WHO remembers being treated to a trip to the pictures growing up?
At one time Worcester had several cinemas across the city, including one in St John’s, now sadly derelict and the Northwick Cinema, now in use as an antiques centre.
The city centre had several too – the Scala in Angel Place, the Arcade Cinema in St Swithun’s Street ,which closed when the Gaumont was built in 1935 and of course the Odeon, still in Foregate Street today.
I was contacted this week by Mick Purser, who regularly attended the Teenager Show at the Odeon on a Saturday morning.
He shared his story of a slightly different experience – his 15 minutes of fame on the stage of the cinema!
The Teenager Show was a special viewing every week, for local teenagers, and a band would perform before the viewing of the film.
It was a popular event, with queues all the way down the street, and Mick fondly remembered sitting in the packed stalls waiting for a film starring his idol, Bill Fury.
One week in 1961, Mick was sitting with his two friends Andy and Nick, when there was a call for volunteers.
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They were offered a free ice cream and a pass for the next week’s showing, if they would model some clothes for the audience! All three lads volunteered.
Mick recalled: “In those days we all dressed like the Fonz in a leather jacket, jeans with turn-ups and winklepicker boots. The Teenager Show was a bit of a highlight for kids; other than a paper round there wasn’t much else to do”.
It turned out that Maggs clothing shop based on The Shambles, had arranged a short fashion show for the packed auditorium. Then aged only 14, Mick was a little nervous: “It was a bit daunting stepping out on to the stage with the spotlight on us, but we got a bit of a cheer and the person in charge asked us to give them a twirl.
“I think there were a couple of outfits to show; a leather jacket, a pullover and different coloured jeans.”
What an experience! Does anyone else remember these teen shows? Or perhaps you shopped at Maggs for your school uniform or more fashionable wear?
Worcester Life Stories is a collaborative project bringing local people together through shared stories of the City of Worcester. It is co-led by Dr Natasha Lord, Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust and Sheena Payne-Lunn, Worcester City Council and funded thanks to National Lottery players.
For further information or to share your stories visit worcesterlifestories.org.uk, our Facebook page or Twitter @worlifestories. You can also email worcesterlifestories@gmail.com or call 01905 721133.
There are also many memories are also being shared on the We grew up in Worcester page on Facebook. Why not join the conversation?
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