one lad came back from pub and had no cab interior lights… and no batteries either!
Bloomfield road Blackpool,as a drivers mate on furniture we would park in the bus depot then go to the Bloomfield club for a pint ,stopped in Kelso one night had shower then across to the hotel it turned out the landlord was from glyn neath so free meal and drink all night ,also used to park in immingham truck park across to the county hotel how many went in there cheers John
Steevo:
By the river in front of the old cafe , also directly across the road in the old cattle market . Many a happy night spent there in the 80s , can’t remember the pub in town , grab a granny night was a cert .
Thanks Rigsby, any ideas what is there now so I can find it on Google maps? Apparently the cattle market used to be in Tolney Lane but I seem to remember being more in the town centre than that.
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Went in the Cafe with my Dad in the early 60’s. Saw the lad with the bottle-tops on a cardboard card, agitating them with a lolly stick from below. Apparently he did it all day, moving from table to table. We were allowed to use the lorry park cos the load was kept cold with blocks of carb-ice so no fridge banging away. Blimey!! That’s going back - Mk3 Mandator and 4 in line trailer. Jim.
The centre of Aldgate roundabout ! We used to stop at a Greek run Kebab House great little digs plus there was a few decent boozers around IIRC The Red Lion and The Long Bar? and, of course we would walk down to Leman St. to visit “H”'s favourite haunt “The Brown Bear” !! Happy days Bewick.
Bewick:
The centre of Aldgate roundabout ! We used to stop at a Greek run Kebab House great little digs plus there was a few decent boozers around IIRC The Red Lion and The Long Bar? and, of course we would walk down to Leman St. to visit “H”'s favourite haunt “The Brown Bear” !! Happy days Bewick.
The Red Lion and The Long Bar,.I was ‘‘educated’’ there as a young 18 yr old lad travelling with mates for the week.
That lass who was the stripper smoked a ■■■ in a very unusual way I remember. …it was the late 70s when ‘‘growlers’’ were fashionable , it’s a miracle there wasn’t a fire.
When I started I used ‘‘The Ramp’’ park at Bethnall Green just up the road from there,.and have a couple in The Globe…I think it was.
There was also a good Greek cafe across the road from there.
Regarding the Red Lion and Long Bar at Aldgate. I first stopped at Backchurch Lane in 1969 and visited the Red Lion and Long Bar when I started at Chris Metcalfe’s in Keighley. I am currently researching and writing the history of Kit Metcalfe and my time working for him in the 1970’s but cannot find any photos or maps of Aldgate at the time. Can anyone give me any further info on the Long Bar, where was it exactly situated as the oldest maps that I’ve found do not name the several pubs on that side of the road and the area has changed beyond recognition. Also, Brays guest house was a favourite overnight stay at the time; has anyone any info on that particular place■■? I have placed posts on old London pubs sites, but no-one appears to be old enough to remember the Long Bar, Brays, or how it used to look when the centre of Aldgate was a car park.
Bedford had one on the old cattle market along commercial road in the town centre. I personally stayed at the lorry park in Ripon a few times, Blackpool as often as I could. Other than that I can’t recall any town centre parks, Penrith and Carlisle truck stops along with Lancaster but of course they weren’t town centres. Trafford park was another, I parked in Darlington a few times but stayed in digs at Pams, they used to pick you up from the lorry park and drop you back next morning. Other than these I stayed in hotels and usually managed to park in the hotel car park or the roads near them.
Swindon had a few in the 60s/70s. They were car parks but could be used overnight. County ground car park, ,Henry st, the bus station and Cavendish square spring to mind. Can recall parking up in Auchterrader, Leeds, Elgin, Plymouth ,Hazel grove, Great Yarmouth to name a few but that would have been from the early 80s onwards
exmetcalfesman:
Regarding the Red Lion and Long Bar at Aldgate. I first stopped at Backchurch Lane in 1969 and visited the Red Lion and Long Bar when I started at Chris Metcalfe’s in Keighley. I am currently researching and writing the history of Kit Metcalfe and my time working for him in the 1970’s but cannot find any photos or maps of Aldgate at the time. Can anyone give me any further info on the Long Bar, where was it exactly situated as the oldest maps that I’ve found do not name the several pubs on that side of the road and the area has changed beyond recognition. Also, Brays guest house was a favourite overnight stay at the time; has anyone any info on that particular place■■? I have placed posts on old London pubs sites, but no-one appears to be old enough to remember the Long Bar, Brays, or how it used to look when the centre of Aldgate was a car park.
Hi Rob, thanks for the link to that photo of The Red Lion.
We used to park up on Vallance Road, have a wash and brush up in the Y.M.C.A, Doss House on Whitechapel Road and then walk down to The Red Lion to see The Exotic Dancers.
I have just come across a photo on that link of where the, car park during the day and what was a lorry park after 4 p.m. on Vallance Road, used to be. It was next to that building with the arched windows on the middle floor. I didn’t realise at the time what a struggle it sometimes was with a 36-foot single axle trailer doing deliveries around London, the streets now seem so narrow.
I.I.R.C. The Y.M.C.A. was in that tall four storey building on the left of the photo on Whitechapel Road. The washrooms were down the stairs in the cellars.
If you go back to the junction of Vallance Road and Whitechapel Road on Google Earth, you will see that one side of the street say’s ‘Vallance Road’ and the other side of the street say’s ‘Assange Road’.
As Catherine Tate’s grandmother used to say "W.T.F. is going on, the place looks like a (z.b.) (z.b.) house.
Suedehead:
Swindon had a few in the 60s/70s. They were car parks but could be used overnight. County ground car park, ,Henry st, the bus station and Cavendish square spring to mind. Can recall parking up in Auchterrader, Leeds, Elgin, Plymouth ,Hazel grove, Great Yarmouth to name a few but that would have been from the early 80s onwards
I used to stay at the Rudyard Hotel in Hazel Grove Stockport, I got the bus down to the Bamford Arms? In the evening.
The coach park at vauxhall bridge was always handy back in the 1970,s. Darlington was a
regular night out 2 or three times a month, nearly all day cabs then, plenty of regular digs in the area and as someone already said a few offered a taxi service.
Bewick:
The centre of Aldgate roundabout ! We used to stop at a Greek run Kebab House great little digs plus there was a few decent boozers around IIRC The Red Lion and The Long Bar? and, of course we would walk down to Leman St. to visit “H”'s favourite haunt “The Brown Bear” !! Happy days Bewick.
I used to stop at Aldgate regularly in the early 70s, if I was the other side of London there was a good park the top side of Putney Bridge, when loading out of Rotherhithe with hazardous materials we weren’t allowed to sleep in the cab so I stopped in digs at Carlo’s on Deptford High Street.
Bewick:
The centre of Aldgate roundabout ! We used to stop at a Greek run Kebab House great little digs plus there was a few decent boozers around IIRC The Red Lion and The Long Bar? and, of course we would walk down to Leman St. to visit “H”'s favourite haunt “The Brown Bear” !! Happy days Bewick.
I used to stop at Aldgate regularly in the early 70s, if I was the other side of London there was a good park the top side of Putney Bridge, when loading out of Rotherhithe with hazardous materials we weren’t allowed to sleep in the cab so I stopped in digs at Carlo’s on Deptford High Street.
It may have been mentioned in the thread (maybe even by me ) cba to look back, but there used to be a burger van on there that was used by lads coming back from the pub, and a little guy who had a makeshift ‘shack’ on there made out if I think pallets covered in plastic sheets, that was his home poor sod.
I remember there were a couple of clowns (drivers ) aggravating him one night kicking the side of his shed, me and a couple more intervened and told them to ■■■■ off and leave the poor guy alone.
It did get a bit heated as I recall, but they did eventually go.
Another occasion…again maybe already mentioned by me…
The parking attendant, a little Pakistani guy, I remember one night he was going ■■■■■■ crazy screaming away in his own language.
Some dirty 2hat had taken a crap behind a trailer, and the little guy had stood in it…in his sandals and bare feet.
He wasn’t happy.
Good days them when drivers got together, and you got a good social life out of the job…I still do today in fact… but not that good like the old days.
The first picture shows the Market Square in the town centre of Wigan in the 1950s. It remained the same until 1989
when a new Shopping Shopping centre was built, including an open market within. Earlier this year, a large part
of this shopping centre got cordoned off. I have heard that some of the site will soon contain flats and apartments,
and goodness knows what else. The picture shows a large number of coaches, most of them would be loading people
to take to Blackpool for their annual " Wakes Week ", usually the first Saturday in July. Throughout most of the year,
the Market Square would become a lorry park from 6pm until 6am the following day. Close by, there were cafes, pubs,
and transport digs for the lorry drivers, although some of them kipped in the cab. Most of the buses on the right were
of Ribble Motor Services, serving routes to Blackpool, Blackburn, Preston, St Helens, & Liverpool, and a few local routes.
The second picture shows the Market Square from a different direction, sometime from the mid to late 1960s.
Two in Central Sheffield.
One was the old Wicker railway goods yard with a boozer nearby called Hole in the wall and the other was bottom side of Pond Street bus station,both handy for all pubs,clubs etc.I never used either after our gaffer decided to check for our wagons parked there on a saturday morning and then waiting for log sheet/book.I remember one driver being caught on Wicker park,booked off at Penrith…
…it was the late 70s when ‘‘growlers’’ were fashionable 
, it’s a miracle there wasn’t a fire. 
