Kay Parrott (the Head Librarian of the Record Office before she retired) says that it is thought that it was Philip Holt, but I've read somewhere else that it was confirmed that it was Philip Holt, and it certainly wasn't Tom Slemen, because I don't read his books.
Last edited by PhilipG; 03-12-2007 at 08:49 PM.
Christopher T. George
Editor, Ripperologist
Editor, Loch Raven Review
http://christophertgeorge.blogspot.com/
Chris on Flickr and on MySpace
Some great old pics (inc. some of 'The Mystery') are online here.
AP.
http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/View...002&p=70296036
I got a modern pic of this In my flickr.
Gididi Gididi Goo.
I was writing a piece on another website when I wanted to discover why it was called the mystery so I know now. This is my first post it is from a collection on Penny Lane
The Mystery Park was called the mystery because nobody new why they called it the Mystery, it was in effect a Mystery. One theory was that it was left to Liverpool by a
Mystery benefactor who was a shipping company owner
However for us the term meant Mystery and we made our own accounts of what the Mystery was about. Tales of murder and bodies and also sightings of lets say the supernatural variety abounded. The park had railings as was closed to the public at night. Sometimes walking through at tea time I would have the anxiety that the park keeper would lock me in for the night, so that meant making a dart for the gates. The fair came about twice a year and that was a big happening. I always remember how smartly dressed everyone was. The boys wore Ben Sherman shirts two tone trousers and Como shoes. Everyone was immaculately dressed. The girls wore short skirts and they all had really attractive legs, and bright colored blouses. Everyone would congregate on the Waltzers or Speedway and the music of Tamala Motown would blare out. I was a young mod so my clothes were the same as the bigger lads only a smaller size. I managed to get a job working on the fair. That made me really important. I would collect the money for the rides. If I liked girls I would pretend I never noticed them sitting in the car and they would get a free ride. I would also spin the car so they would get scared and scream. The fair lasted about two weeks but it was always a big social event.
The Park was a large Park and once a year they hosted the Liverpool show. The Liverpool show was quite a big affair. I could never get my head around all the horticulture stuff, and the Horses, and business tents. It was often quite hot on the day and quite frankly to me quite boring. I remember the local army regiment would have a stand and they would have a mounted machine gun with a magazine belt attached. The size of the bullets would make me shudder to think that they could be fired into a person. The people that attended the show were mostly quite well off in terms of the Liverpool experience, it wasn?t a day out for the poorer class. I never paid as I thought paying was pointless when most of the affair was quite alienating, so we sneaked in through the many ways we knew of. Then the show would go and the Park was ours again. I always sit looking out the window when I arrive in Liverpool on the train as the train skirts the Park and it always appears just after the grey slate roofs of Penny Lane, and I always think no matter what happens in life I am just the kid who grew up around the place, what will be will be success, heartbreak, life, it all comes down to knowing your roots.
I was searching for some back ground on the Liverpool Show which brought me to your posting. I don't know what became of the Liverpool Show, but I have a vivid memory of performing at the 1953 Royal Liverpool Show at Wavertree Park in Coronation Year.
I was a raw recruit to the Royal Air Force doing my square bashing at West Kirby and was 'volunteered' into a PT squad who were drilled an trained for five weeks during our 8 week training course at RAF West Kirby. I cannot remember the date but probable about the middle of July. I was the smallest guy in the squad, and whilst OK with the standing exercises had some difficulty with the apparatus, but managed to develop a style of my own to get over them. On the day of the show we all trotted out and did our stuff. When we came to the apparatus work I was 'tail end charley' the others went over immaculately at some speed to much applause, then it was my turn and as I jumped up off the spring board my legs went high in the air and I pitter pattered my way over the 'horse' to great laughter from the crowd and applause, I then realised why I had made the team!!
I became a pen friend of a lass from West Kirby. On completion of RAF service in 1956 I moved to West Kirby eventually in 1957 I was employed by British Railways in the Goods Department at Shore Road Birkenhead, then at Edgerton Dock in the time office where my colleague was a former Driver on the overhead railway up to it’s closure. I had a flat in West Kirby, 1958 we married. Our first daughter was born in our second flat in Hoylake our second and third daughters were born at Birkenhead. My wife was employed at Rushworth
and Dreapers and we had quite a few friends on Merseyside some of whom we are some 55 years later still in touch.
Hi A.G., it's a few years since there was a Liverpool show,the last one was in the 90's,I think? The reason it ended was the cost involved!
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