If you're a regular reader, you will remember the late Brian Greening with fondness.
A regular correspondent to Wight Memories, Brian was also an avid collector of Isle of Wight memorabilia, his vast collection ranging from photographs to posters and books to written notes.
Friend Alan Stroud recalls: “Brian was also, as anyone who knew him will testify, a ready wit and raconteur, “Do you know where Lake is? Well go and jump in it.”
Brian’s collection of material has been safely gathered in and is currently awaiting a suitable home. In the meantime, here are some of the many slides in Brian’s collection, showing Newport and in days gone by, and a memorable night in Ryde.
GILTEN MARKET: Here is the very last Gilten Market in Newport, held in 1983. Brian Greening is on the right, in blue coat and woolly hat and Alan Stroud and Colin Fairweather have been captured on the far left by the anonymous photographer.©Alan Stroud/County Press.
RYDE THEATRE FIRE: Not the sharpest of photographs but to see the Theatre Royal fire in colour is quite something. One night in May 1961, the cinema had just closed when Jack Pugh, licensee of the Turk’s Head, in Lind Street saw the flames. He said: “I looked through the bar window and saw a shower of sparks burst from the rear (screen) end of the Theatre Royal like a firework display.”
Within 30 minutes it was all over. Flames burst through the roof and soon the building was ablaze from end to end, the flaming embers travelling on the wind as far as the end of Ryde Pier. ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
LOWER’S: Now part of W.H. Smith’s frontage in Newport High Street, this is Lower’s, the grocer. There is also an unassembled egg box from Lower’s. It says on the lid ‘Eggs With Care. 1d. Each” and underneath, in large letters, “H. Lower & Son, The Noted Pork Pie Shop, Tel 186.’ ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
SNOOKS HILL: These buildings on the left hand side of Snooks Hill, as you go up the hill, disappeared as part of a mid-1970s scheme. The lower building was the Victoria Inn for many years. ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
WAREHOUSES: In the 1970s the council indulged in what the late Keith Newbery called corporate vandalism and many buildings that should - and could - have been restored were demolished, these warehouses in Sea Street among them. The land then sat idle before being used for council portakabins and then a car park. ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
ORCHARD STREET: This is Orchard Street, or rather, was. The residents were moved out in 1969 and the houses demolished to make way for the Lord Louis Library. It was a long wait. The library wasn’t built until 1981. ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
ST JAMES SQUARE: St James Square in the early 1960s. A policeman is on point duty so it is prior to July 1966 when the traffic lights were installed. With buses in the Square, Week’s Restaurant for a cup of tea and a slice of cake, and The Lamb for a pint of Mews Nut Brown, all was well with the world. ©Alan Stroud/County Press.
NOTE: Brian didn’t take these photos, they are the work of different anonymous photographers who all judged Brian a safe pair of hands to look after them — a good decision.
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