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Local: Stroud Green stuff: Worst Street in London

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  1.  
    • CommentAuthorGiles
    • CommentTimeMay 23rd 2008
     
    Campbell Bunk: The Worst Street in London Between the Wars (Paperback) is the book of the week that's going to be discussed on the Robert Elms radio programme next Friday.

    I think it used to be near Fonthill Road.
    • CommentAuthorDavid
    • CommentTimeMay 23rd 2008 edited
     

    Hey Giles,

    Busby had a bit to say about how, just after the war, you simply didn't head that way. I guess in his generation (feel free to correct me, Busby) the worst was over by then, but probably a hangover from this little part of history.

    here: http://www.stroudgreen.org/discussion/516

  3.  
    Jerry White's book is great. Campbell Bunk was Campbell road and was parallel to Fonthill just a short distance to the west. The old road sign was still visible until quite recently high up on the corner building. I think the residual dead end was renamed no long ago. Bunk residents' reunion parties were being held up until very recently in the railwayman's club. I noticed the invitations but I never attended any of them though. The traditional criminal community was erased and dispersed by the construction of the Andover Estate--recently immortalised by Anne Widdecombe, you may recall.
    • CommentAuthorsophie
    • CommentTimeMay 25th 2008
     
    was it what is now playford road? which is cut in half by the estate?
    i like fonthill road. especially brothers supermarket.
    • CommentAuthorflembo
    • CommentTimeMay 25th 2008
     
    What's left of it is Whadcoat Street and the bunk is supposed to be where Haden Court is.
    • CommentAuthorhooofck
    • CommentTimeMay 25th 2008
     
    Thanks Giles - I used to live on Fonthill Road and I'll enjoy that book.
    Campbell Bunk sounds pretty close to where I think John Lydon grew up but I guess it had changed quite a bit when he grew up from the inter war time.
    By the way, Busby, I loved your comments from yesteryear so any more posts would be great...
  7.  
    I have a copy of this book. The author (Jerry White) was chief executive of Hackney Council once. God knows how he found the time to write it. He came to supper at my house once at the Mrs's behest and turned out to be a Jolly Good Chap. The book is quite hard going I recall. He's written another book called London in the Nineteenth Century: A Human Awful Wonder of God which my mate Dugg says is v. good. But then he is much better read than me.
    • CommentAuthorBusby
    • CommentTimeMay 25th 2008
     
    During the post-war years of the 40s, we (children of about 7-10 years of age) went every Saturday to 'Saturday Morning Pictures'. In our case this was a Saturday morning spent in the Rank Cinema on the corner - more or less - of Stroud Green Road and Seven Sisters Road - just opposite the Silver Bullet pub if it's still there. For sixpence (which our parents could barely afford) we could watch a main film and a back-up, we loved it. But what we loved most of all was the singsong that started at 9am. An organ came up out of the stage with the organist already seated and on the screen the words appeared and the organist played the music and we all sang like mad for 30 minutes.

    On the corner of Tollington Park and Stroud Green Road, opposite a menswear outfitters called Elkins, on the Islington side, there was a brick built water reservoir. These reservoirs were all over London and had been built for keeping water available when fires caused by bombs had to be extinguished.

    I had a lovely little model of a rowing boat, made out of bakelite or some sort of early plastic. One Saturday morning on the way back from the cinema we climbed over the wall of this reservoir and played with my boat on the water. Then some 'louts' from the Fonthill Road area came along, punched us about and stole my lovely boat. I'll never forget that.
  9.  
    Plus ca change. When my 11 year old son went down to skateboard with his friends at Finsbury Park, his phone was nicked. He'll never forget that either.
    • CommentAuthorGiles
    • CommentTimeMay 28th 2008
     
    Campbell Road sticks out like a sore thumb on the Poverty Map from the discussion on old maps
    • CommentAuthorgeoff
    • CommentTimeJun 2nd 2008
     

    Moray Road may be going for the title.

  12.  
    Does anybody have reports on the N19 pub in Sussex Way, just over the border the other side of Hornsey Road. Going there soon.

    Or is that a bit close to Moray Road? :-)
    • CommentAuthorPoxy
    • CommentTimeJun 3rd 2008 edited
     
    It was probably the nearest pub - as the crow flies - to my previous home. It was as rough as fuck. Lots of shouty young men with lots of barky blinged-up bull terrier dogs. We never went in, we always ventured over to The Landseer or The Swimmer (two cracking pubs). At the time it was known as The Enterprise.

    The Enterprise closed down a couple of years ago and it re-opened - in one of the most bizarre business ventures ever - as a gay bar called The Pink Chameleon. It was never busier than almost empty and it looked to be only occupied by friends of the landlord, who - if memory serves me correctly - was called Genny Talia. The Pink Chameleon lasted for only a couple of months of the wet summer of 2006.

    It re-opened (last summer?) as The N19. It doesn't seem to be as busy as it was as The Enterprise. The dogs certainly seem to be drinking elsewhere, possibly The Prince Alfred (200m up the road). It appears to be attempting in its current incarnation to be a gastro-pub-lite. Looking in through the big clear windows it certainly give that impression. It'll never work, being so close to The Landseer and The Swimmer.

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