This Boy: A Memoir of a Childhood

by Alan Johnson

  My mother in the back yard of 107 Southam Street in the early fifties.

  Linda and me celebrating the Coronation in 1953.

  Roger Mayne’s photograph of Clarendon Crescent, taken in 1957, a few streets away from Southam Street.

  On the beach at New Brighton during our trip to Liverpool.

  With Lily in our matching blazers at Mr and Mrs Ireland’s in Liverpool.

  With Linda in the toy car that had belonged to the Irelands’ grown-up son.

  A Southam Street scene as captured by Roger Mayne.

  Wornington Road Infants’ School, 1955.

  Bevington Primary School, c. 1958.

  One of Mayne’s most memorable photographs of Southam Street in 1956.

  My teacher at Bevington, Mrs Leadsford, on the right, together with Mrs Gryf.

  Christmas 1968 at the night-shift Christmas dinner in Barnes Postmen’s Delivery Office. My daughter Emma was born on Christmas Eve, a week after this photograph was taken.

  Wedding line-up, 1968. From left: Andrew Wiltshire, me, Judy, Linda, Judy’s grandmother and our daughter, Natalie.

  Acknowledgements

  My grateful thanks to:

  My sister, Linda Edwards, for relating so many of the experiences recorded here.

  My agent, Andrew Kidd, and my friends Charlotte Greig and Becky Milligan for all their enthusiasm, encouragement and help with this book.

  Sue Utting, a former Number 10 ‘Garden Room Girl’, whose typing was impeccable.

  Doug Young and his colleagues at Transworld.

  Caroline North, who my publishers rightly described as the best editor in the business.

  My Auntie Peggy and recently departed Auntie Rita for reliving their childhoods for me.

  Yvonne Tozer (née Stacey), Colin James, Danny Curtis, Tony Kearns, Arif Ali, Jimmy Robb and the late Carmen Samad for sharing their memories.

  Catherine Bramwell and Caroline Reynolds for their out-of-hours help.

  Mrs Eve Stonelake for reminding me of some of the vast array of shops in Golborne Road.

  Mark Olden, for sending me his splendid book Murder in Notting Hill (Zero Books, 2011) and acquainting me with London’s Newcomers: The West Indian Migrants by Ruth Glass (Harvard University Press, 1960), which provided me with a useful context for my childhood experiences.

  Picture Acknowledgements

  Unless otherwise credited, all photos are from the author’s collection. Every effort has been made to trace the copyright holders of photos reproduced in the book. Copyright holders not credited are invited to get in touch with the publishers.

  Photos here, here and here of the picture section courtesy of Mary Evans Picture Library/Roger Mayne.

  Index

  The page references in this index correspond to the printed edition from which this ebook was created. To find a specific word or phrase from the index, please use the search feature of your ebook reader.

  Aberfan 259

  Ali, Arif 271

  Ambrose, Bert 14

  Anthony Jackson’s supermarket 263, 264–5

  apartheid 169

  Arden, Don 257, 270

  Area, the (band) 259, 268, 279; formed 256–7; concert at Aylesbury 257, 260, 269; studio recording 270; burglary 271

  Armstrong, Ted 112

  Australia 83

  Aylesbury College 257, 260

  Bakridon, Mike 271, 272

  Barker, Annie (née Johnson; aunt of Alan) 23

  Barker, Tony (cousin of Alan) 68

  Barker, ‘Tottsy’ 23–4

  Barnes 46, 195, 276, 278

  Bates, Stephanie 268

  baths 96

  BBC: premises 23, 194; radio 45, 130, 171, 172, 279–80

  BBC2 260

  Beatles, the 172–3, 179, 187, 206, 280

  Berriman, Mr (shopkeeper) 98, 104, 134, 204–5, 208

  Berry, Chuck 179, 180, 181

  Betting and Gaming Act 49

  Beveridge report 99

  Bevington Primary School 57, 58, 74, 75, 92, 108–9, 122–3, 124, 140; caning 68, 188; playground 62; swimming 109

  bicycles 69–70

  Boas, Guy 125, 127

  books 59, 60–1, 117–19, 228–9, 249, 250–1, 268; favourite 60, 118, 119, 129, 229

  boxing 66, 134

  Bright, Pauline 185–7, 206

  Brixton College 193

  Brook Green Nursery, Hammersmith 193, 204, 258

  Burgess Hill, Sussex 188

  bus tickets 64

  Cambridge Gardens 73–4

  candles 16, 199, 202, 205

  cards 61–2, 63

  Carlen, Peter 248–51, 252, 253

  Carlyle Grammar School for Girls 149, 185

  Carnaby Street 253–4

  Carter, Jimmy 139–40, 141–4, 145, 161, 162–3, 164–6, 170, 171, 175, 197, 206

  Carter, Johnny 145–7, 148, 227–8, 246, 247

  Charles Buchan’s Football Monthly 141, 195, 249

  Cheetham, Ann 260, 268, 272

  Cheetham, Irene 260

  Chelsea 253–4; see also Sloane Grammar School

  Children’s Country Holidays Fund 150–9

  Christie, John 147–8

  Christmas: Cobden Club parties 43, 60, 117; 1957, parents away 52–3, 86; in Romford with Ron 162; at Southam Street 35–6; 1963 208–11; 1966 262

  cigarettes 41, 139–40, 199, 214–15, 273

  cinemas 41, 42, 73

  Clark, Ian 256

  coach travel 31, 32

  coal 15, 174–6

  Cobden Club 43, 60, 117

  Cochrane, Kelso, murder of 89–92, 94

  Coronation celebrations 22

  Coventry 31

  Cox, Albert 58, 59–60, 61, 71, 116, 228–9, 232, 261, 266–7

  Cox, Carole 57–8, 60, 256, 261

  Cox (later Johnson), Judy 273–5, 276, 278; wedding 283; childbirth 283

  Cox (later Johnson), Natalie 273, 274, 276, 283

  Cox, Pat 60, 70–1, 120, 208, 219, 232, 259, 261, 265–6

  Cox, Tony (school friend) 57–8, 60, 61, 69–70, 71–4, 116–17, 120, 121–3, 125, 126, 127, 183, 259, 267

  Crawley, Sussex 48

  Cub Scouts 107, 119–20

  Curtis, Danny 256, 259, 270, 271

  Curtis, Walter 69, 121, 123

  Daily Sketch 56–7, 190

  Dance, Willie 14

  Dansette record-player 50–1, 97, 113, 180, 247

  Dante 216

  David (Sutton Dwellings) 28, 29

  Dawson, Mr (of Tesco) 261–4

  Denmark 150–8

  dentistry 222

  Deram label 270

  Dickens, Charles 59; David Copperfield 229, 249

  divorce 57, 99–100, 103–4, 207

  dog 81–2

  Dr Barnardo’s homes 236, 274; Barkingside 237–9

  Dulwich 103, 142–4, 145

  Durham, Peggy (née Gibson; aunt of Alan) 17, 19–20, 32–3, 103, 225, 229, 230

  Durham, Robert (‘Bob’; uncle of Alan) 34

  Dylan, Bob 198

  Earl of Warwick pub, North Kensington 13, 174

  Education Act 1944 107–8

  Electric Cinema 73

  electricity meters 16, 35, 80–1, 175, 194, 204

  Eleven-Plus exam 106–7, 123–5

  Elsie (of Sutton Dwellings) 25, 28–9

  EMI 275

  emigration 83

  Farugia, Johnny 264–5, 268, 271, 275

  fighting 65–6, 71–2

  films: in cinemas 41, 42, 118–19; on lorries 55; at school 128, 129–30; westerns 118–19

  Flick Cards 61–2

  food 37–40, 104–6, 141, 195, 254–5, 260–1; rationing 37; school lunches 34–5, 125, 128, 195, 254, 260

  football 114–17, 119, 141, 148–9, 159; in Denmark 157; in Liverpool 234; playing in parks 120; QPR 114–15, 116–17, 119, 148, 159, 269; at school 149, 175; at Stamford Bridge 177–8

  football pools 46, 47, 49, 50; in Big Freeze 177

  Foster, Dolly
(née Gibson; aunt of Alan) 30, 31

  Foster, Les (uncle of Alan) 30, 31

  Fourth Feathers Club 256, 259, 271, 279

  Frampton, Peter 280

  Freeze, Big 1963 173–7

  Fulham 194, 238

  Fulham County Grammar School for Girls 97 106, 140

  gambling 49–50, 148

  gas lamps 12

  Gemmill, Mr (headmaster) 92, 108–9, 123

  Gibson, Joe (‘Sonny’; uncle of Alan) 30, 229

  Gibson, John (grandfather of Alan) 16, 17, 18–20, 32, 230

  Gibson, John (uncle of Alan) 30, 225, 229

  Gibson, Maria (grandmother of Alan) 16–17, 18, 20

  Gibson, Norman (uncle of Alan) 229

  Green, Harry (uncle of Alan) 34, 234–5

  Green, Rita (née Gibson; aunt of Alan) 19–20, 32–3, 225, 234

  Grimond, Jo 93

  guitars 50, 113, 114, 119, 184, 185, 228, 247, 252, 257, 271–2, 275

  Hackett, Stephen 184, 215

  Hamlet Gardens 267–8, 272

  Hammersmith 193, 195, 255, 267–8; Brook Green Nursery 193, 204, 258; Register Office 283; tower block 241

  Hammersmith Hospital 116, 189, 191, 204, 207–8, 209–10, 211, 216–20, 221, 224–5

  Handley, Ronnie 255, 261, 263

  Harris, ‘Dolly’ (teacher) 248

  Hassam, Sham 271, 272, 275–6

  Hayes, Mr (teacher) 68, 109, 110, 188

  Hayward, Peter 123

  Heath, George (uncle of Alan) 30, 86, 225, 229, 233

  Heath, Jean (née Gibson; aunt of Alan) 8, 19, 30–1, 86; after Lilian’s death 220, 225, 229, 233

  Henry (Lilian’s suitor) 131–3

  Henry, Dr (headmaster) 127–8, 188, 215, 249, 251

  Henry’s Radios, Praed Street 196, 198

  hire purchase 46–7, 50, 113

  Holland Park 15, 120–1, 124; Comprehensive School 124

  hop-picking 34, 86

  horoscopes 56–7 Hughes, Marilyn 57, 84, 91

  Hull 31

  Hyde Park 54, 119

  illegitimacy 57, 274

  immigrants 48, 75–7, 147; Cochrane 89–92, 94

  In-Betweens, the (band) 271–2, 275, 279

  Ireland, Mr and Mrs 17, 31, 33

  [Sir] Isaac Newton Secondary Modern School 73, 107, 123

  James, Colin 183–8, 194, 205, 212, 215, 253

  Jay, Peter 279–81

  Joe Loss Orchestra 280

  Johnson, Alan: birth 11; names 11–12, 277–8; childhood in North Kensington 12, 15, 18–27, 28–45, (visit to Liverpool 31–4), (infants school 34–5, 75), 46–63, (Christmas alone 52–3), (primary school 57, 61–2, 75, 92, 108–11), 64–74, (and father 66), (seized by madman 72–3), 75–86, (on father’s leaving 83–6), 89–101, 103–13, (Eleven-plus exam 106–7, 123–5); at secondary school 106, 125–6, 127–30, (eye injury 136–7), 140–2, 159, 168–70, 188, 248–53; song–writing 112, 113, 270; football 114–16, 159, 177–8; Cub Scout 119; and father 144–5, 232–3; works for milkman 146–8, 194–5; holiday in Denmark 150–9; Christmas in Romford 162–6; puberty 167–8; appendicitis 170–3; in Big Freeze 174; teenager 178–90, 193–206, 253–4; while mother in hospital 202–6, 207–18; death of mother 219–20; aftermath 220–30; mother’s funeral 230–3; in Liverpool 233–4; new accommodation sought 235–41; in Pitt House 245–7, 256, 258; writing ambition 249–50, 252; leaves school 251, 252; first jobs 254–6, 261–5; living with Coxes 259–61, 266–7; in Hamlet Gardens 267–8; meets Judy 273–5; as postman 46, 276–8; with bands 185, 205, 256–7, 258, 269–72, 275–6, 279; audition 279–81; marriage and children 283

  Johnson, Betty (aunt of Alan) 222–3, 232

  Johnson, Emma (daughter of Alan) 283

  Johnson, Jamie (son of Alan) 43

  Johnson, Jim (uncle of Alan) 23, 222–3, 232, 240

  Johnson, Lilian (née Gibson; mother of Alan): family 16–17; birth 7; early life 14–15, 17–18, 20, 117, 230; wedding, 7–8; childbirths 11; politics 93; religion 25, 56; teeth 222; living in Southam Street 12, 15–16, 22, 23–6, 28–32, (visits Liverpool 32–4), 34–9, 41–5, (wins football pools 46–7, 49, 50), 46–52, 55–7, 63, 64, 66–71, 77–86, (on husband’s leaving 83–6), (and death of Cochrane 89–92), 93–4; work 15, 42, 52, 53–4, 97, 102, 121, 126, 140; in hospital 52–3, 100–1, 134, 138, 141, 179, 189, 190–2, 202, 203–4, 205–5; living in Walmer Road 95–100, 103–8, 111–13, 116, 119–20, 123–6, 130–7, 138–41, 144–5, 148, 150–1, 160–1, 99–100; divorce 99–100, 103–4; and daughter 99, 130–1, 138, 191–2, 193; seeks second husband (Henry 131–3, 138), (Ron 160–5); final illness 199–202; in hospital 207–11, 216–19; death 220–5; funeral 223–4, 230–2

  Johnson, Linda (sister of Alan): birth 11; character 13–14; childhood 12, 13, 15–16, 21–2, 24–7, 28–35, 39, 42, 44, 50, (CCHF holiday 150), (Christmas alone 52–3), 54–8, 60, 63, 64, 80–3, (pet dog 81–2), (attacks father 82), (on father’s leaving 83–6); teenage years 95–9, 104–6, (works in shops 104, 134), 111–12, (and mother 99, 130–1, 138, 191–2, 193), 131–3, (dates 133–6, 139, 196–7, 199–203), (confronts father 142–5), 160–5, 167–8, 170–2, 175, 179–83, 191–2, (leaves school 191, 193); nursery nurse training 191, 193–4, 258; while mother in hospital 203–11, 216–19; at mother’s death 220–5, 227; subsequently 229–33, 235–41; in Pitt House 245–7, 251–2, 257; in Watford with Mike Whitaker 258–9, 269, 272–3; marriage 258, 261; children 283

  Johnson, Nanny (grandmother of Alan) 20–1, 23, 24, 25, 223

  Johnson, Sandra (half-sister of Alan) 145

  Johnson, Stephen (father of Alan): early life 7, 14–15; wedding 7, 8; career 14, 34, 144; as pianist 14, 15, 33, 34, 78, 114, 132; living with family 12, 15, 20–1, 25, (and Elsie 26, 28–9), (in Liverpool 31–4), 35, 41–5, (party host for Cobden Club 43, 60), 46, 48–50, (Christmas 1957 52–3), 57–8, (teaches son boxing 66), 67, 78–9, 80–3, (and dog 81–2), (and football 114–15), 223; leaves family 83–6, 113; in Dulwich with Vera 103, 142–4, 145; divorce 103–4; as absent father 103, 104, 119, 137, 138, 139, 143, 144–5, 193, 207; confronted by daughter 142–4; and son 144–5, 226, 232–3; on wife’s death 222, 232–3; subsequently 239, 246

  Johnson, Vera (second wife of Stephen) 86, 102–3, 142–4

  Johnson, Wally (uncle of Alan) 86

  Kabin, the 40

  Kearns, Tony 256

  Keeler, Christine 189, 190

  Kelly, Susan 268

  Kennedy, John F.: assassination 206

  Kenny, Mrs (landlady) 267–8

  Kensal Green cemetery 92, 231

  Kensal Town see North Kensington

  Kensington Gardens 54–5

  Kensington Palace Hotel 73

  Kensington Post 160

  Kensington Register Office 7

  Kilburn 181, 182, 259

  King, Nosmo 281

  Kirby, Linda 109–10, 157

  Kirby, Russell 110

  Kirk, Stephen 65, 152, 153–6

  Ladbroke Grove library 35, 60, 117

  Ladd, Alan 11–12, 129

  Lads of the Village pub, North Kensington 85–6, 102–3

  Langton, Maureen 157

  Latimer Arms, North Kensington 97–8, 174

  launderette 38

  Lawrence, Terry 185, 188, 215

  Leadsford, Mrs (teacher) 123

  Liverpool 86, 207–8, 225; in Lilian’s childhood 14, 16, 17–18, 20; family visit 29–30, 31–4; visit after Lilian’s death 233–5

  London: bands 187, 252, 256–7, 269–72, 275–6, 279–81; fog 22; ‘swinging’ 183, 253–4; see also districts

  London County Council 235, 236–7, 241, 258–9

  Macdonald, Malcolm 128, 149

  Marquee Club, Wardour Street 187, 252

  Marsh, Rodney 269–70

  Matthews, Stanley 177–8

  Mayne, Roger 13, 76

  Meehan, Pat 275

  Melody Maker 256

  Mindbenders, the (band) 279

  Mods 175, 179, 180–2, 184, 197, 25
2, 280

  Mosley, Oswald 93–5

  museums 54–5, 55–6

  music 110–13, 114; bands 185, 187, 194, 252, 256–7, 269–72, 279–81 (see also Area; In-Betweens; Vampires); broadcast 130, 172–3, 279–80; folk 198; Stephen Johnson as pianist 14, 15, 33, 34, 78, 114, 132; played at home 132–3; pop 110–12, 173–4, 179, 184; at schools 110, 129, 184, 185; singing 132–3; see also guitars; records

  NAAFI (Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes) 14–15, 20, 30, 70

  National Health Service 11, 99, 172; dentistry 222

  Natural History Museum 55–6

  Nin (aunt of Lilian) 19

  North Kensington (Notting Hill) 24, 29, 33, 42, 48, 120, 137, 146, 159, 190, 201, 245–6, 259, 274, 278; demolition 266; milk deliveries 146–7; parks 55; race riots 78, 79–80; see also Southam Street; Walmer Road

  Notting Hill see North Kensington

  Old Moore’s Almanack 56

  Orwell, George 249, 251

  Owen, Wilfred: ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’ 248

  Ozorowitz, Alex and brother 152, 156–7, 158–9

  Paddington General Hospital 12, 53, 90

  Paddington Station 12, 16, 23–4

  Pallai, Peter (teacher) 248, 253

  Pankhurst, Emmeline 93

  Pavilion 257

  Peabody, George 24

  Peabody Buildings 21, 23, 222, 240

  Pepper, Mr (social worker) 237, 238–40, 241, 246, 247, 248

  piano, at home 44–5, 60, 112–13, 132–3

  pie and mash shops 39

  Pied Horse pub, Islington 272, 275, 279

  Pitt House, Wandsworth 245–8, 258

  Playboy magazine 198–9

  Portobello Road 38, 49, 63, 111, 181; market 34, 45, 134

  Post Office 276–8

  Profumo, John 189–90

  Provident 31–2, 47, 134, 207

  Prudential 47, 134

  Putney Bridge 252

  Pye International records 179, 180–1, 195

  Queens Park Rangers 114–15, 116–17, 119, 148, 159, 177, 269

  Rachman, Peter 48, 75, 190

  racism 77–80, 92, 169

  radio: pirate stations 279–80; programmes 24, 45, 46, 130, 172; sets 45, 46, 112, 130, 171, 172, 254, 268; see also BBC Radio