St Budeaux Station

Driving along Wolseley Road today, it's hard to tell that there's a railway stop at St Budeaux. There are still two platforms but the lines are nowadays very run down and the area is very much of a no-go zone at night times.

It wasn't always like this though. St Budeaux once had a very busy and bustling station. It was used regularly by dockyard workers who even had their own shelters to keep them dry when it rained. The access down the station platform was from where the traffic lights, and the crossing leading to the Co-op, are now towards St Budeaux Square.

The station suffered severe damage during the bombing raids of the Second World War but still continued to be used.

The first photo of the station shows Fred Cole with one of Ware and Co's prized Shire horses. The shops of St Budeaux Square (Yeoman Terrace) can be seen in the background and the railway building can be seen behind Fred. His little dog is looking on as his photo is being taken.

The second photo shows a wartime shot where people are queued up for the Queen's Messenger's van which provided hot food and drinks for people affected by the bombing. There are also many defence workers in the picture. On the station hoarding is a poster advertising the latest film, 'Strike Up the Band' which starred Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. There is also a poster advertising 'Light Up and Smile' which was a show that was put on at the New Palace Theatre in April 1941.

The third photo, taken in the 1950s, shows the Baptist's Lifeboys standing in the same position but taken in the direction of the houses over the bridge, towards the section of Wolseley Road leading down towards Saltash Passage. What a happy bunch they all look! There are adverts for Goodbody's bread and Weekend chocolates behind them.

All this has been cleared away now. The buildings have long gone as has the access to the platform. In its place is a brick wall and a very busy road. It's possible to see, even today, where the wall has been bricked up and where the entrance once was.

St Budeaux must have seemed like a very different area back then with narrower roads, a lot less traffic but a far more busier railway station.

Porky the Pig, Churchtown Farm, Saltash

I was talking to someone the other day whose family owned Wearde Farm, which was where the sunflower field is now at Churchtown Farm. In the past, people have told me lots of stories about days gone by but, a week or two later, unfortunately, I've totally forgotten them! So, nowadays, as soon as I get a chance, I try to write them down. I hope to write a book of people's recollections of the area called, 'Memories of Saltash' sometime in the near future. My favourite story that he told me was about Porky the Pig and here's the tale as best as I can remember it: When I was about 9, my family gave me the runt of the litter to look after. I fed him and looked after him. I loved that pig! On many days, I would take 'Porky' on a lead and walk him around by Wearde Quay and along the shore. One day, he ran in the old farm shed and his trotter went into the trigger of a shotgun causing it to fire. No-one was hurt but dad gave him a good telling off for that. Porky got steadily bigger and bigger and eventually was the same size as the other pigs in the litter. Of course, I was naive and one day, dad said he was taking him to market. I wanted to keep him and begged with dad but he said that he had to go because we needed the money to eat. I remember Porky in the pen with the other pigs, looking up at me. The man in the pen was poking him with a stick and saying. 'He's no good, he's all tame!'. Of course, he was eventually sold and the inevitable happened. I cried for months over that pig!

Patrick MacNee

In 1987, I was asked along to watch Patrick MacNee film 'Where There's a Will' for TSW at St Modwin which is near the Marsh Mills Industrial Estate. I hadn't realised that filming was so tedious and slow and far from glamorous. It seemed to take all day just to shoot a couple of scenes. I'd watched Patrick in The Avengers since I was a small boy so I looked forward to meeting him.

I can't say that we had much of a conversation but he posed for photos. The smiles disappeared as soon as the photos were taken!

There were other well-known names at the shoot including Christopher Benjamin, Amanda Burton and Chris Jury (from Lovejoy). By far the nicest and politest actor on set was TSW's own Ian Stirling who was a great bloke.

Filming took place all over the region and many scenes were shot at Tavistock.

The show was directed by Baz Taylor who had also directed shows for Lovejoy. I think that it was hoped that 'Where There's a Will' would have the same appeal as Lovejoy.

As with most programmes made by Westward and TSW, it wasn't very good. TSW didn't have the clout (or money) of the larger regional tv stations.

I think that there were plans for it to become a series and for it to be sold all over the world. TSW showed it once and once only and it was awful! It was never shown again and the planned series was soon forgotten about!

Even so, I had a great summer watching it all being filmed. Many of the actors who appeared in it have gone on to do greater things but some seem to have disappeared altogether.

Charlie Chaplin

In February 1931, Charlie Chaplin disembarked from the Mauretania in Plymouth and , at some point, was the guest of Nancy Astor at the Astor's residence at Elliot Terrace on the Hoe. The photo shows some of the other guests who were there at the same time including Amy Johnson and George Bernard Shaw.

The Times Newspaper covered the story and reported on the 20th February 1931:

Mr Charles Chaplin arrived in this country yesterday for the London opening at The Dominion Theatre of City Lights. The Mauretania, with which he had come from New York, dropped anchor in Plymouth Sound, just as day was breaking. A few hours later, Mr Chaplin was welcomed ashore by a swarm of admirers.

It went on to report:
For another hour, the observation-car, which the Great Western Railway Company had placed at the comedian's disposal on the boat-train to Paddington, was surrounded by hero worshippers and during that time nobody with the courage to thrust their head into the carriage was sent away empty handed.

Some people asked him for autographs while others just wanted to pass the time of day. He was said to be full of joy and polite to all that he met but as the carriage moved away and the cheers from his fans died away, his mood changed completely as his optimism turned to talk of economics. He was cheered up by the arrival of a tin of Devonshire Cream.
The train arrived at Paddington later that day and people turned out in their thousands to see him. He climbed onto the roof of the car that met him and waved enthusiastically to the crowd. He was given a police escort to the Carlton Hotel and he announced that he would be on holiday for the next 4 months and may even travel to Europe.
There's no mention in the newspaper report when Chaplin stayed with Nancy Astor but he was in the city again on the night of 16th November, 1931 when he wandered onto the stage of the Palace Theatre in Union Street to much applause.