Foxwood Steel at Oakwood Farmers Market

For two or three years in my younger teens, I used to stand at Oakwood Clock every week day in term time to catch the 21 into town, and then change for the 56 to Headingley. Then I lived on Ladywood Road and went to Leeds Girls High School on Headingley Lane/Victoria Road.

So, whenever Foxwood is asked by Ian to play around this little landmark, I have a moment or two of nostalgia. I had passed the 11+ so I could I could have gone to Roundhay, half a mile up the road, and then with a tremendous university entrance record, but my parents were new to Leeds, and it was the moss green uniform on the other side of town for me. Well, until that massive row with Miss Sykes, and, for sixth form, it was the 21 the other way back up Street Lane to Allerton Grange. Not quite as often as was signed in! [Actually, after the day of the roll call for initials in the register compared to sixth-formers present was 18:12, I think they went back to the form teacher taking the register. We didn't really care, and found this quite amusing. This can't be said for the day of our A level results.]

Oakwood Clock with the new Fish Bar, now listed, I believe, and with post office/paper shop where I did a paper round from for six rather inglorious months and where I perfected the art of being late. Who else had their mother drive them to the post office in their dressing gown, and then up Oakwood Lane to the first drop! Still, I never missed a day, and when I finished, they gave me a bar of chocolate for [my mother] never missing a day.

And here we are. On a cold March morning playing all our favourite tunes and having a right good time, getting photographed with an MP a new local councillor and the Lord Mayor. I have to leave early to go to an Anti-Academies Alliance meeting in London. Bex takes over, seamlessly I assume. It's Foxwood's first gig of the season, and we are me, Bex, Daisy, Gig, Lizzie, Tim, Sarah, Amy, Danielle, Katie and Vicky. Nat is teaching, Stewart at Uni, and Charlotte is asleep.

Bex Vicky on Waterfront

Catching the 6.05 back from London, I meet Bex and Vicky and we go to Cheryl's party on the Waterfront. Took several highly unflattering pictures of each other, so the best I can offer as pictorial remembrance is this on the left.

They went on into town. There being no 56 for a bit I took the No 1 up Headingley Lane, rucksack still full of anti-academies stuff and Russian homework. That was a long day.