Martin Richter… is Brian Pollard still about ?
st leonards on sea
ITT Consumer Products (UK) Ltd, Theaklen Drive, St Leonards – Job Ad 1974 & 1978
Matt Thomas… My mum worked here
Alan Esdaile… notice the wages
Pauline Richards… And the part time hours ‘for women’
Cliff Wootton… I worked there from 1974 to 1978. Started on the factory floor and worked my way up to draughtsman, illustrator and tech pubs specialist. Happy days
Paul Morfey… Both me and my wife ( janette) worked at ITT in Hastings in the 70ts. That is where we met. We just celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary!
Pete Prescott… I worked there as a temp in 78. I was in the buying dept with Keith Garnsey.
Dave Nattress… Wages – and if I read it right, unequal rates for males/females doing the same job? Certainly though a major player ITT. I had several friends who worked there in different roles or who took different rolls to work, (ham, cheese and pickle and salmon and cucumber being well popular). Of the illustrations on the advert I’m sure many of us had their products. I actually had the radio, cassette player/recorder, (2 of them, used for band rehearsals), and my parents had , the music centre at one time albeit not the best HiFi. Another local name and employer long gone.
Peter Millington… My father Bob Millington worked there managing the Stores Dept. between about 1966 to about 1978. He also organised all the dances at the White Rock and the Queens Hotel, a busy chap!
Paul Bryant… My mother worked there for a short time,remember the Christmas party they used to throw for employees children
Ralph Town… See how repressed women were back then. Different wage rates for men and women. Terrible.
Jan Warren… I worked for British Radio Corporation, Beeching Road, Bexhill in 1971/72 they were soon taken over by ITT!! – I enjoyed working for BRC, lots of my schoolfriends were there, it was fun, nice atmosphere, happy days!!
Richard Johnstone… I worked there from 73 to 78 in production planning. We had 3 categories of production workers – high skilled males, low skilled males and females! Doing different jobs – women on the component assembly lines, men (skilled) on testing and fault correction and men (low skilled) on jobs known as ‘hauling and mauling’. No overlap between the sexes
Peter Ulyatt… I worked there from 1963ish to 1979 when my wife, 3 kids and I emigrated to Australia. When I started it was known as KB (Kolster Brands). I started checking radios as they came off the assembly line. If they worked, I calibrated them ready for dispatch. If they didn’t work they got put on one side for a technician to fix it. A couple of years later I became one of those technicians. When ITT took it over, can’t remember when, I started working on TVs as a technician and worked up to being a Test Diagnostician. Then came the start of colour TV. A screen about 12 ” across In a massive cabinet full of valves. You needed an asbestos suit to work on them. Good days and a good company to work for.
Pete Prescott… I worked in the purchasing department for a month (temping) in early 78 with Keith Garnsey. amazing guy.
Terry Corder… My first job was there in 1968!
Harry Randall… Did you make it?
Marine Court St Leonards-on-Sea photo
photo : Historic England https://www.facebook.com/HistoricEngland
Colin Bell… Great photo. We lived a few hundred yards away, when I was growing up. Dad remembered watching it being built as a 8/9 year old in the mid 1930’s. It’s got quite a history, Two workmen died during construction from falls, & the Luftwaffe machine gunned & bombed it during WW2.
Peter Ellingworth… Didn’t the Luftwaffe catch some Canadian Air Force guys having a muster parade in front of Marine Court one day in WW2 with resultant loss of life ?
Wendy Henry Wilson…in late 1950’s and early 1960’s my Mum worked in Grooms, an old fashioned grocers shop – sometimes my older sister and I would play under marina opposite. I remember the wind tunnel effect by the doors of the car showroom on the ground floor of this picture. Then I remember in the mid to late 1960’s, going to the Witchdoctor Disco on the first floor area in this picture too.
Peter Ellingworth… Following on, regarding the two workman mentioned who so sadly lost their lives during its construction. We rant about H&S and at times it does seem there is overkill (I had to write risk assessments at work so at least have some idea), but there is no denying that H&S has been a force for the good : how many people realise that as recently as the 1970’s one or so people were killed a week in the construction industry ? My own father narrowly escaped serious injury or death when working of the construction of the Post Office (around 1960) at the corner of London and Norman Road which was built on the the bombsite there.
A scaffolding clip fell from about twenty plus feet only just missing his head, so even with a safety helmet which didn’t really come into being until the mid-late sixties, he would have been badly hurt, and without one certain death. He didn’t seem too fazed about it if I remember ; like most of his generation he had lived through WW2, so after some of his experiences in Italy and elsewhere then no doubt saw it differently to how we would today.
Colin Bell… Hi Peter, i wrote the earlier comments about the death of the workmen & the Luftwaffe. It had a pretty profound effect on my Dad who actually witnessed one of the deaths whilst watching the building work with his older brother, he was only 8 or 9 at the time. It was sadly somewhat ironic, because all my family have been in the building industry for literally 100’s of years (I am the first one to not follow that path). Dad didn’t go overboard with H & S during his working life, but i can always remember his mantra of telling me ‘three limbs on a ladder at all times’. Thanks for sharing your memories
Richard Burks… Again really interesting local knowledge
Scalliwags isn’t a pub or club – 24th May 1975
Matt Thomas… Scalliwags is a place where my sister used to come home from in a drunken mess and wake the whole household up lol
Josie Lawson… I never went to Scalliwags, but latter 60s worked for Brianne Reade SNR and Derek Reade in their Estate Agents. Scalliwags is still going strong with Kevin Burchett and Madeline Scalliwag Reade
Pete Millington… SPYKE played there on 28th May – Wow! Such a changed venue from the Regent Hotel Ballroom we used to play at.
Coral Pasqua… Had many a great night down there
6th June 1977
Kevin Burchett… I don’t remember that lol
Hollington Oak St Leonards – Tug Of War Team late 50’s
photo © Dave Pepper
Dave Pepper… with Eric Pepper, Alf Holyer and Ginger Davis. Can you name anymore?
The Fenmen – Witch Doctor 23rd April 1966
Jimmy Page on session guitar…
Rock Night 6 – The Hamsters plus The Lost Boys Marina Pavilion 20th April 1996
poster supplied by Pete Prescott
Jim Breeds… The Hamsters were very good. Shame they packed it in – I went to one of their last gigs. Think it may have been their very last gig.
Pete Prescott… I remember that gig well. They were not happy with us. We went on first, it was our crowd. A few hundred walked out after a few songs. Shame as they were a great band.
Masons Music – est 3rd April 1978, closed 4th November 2016
Hastings Pier, 187 Queens Road, 190 Queens Road, Grove Road Ore, Ponswood Ind Estate St Leonards.
Alan Esdaile… Now time for me to get a proper job.
Matt Thomas… I drove past earlier – something drew me to the place today.Sorry it’s come to this. End of an era as Masons Music closes it doors for the last time today, up until last year I had spent nearly 30 years at the place so very sad for me to hear today.
Chris Coleman… That must be a record
Jim Breeds… Really? Gosh. Best wishes for the next venture!
Colin Norton… Sorry to hear this, Alan! Hope that everything works out for you!
Tony May… Oh what a year this has been for you and for me. So sorry to hear this but not surprised in the current climate. If you can please pass on my condolences to all who have lost their jobs today. I may have left a long while ago but part of me shall always belong to Masons Music and the legacy that its existence played in what we all used to recognise as the music industry. Best wishes to you Alan – I will be in touch soon.
Jo Turner… Sorry to hear that
Virginia Davis… Good luck in your next venture
Diane Barton… Have the best memories 
🙂 Fun times xxx
Ian Mantel… Every week on pay day in early 80’s I bought records.
Simon Payne… Masons Music played an important part in many of our Hastings lives. Sad to hear of it closing it’s doors today. Sad news Alan, I wasn’t with you long but still remember it fondly. Good luck for the future.
Rock Night 5 with The Lost Boys, The Bombshells and Huw Lloyd-Langton – Marina Pavilion 1st April 1995
supplied by Pete Prescott
Pete Prescott… Remember this one well ! Beki sang with the Lost Boys. Mr Langton was on another planet and had to be forced off stage. The Lost Boys had a good night !
Karen Sweatman… Beki and the Bombshells were absolutely brilliant. I spent many a happy evening boogieing with those guys. Fabulous memories 🙂
Pete Prescott… They were a great band. Wonderful days.
Martin Richter… before the Lost Boys lost their hair !
Tony Court-holmes… still got mine and its getting longer
Tony Hughes… Yep Mr Prescott what an amazing front man
