keating@makita:
Turners tried to get in by opening a depot in hackney wick, they brought in drivers from Soham which were some of the worst paid drivers, but they had to employ the ticket drivers at the London rate, and not long after closed there depot. In regards to a UCC depot in Reading I might be wrong but I cant remember one as we used to go from Poplar to Caversham cold store and back. I think it suited lord vestey the way the union worked as he had control from his farms in south america and Australia Zeeland with the meat on to his ships, Blue Star line to his transport UCC then Wedlles and his butchers shops dewhurst.
There were three trucks presumably based at either Brigham or Lynmouth Road where the cold store was, I can’t remember which now as I left Reading 41 years ago. I don’t know where they were stabled at night, outside the cold store perhaps although there was a BRS depot a short distance away? Two BMC 701 seven tonners and the five ton WEK which was later replaced with the equally ancient ERF. A very dapper chap drove one, he looked rather like Clark Gable actually and had a very trim moustache! I worked at the BMC commercial dealer in Reading from 1966 to 1974 and we serviced them, though I think for anything major they possibly returned to London, we also repaired Weddels lorry as well. The UCC trucks were pretty rough and getting on a bit, I suppose they had done a few years around London before coming to Reading?
Windrush, you are correct, actually the Reading based vehicles were based at Caversham cold store and did deliveries to local outlets, saving travel from the London depots. They did not come under our London depots, only maybe from Weddel’s Smithfield. There were occasions though when tractor and trailers made deliveries to further places such as Southampton and Portsmouth, and then we had to have a trailer mate. One funny such time was whilst doing my national service in the RE’s based at Aldershot. We had just finished doing an exercise and were getting ready to go on leave, when I was called to see the RSM. To say that he was fuming is an understatement. My Father had called in on his way back from Southampton, and had parked up on the drill square, which is TABOO for all but army boots.Did I cop a bollocking?.
peggydeckboy:
Cartageman you come up on a private message for me and a reply will not send back no prob to you but all explained in your last post tyhanks
Hi, peggydeckboy, I cant understand why you would get a private message, unless he is a personnel friend, I think you should publish what was said,this is a open forum as you can see and most is a laugh of what went on in the past,we all learn of what went on, as what you told us, I did not know, as I was the youngest driver at the time I was not every bodys cup of tea, so was willing to do any job, but there were some who wanted to see the job stay the way it was, which eventerly led to its closher, well thats what I think, I went on after to do the middle east with another firm, and I think I have been followed on other forums,I have kept the same user name, but some have changed, why, So at the age of 73 I dont need this silly nes, so this will be my last contribution to this site,
keep well Terry
Hi, Peggydeckboy, thanks for the mail which arrived today. Re your ref to Canning Town, in Nov 1948 at just sixteen, I joined Mack’s hauliers in Bradfield Rd down Silvertown way. Most of our work was sugar out of Tate &Lyles. At 8 stone my poor old legs used to wobble a bit loading 2cwt bags of sugar and stacking them on the lorry. Them days we carried 12 tons and the driver would only carry his half. We had an old Humpty back Scammel artic. My driver was only 4FT nothing so being a 6 footer I was handy for him as I Could reach higher to tie the knots. After the Kate in 53 I transferred to Tuffnel park depot (BRS) on night trunks. I often wonder how many of todays kids could have done that mates job. Excellent wages though £3. 3 shillings and 3p for 48 hrs on journey work. Plus if we were on at two or three in the morning it shank’s pony down Silvertown Way and if you were more than two minutes late . Old Tom the gate keeper wouldn’t let you start. He’d say go home and get a good kip and you’ll be on time tomorrow. Happy days.
keating- makita dont get the hump,not worth it, it was nothing to do with trucks,!!!it was about seatime ,ships and meat, doubt you would have been interested .tha is why it says PRIVATE.because i doubt any one else would have been intrested, and not been around the royal docks in the 1960s.
Hi PDB, a couple of further recollections spring to mind. Do you remember the Windsor Castle pub about 100 yards down Silvertown Way from the lights at Canning Town?. when I worked at Bradfield Rd we used to hold our Union meetings in their upstairs room, with a P up afterwards. There was another pub further down on the same side opposite Smoky Joe’s café which never did too well. I think that the Winsor was pulled down around 1955. Also did you ever hear about the chap who got sacked from Tate & Lyles, who then stood outside the gate every day for the 8 hr shift. That went on for years, I expect that he’s gone now 66 years later. How he earned his living, Christ Knows. Another funny incident, my driver was nicknamed Honest John, One day we loaded oranges out of Avonmouth docks and when we were loaded and had reached Bristol, I said “Do you know that we have fifteen boxes of oranges over”. They used to still be on green books for children then. He turned the lorry round and went back to the docks, where I was proved right and the surplus removed. Was I sick.
Good story Cartage man ,wasn’t a pub a called the" rose of Denmark" just down silvertown nr Tates, we used to walk down some steps as it was elevated to get in to KG5 then another pub by a level crossing the dockers used it for lunch time boozer then the other end of royal dock was the round house tavern, then two more across the road , when you walked to underpass to walk under the Themes to Greenwich…it was always busy with trucks but no firms come to mind.
peggydeckboy:
Good story Cartage man ,wasn’t a pub a called the" rose of Denmark" just down silvertown nr Tates, we used to walk down some steps as it was elevated to get in to KG5 then another pub by a level crossing the dockers used it for lunch time boozer then the other end of royal dock was the round house tavern, then two more across the road , when you walked to underpass to walk under the Themes to Greenwich…it was always busy with trucks but no firms come to mind.
I remember the Rose of Denmark well they used to have the “stripper” performing in a cage but one night a Driver got in with her and the ■■■■■■■ place was in up-roar ( I was only 19 at the time though so being from the “sticks” it was new to me such behaviour ) Cheers Bewick.
Hi All, the pub used by used by a lot of docker’s was the Tidal Basin Tavern , a real old spit and sawdust pub. Also you are correct about the Rose of Denmark. Now I think that it’s time for Bewick to come clean, It was him in with the stripper. Who remembers that supposedly haunted pub opposite the bottom end of the Royal Albert dock?.
Yes theTidal basin Tavern yes, i spent quite a lot of my money in all the pubs, around KG5,ROYAL DOCKS while on ships in my teenage years ,it was our education of life ,That is the reason when i fist started EUROPEAN,
I never bothered about the ■■■■ ups , orclubs, but i liked a drink ,and still do, it used to be fun the next day seeing a lot of the men ,who had found a new life coming back from a night and been to a bag house, distraught,of what they had done ,yes like a lot of you,got the Tshirt
i realise this is not about U.C.C but it keeps the topic going ?
Hi all, thinking on the rant of an earlier posting, I think that an explanation is called for. When Lambeth drivers who were journey men and tractor were put into Poplar depot they did not mix as Lambeth men were mainly drinkers away from home ,whilst the tractor men were up and down or shunting in the docks , so had to be sober for shunting trailers etc. The new people taken on at that time decided that they would be bigger if they joined the drinking set, hence the earlier no no remarks.
Two of these men on a run to Kuwait, after delivering there, took part in the making of an Arab film, with the use of company lorries for a nice little earner, also driving stunt cars. Whilst on UCC pay, of course. Knowing that the Vestey family had contacts throughout the world, they would be bound to find out, especially if there was nothing in it for them. The film can be seen on net, Wolves don’t eat meat.
Another clown left Brentwood with a load for Paris meat market at midnight. Got drunk on the ferry and decided to sleep it off in a Calais lorry park. Woke at 6pm to find that he was surrounded by other lorries parked up for the night. The load was delivered 24 hrs late.
Another loaded prawns in the south east for France, drove to the ferry at Southampton which was loading, dropped his trailer and proceeded home to Basildon Essex for a dodgey night out, but the owner of the goods had seen him drop the trailer instead of catching the ferry and to say he was livid is an understatement.
Another caught a ferry at Immingham and bought drinks for all on the trip. (we usually carried £400) expenses money) but arrived in Germany SKINT, and trying to borrow money from others.There’s loads more, no wonder Vestey closed us down.
Hi Cartage man yes a good honest post all though i was not there the same mentality was around a lot of companies and i am afraid i was one of them, lest done the better, and fiddle as much as you can,you inherited the mind set from others before you ,
sorry to say, the unions did not help because you had there backing ,that stemmed from the docks,coal miners ,car workers… all together at transport house, around each industril towns and ports,…but we got through it looking back though our demise was our own faults as for UCC i expect it was the same but for a few die hards
I well belive the driver going home from DOVER and think nothing of it… I think once owner drivers and companies not connected to union got in to European things got better for the bosses but not the drivers work wise …i know it took me at lest a year to get my head round going on and off ferrys at silly o clock and not get any extra paid for it,and weekends for the same ,as we were used to 8 hour driving days= breaks or i think 240 miles a day and that was it, night out…
The Vesty family have a lot to answer for regarding transport ,the introduction of the 20foot 4o foot container in the late 1960s was the demise of the British Merchant fleet all though a strong Union, with links to the T.G.W and of course our old friend MR PRESCOT, in fact i think he hails from WALES , not Hull he was so militant that is why they sent him to Oxford uni…
.Did You ever notice that all the miltant ,red, union men in the 1960/70 .80s were mainly SCOTS ,WELSH ,OR IRISH…i used to wonder why …
that is my rant for today cheers pdb
Hi PDB, you made the correct point that in those days it was the done thing to fiddle a little extra. But the new blokes did not know the difference between scratching their arse and tearing it. We had the offer of £16 basic wage and £17 per night out, even on long ferry trips, or vice versa, so the money was good for those days. Plus our expenses were bumped up so we did well on that score as well. Few of them spoke well of the trade union, until they got in trouble and they wanted someone to get them out of it. Our best steward was Irish nicknamed ( The Yank) who could have got Hitler off the Hook. regards.
YES CARTAGE MAN 100% correct about the wavering union men,i was all ways one from 16 years old NATIONAL UNION OF SEAMAN and did realise for a lot of the industry’s they were needed. but in the late 1980 s the wrong element seemed to rule ,and i drifted away, when i started European. but some firms i worked for insisted you join ,just to get in and out of factories , etc but would not like any involvement from such thing as stewards …
Sometimes it would be embarrassing to see what men would do ,and get the union to get them out of it,i will leave it at that…
You were defiantly on good money back then, i never did get the point when it was LONDON RATES extra this ,and that, all bollo—.union then ruled.
i never new if the top union men were REDS as they were called .or communist,or socialists. i do not think they new because they all seem to drift away i bet they never went and lived in say Romania…I like the Hitler quote…your UUC mates seemed to have drifted away i do understand how there were two camps of drivers back in the drinking days , drink seemed to be a big part of my life, not to the excess but loved pubs and a pint or two, now cans/ bottles at home.
sorry not much TRUCK CHAT but i do not seem to find a lot more to say about trucks ,in fact i was never truck orientated , they did the job ,paid the wages and the fiddles,sometimes a bit of swag." what is yours is mine".that was the rule un till you got caught…then they wanted the union…pdb
Hi PDB here’s a little story, getting back to UCC. Six of us, after delivering to various American camps in Germany were told to go to Vienna to pick up Belgian butter, which was going to be sold to Russia on the cheap.
After loading and in convoy we arrived at the Salzburg border and noticed an Austrian man who’s car was pulling a trailer with a sailing boat, who was arguing with the border guards.
After clearance we headed to a service area just north of Munich. parked there was the bloke with the boat. any way we all swung in to park abreast of each other, the last man was REG Revell, who took a wide swing in and the front overhang on his trailer collided with the boat, causing a bloody great hole in the hull. I will point out here that our trailers had two pins, one for 4wheel units and one further back for 6 wheel units which we had , hence when turning you needed a wider sweep. Now I had a first time continental man named Bill Staples and he had learnt some German (ist Gud). Well the boat owner was arguing with RR and was quite annoyed. Bill started with a downward move of his hands and saying ist gud, which infuriated the Austrian even more. And he was saying "I have been all day getting this boat through customs so I can go racing in the Baltic and now I can park my car in the hole, plus I’ve got to get it back through customs. Me, I couldn’t stand for laughing. It was a real pantomime. And it went on for about fifteen minutes with Bill saying it was good.
Cartageman good story yes, i could imagine the one liner ,speaking German ,every company had one a driver speaking any foreign language with a funny English accent and think they were good sometimes embarrassing.
All that forces work was good i bet, was it NAFFA, were you able to get goodies from the american bases like ■■■■? and loads of paper work i bet. I suspect there was not of time limit on the jobs,string it out here and there, that would be the first priority, wait for your mates …who would know anyway ,sounds like a job i would have dropped in to.
But as it was when i started in 1980 on European the chilled fresh meat job was sort of high pressure ,every one wanted the meat even before it had been slaughtered ,well that was what you were always told ie= "yes they are waiting for you you must get there"and you could not ignore it because they might have been, however 99 times out of 100 they never were, it was just to get you there, so they could plan your next job and the transport company new exactly when you would be getting tipped ,after 15 years of fridge work ,blood pressure to high i actually seen the light, and went dry freight the best move ever ,but too late… should have done it years before but i was indoctrinated by fridges and the work…so really UUC were the starters of Euro fridge work …i remember the big Frigoscania cols store Vienna pdb.
PDB, yes the American camps in Germany was a good job. We used to carry a lot of Scotch beef . We used to have to go to Rotterdam where an agent would sort out the relevant paperwork and Nato permits and then to the various camps in Germany.We were not able to buy anything in the camps. But when I delivered to a US nuclear sub base at Rota Spain A sergeant took me to the NCO’s restaurant and bought my meal of Chicken in a Basket and fries. It was a complete chicken. His meal was A Tbone steak which seemed like Half a cow. They were good days in a bloody good job with new vehicles. Our guvnor really wanted Scammels with RR engines, but that incurred a two year wait, so we had the first Volvo six wheel units brought into the UK. My one had to come from the dealer in Scotland. And only six men were selected to start operations after medical checks at County Hall, and I was one. Them days you were given 200 cigs or a bottle of scotch on each time you used a ferry ,except British rail out of Newhaven. That’s when others wanted to get in on our act and killed it.
Well Cartagman At least you did have the best of it and enjoyed it while it lasted, as us silly sods were chugging up the m1 doing your London docks and wharfs my you to tell the truth i/me and thousands of others had no idea that that type of work existed and in the early 1970 i had 3 small kids and i doubt i would have wanted to be away…
we had a goodish life, like your self, hard work ,if you could not get out it, but you always had the ■■■■ that for some reason or another would F–ck the job up,eithe they always wanted to be home by 5ish should not have been a driver, and they would stuff the whole lot up for us , we counted on our fiddles for beer money[false economy] so as for your job i could imagine the animosity if a new bloke came and stuffed it up…maybe they were planted■■?.Sometimes the best bloke in the world would be the snitch…
I have a friend who was high up in a UNION, in transport house ,and the fiddling of monies and jollies, meetings in jersey,etc a lot of the men had Mc in there names in the end he got out ,it was a big fU–YOU CLUB…pillars of society ,but they did protect us even us not so holy…yes to be honest by 1980 i had got like the rest of us lazy,that every body owed us a living, like the dockers ,car workers ,miners .Even now someone is stirring up the doctors,must find out who…pdb.
I think we ought to set, a" what you have got to say post"TRANSPORT IS QUIET"
PDB ,Here’s another funny story. When my wagon turned over on the Ferry, a man phoned my wife to ask if I was badly injured in the roll over. That same man forgot that an engine needs oil and after a dodgey one spread parts of his engine from the Blue Boar to Leicester forest services, for which he was fired. After the demise of UCC, and I was in post as night foreman at Blackwall tunnel, this same man came to my house and said that he was working for a large well known parcels carrier. They were having trouble with their manager, so him and some others had arranged a job there for me, so I could help sort the manager out. I declined and am glad that I did.as I now get seven and a half grand a year pension from the GLC. I remember that my father after22 years with UCC was taken by the then shop steward to Blooms of Aldgate for a tea and salt beef sandwich and then to the company head office for a glass of whisky and a five minute sit in the managers chair.
) Cheers Bewick.