Questions for older hornets

Discussion in 'Taylor's Tittle-Tattle - General Banter' started by Bloke, Jul 25, 2017.

  1. Bloke

    Bloke Reservist

    I've been having a chat with some friends, and trying to remember the names of some restaurants in Watford from the late 70's and 80's

    two Italian restaurants on St. Albans Rd opposite Peter Spiveys
    An Italian restaurant at the end of Market St next to the old picture house
    The restaurant above the jewellers opposite Clements
    The tea shop that is where Yates is now
    ...also what were the picture houses called?
    I remember the Odeon on the parade but the Clarendon Rd one next to the theatre and the one at the end of market st I cannot recall

    I'm sure some of you more mature folks can help me out

    Thanks
     
    I Blame Pozzo likes this.
  2. zztop

    zztop Eurovision Winner 2015

    Picture Houses,
    The Empire facing the end of Market Street. The Essoldo in Kings Street, The Odeon in High Street (but it had been the Gaumont, I think), The Gaumont in St Albans Rd (I think), and cant remember the name of the one next to the Palace Theatre.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2017
  3. KL Hornet

    KL Hornet Academy Graduate

    The Carlton by The Palace Theatre, I think...
     
  4. zztop

    zztop Eurovision Winner 2015

    Yep, that was it.
     
  5. CYHSYF

    CYHSYF Academy Graduate

    Italian in Merton rd at end of Market Street was Casa Roma I think
     
  6. Stevohorn

    Stevohorn Watching Grass Grow

    I can help you with the cinema questions.. thanks to the excellent cinematreasures site.

    The one at the end of Market street had a few different names but, as already mentioned, Watford folk always called it the Empire. It was also ABC and Cannon in it's latter days.
    Here's a link.. note there is a tab for more pics and people also post more pics in the comments section.
    http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/11697

    The Empire was the only one of the town's cinemas i took any notice of, cause we always parked up Cassiobury park way and walked down past there.


    Here is a link to the other Watford cinema's that have closed down.. http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/united-kingdom/england/watford?status=closed
     
    Smudger likes this.
  7. I Blame Pozzo

    I Blame Pozzo First Team

    Nostalgia's not what it was!
     
    Arakel likes this.
  8. zztop

    zztop Eurovision Winner 2015

    Oh dear, I didn't do too well there.
     
  9. KL Hornet

    KL Hornet Academy Graduate

    One of the Italian restaurants on St Albans Road was (I think) The Carnevale...
     
  10. Stevohorn

    Stevohorn Watching Grass Grow

    I thought you did really well considering how many there's been over the years and the somewhat confusing Odeon/Gaumont situation.
     
  11. Bloke

    Bloke Reservist

    Good work so far team
    Keep it up, thanks
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 31, 2018
  12. Stevohorn

    Stevohorn Watching Grass Grow

  13. Onceamascot

    Onceamascot Academy Graduate

    What about the Kardomah just opposite from Clements? I think I remember orange vinyl seats and that it was a choice of that or the BHS cafe on a childhood trip to Shop in Watford. Also a very greasy and smok old- style Wimpy bar somewhere near opposite the old BHS.
     
  14. kVA

    kVA Reservist

    Which cinema was referred to as the flea pit?
     
  15. Jossy

    Jossy Reservist

    Slightly off topic - but what a great picture in that Flickr album linked above by Stevohorn:

    [​IMG]
     
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  16. hornetgags

    hornetgags McMuff's lovechild

    The bigger Italian Restaurant on St Albans Road was called 'La Notte' (The Night) and Carnevale was the smaller one.
     
  17. Clive_ofthe_Kremlin

    Clive_ofthe_Kremlin Squad Player


    The fleapit was the same Empire. In 1974 I took a girl's grammar school girl there to see Towering Inferno.

    The next time I saw her was the following year and it was on the telly. She was Juliet in the BBC's Romeo and Juliet. That was a surprise.

    [​IMG]
     
  18. hornmeister

    hornmeister Tired

  19. Stevohorn

    Stevohorn Watching Grass Grow

    The Watford Memories and History facebook group recently had a discussion about the Empire cinema and this photo was posted showing the sign for the Italian restaurant. Which, as SYFCYH suggested, was indeed Casa Roma..


    20286847_10156394307544838_5622018630441964225_o.jpg



    It also transpired that George Michael worked at the Empire as a doorman and usher after leaving school. Apparently he wrote "Careless Whisper" during this period.. written on the bus to work and performed in the foyer.
    http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/4306467.Former_cinema_manager_was__a_one_off_/

    A blue plaque candidate?
     
    Chunky monkey and Bloke like this.
  20. Chunky monkey

    Chunky monkey Academy Graduate

    I seem to recall a restaurant/cafe called The Golden Egg on a high street / parade corner. These days of course it would be deemed to be in the “fast casual” sector.
     
  21. hornetgags

    hornetgags McMuff's lovechild

    Who remembers The New Penny night club?

    Used to be next to Sainsbury's in Queens Road (the pedestrianised part next to Intu).
     
  22. I don't know if I'm too old or too young - I don't even remember Sainsburys or Intu, never mind the New Penny...:(
     
  23. inayellowshirt

    inayellowshirt From the other place

    The restaurant above the jewellers opposite Clements

    This was on Watford History Facebook recently, something like "The Copper Kettle"
     
  24. Lloyd

    Lloyd Squad Player

    Peter Spiveys wasn't in St Albans Road. I think the sports shop you're thinking of was called Barton & Ausden. No idea what the Italian restaurants opposite were called though.
     
  25. hornetgags

    hornetgags McMuff's lovechild

    La Notte and Carnevale.
     
  26. hornetgags

    hornetgags McMuff's lovechild

    It was 40 years ago, so I wouldn't worry too much. It was back when Oceana or whatever it's called now was called Baileys.
     
  27. Clive_ofthe_Kremlin

    Clive_ofthe_Kremlin Squad Player

    Yes the Golden Egg. It was on the corner of the High Street near the Co-Op building. A Little Chef-style pie 'n' bacon 'n' chips 'n' peas menu, but with pretensions towards being a serious restaurant. Slightly down at heel and faded and usually almost empty.

    A very good cafe in the High Street was the Tonibell, which was the same side of the road but a little further up towards the pond. That was Italian owners. Very narrow and thin and cramped inside and lots of formica and a big coffee steamer. Spend many a morning in there with the newspaper and a bacon roll rather than being in school where I should be.

    Anyone recall Submarine Records which were up near to the bend by the Town Hall, but on the other side? They were there for a lot of years. That place and Hammonds Music shop were the places for Watford's style leaders to be seen.....
     
  28. Clive_ofthe_Kremlin

    Clive_ofthe_Kremlin Squad Player

    Yes Spivey's was in the High Street.

    When I was a ballboy we had 'Spivey for Sport' on the back of our track suits.
     
  29. Old man Harris (a poor man's Philip Green) and his wife who made the Maureen Lipman character in Coronation Street look friendly, used to own it. We ran an 'alternative / New Romantic' night on Mondays and Wednesdays.
     
  30. Pete Ausden was a mate of my dad's. Went bust mid 90's.
     
  31. That was where we went when we thought we were being sophisticated...
     
  32. Anybody remember the shop that sold stamps (for stamp collectors) at the top of Queens road by loates Lane? it was like something out of Diagon Alley.

    And speaking of stamps, am I right in thinking that somewhere around there was a place you could cash in your Green Shield Stamps?
     
  33. Clive_ofthe_Kremlin

    Clive_ofthe_Kremlin Squad Player

    Don't remember either of those two, but in Queen's Road was my favourite Watford shop as a kid. The second hand bookshop that seemed to go back for miles, piled high with musty old hardback Enid Blyton and Biggles etc.

    There was also a music shop down Queen's Road as I remember, but more of a shabby electric guitar place rather than Hammond's grand piano and cello.
     
  34. There was a good guitar shop on the left as you went towards the junction. Can't remember what it was called which is odd considering how much I spent in thete. On the right side opposite, Queens Road music is still there if you want a crap strat copy. How they make any money is beyond me, although the following story may give some ideas..

    About 3 years ago my daughter's french horn was stolen from our car. As it had cost about £3k (and this for an ''intermediate" instrument) my wife was distraught. I was in France, so she phoned me, I said, it'll be local toerags; call police and then find out all of the Cash Converters in a 10 mile radius. After trying about 6 on the phone, the one in Watford said a couple of eastern Europeans had been in with something that sounded like it, but they thought it was broken, (the detachable bell was in a different part of the case and they didn't realise) - and they sent them to the music shop in Queens Road. My wife went in pretending to buy some guitar picks for me, when guess what she spotted behind the counter.
    When she confronted them they at first claimed it was in for repair, then when she threatened to call the police, they handed it over, begging her not to.*

    * She did, but the police weren't interested "you've got it back, haven't you?", in spite of there being prints all over the instrument, and having the thieves on CCTV in the Cash Converters.
     
  35. goldpapaya

    goldpapaya First Year Pro

    Pete's a season ticket holder at Watford now. Sits in the Rookery
     
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