As a child our next door neighbours were Mr and Mrs Porter. Although we were part of a terraced street, our side of the street was just two houses, which we would call semi-detached. Mr and Mrs Porter were at No. 10 and we were No. 9.

Mrs Porter was stone deaf. This condition was brought on by her having an only child, a girl, with a mental disability. It was such a shock when she was born that it caused Mrs Porter to lose her hearing. We never saw the girl as she was put into a nursing home long before they came to the street. In fact they were the second neighbours in No. 10 as a lovely man called Mr Fry lived there until he died. He was very kind and gave me bible story books. I was quite small, maybe four or five, when he died and Mr and Mrs Porter came. They were both very good neighbours to have.

Over the street in No. 8 was Alan Davis the only child of Edna and Charlie. We played at lot when I was small, but Alan found other interests from the age of about ten and I didn't see him much after that.

Next to the Davis's in No. 7 was a woman called Frances. She was very nice and looked very gentle. I think she must have been very pretty when she was young. She lived with her mother who was, by all accounts, a bit of a tyrant. Frances lost her first husband and then married again. She commented that neither husband could do DIY. I think she was disappointed in that regard! Her mother had her legs amputated at the grand old age of 90 and lived several years after that. She must have been super strong to do that. Only a small number of people survive after having legs amputated. My mother told me she used to walk on rockers. I was never sure what they were, but I thought it was amazing.

In No. 6 lived Uncle Ray and Aunt Alice with their three boys, Martin, Michael and John. I can't remember them every playing in the street, which seems rather odd, but they were very wild so perhaps Uncle Ray kept them in and found others things for them to do. Aunt Alice died from Diabetes when John, the youngest, was twelve or thirteen. She was such a lovely woman. It was very sad. Her mother, Gert, survived her and lived into very old age. Gert used to wear pink bloomers down to her knees and she used to sit with her legs apart. I think they must have been a left over from Victoriana. Ha, ha!

In no. 5 lived an elderly woman and her daughter. The kept themselves to themselves and lived very privately. The daughter was called Elsie. She had some kind of palsy, my mum said. As she walked along you could see her shaking. That was sad too. I think she lost a young man in the war.

Then in No. 4 lived Mr and Mrs Palmer. Mr Palmer was a butcher and he and his wife Ivy were lovely neighbours. Mr Palmer always had sweets which he gave us when we were out playing in the street. They had no children. They would have made great parents. My family was always friendly with them and they came to my wedding.

When Tony came into the street, he got me into trouble with Mr Palmer. Tony suggested we play 'Knock out Ginger.' Not a game for good children to play!  Ha, ha! We had to knock at someone's door and then run away and hide. We knocked twice on Mr Palmer's door and each time ran away and hid. The third time he came out and chased us. He found me hiding under my dad's car. It was scary under there! Ha, ha. He pulled me out and took me to my dad and I had to apologise and I had to go in. No more playtime that night!

In No 3 there were several neighbours until in the 1960's a family came with three children. They were the same age as my niece. There is 14 years between us, she feels more like a sister and we get on well together. She played with the children, but they were a bit mean to her. She spoke nicely, whereas they talked with a very broad accent and they made fun of her. The family moved into a newer house along by our methodist church a few years later. One of the children used to sit by their gate, on the concrete would you believe, and pull himself up to a standing position when he was just nine months old. My mum used to marvel at him, but I think it was dangerous letting a baby do that. He could have fallen and knocked himself out. My mum never met my grand daughter Sammy. She would have been amazed to see her, at seven months old, walking along the sofa. I could hardly believe it myself. In fact, if anyone had told me a baby could do that at that age, I would have thought they were lying. Goes to show we don't know everything!

In No. 2 lived Mrs Purnell and her husband. She was named Ivy and was a little bit eccentric. Mum asked her over for tea once a week to get her out of the house. She had boxes and boxes of sheets and blankets which she never used. How odd! I would rather give it away than not use it. Her husband was actually my friend Margaret's grandfather, how strange is that? I didn't find that out until years later when talking to my friend. I've mentioned a little about Mrs Purnell in another chapter. 

No. 1 was the home of an older man and his wife and a son. They were a bit posh (not like the rest of us). The father had a van in the street in later years covered in pictures of wine gums. He must have been a delivery driver. The son always came home from work with a cloth bag slung over his shoulder. His father died first then his mother and the son left the street to live somewhere else. I believe he had learning difficulties.

Most of the neighbours remained in the street until they passed on, the only two houses which had several changes were No. 5 and No. 3.  I think No. 5 was rented out for several years, so people came and went.  

On the whole, the neighbours got on well and there weren't many disputes.

Mum and dad left Windsor Grove when I had my first baby and moved to live next to mum's sister Auntie Bett in Mildred Street. Mum tired of the cul-de-sac as she said people were too nosy. She was very happy in Mildred Street. Some people do have far too much to say for themselves and isn't that the truth?