Hi Reg
That imposing b/w photo of Cornwall House brought back memories for me as well. I had 2 spells there. First as a ‘sprog’ and part of the Registry service I used to fill in when someone was on leave or sick. Thus I had to manage the Office Machinery files for Jack Shand – remember him?
Secondly CRS were there for a while in a splendid suite of rooms overlooking both the river and also the large bombed area which was to become the National Theatre and South Bank Centre. Speaking of which the offices were close to The Wellington (which I’m sure you know well) where I could meet up with chums from the Old Vic Company before going down to the Vicarage for an afternoon matinee. Happy days!
Kind regards,
John
Hello John, Good to hear from you. Jack Shand was a name often on the lips of Charlie Lloyd, Joe Delaney, Stan Smith, Dan Paul and many others, but our paths never crossed. Possibly because he was born in 1895 and had retired by the time I joined in 1963. By the way, others in the ‘EO staff list’ for the same period also featured in the stories of those listed above – Messrs Laurie Andrew (who was P5b when I joined), Gourlay, Bonnamy, Rickard and Miss Flateau. Not surprised to hear that CRS was treated with due deference. And yes, I knew The Wellington and recently walked past it on the way to the Union Jack Club, and then to the excellent Master’s Fish and Chip shop just beside the very same Old Vic. Happy days indeed!
All the best, and keep the Island of Dreams in good order for us!
Reg