Win a Roberts radio and a copy of The Double Dangerous Book for Boys *NOW CLOSED*

we used to sweep fallen autumn leaves in the school playground into the outlines of the floorplans of buildings and play games of imagination in all sorts of cities or Red Indian camps or whatever was the theme at the time. I remember being very disappointed when it was time to go inside for lessons!

Camping with the scouts

Stamp collecting, we didn’t have much as kids 7 of us lived in a top floor flat so I shared with my brothers and sisters. But I would sit in the kitchen with my stamp book happily sticking in stamps from all over the world that my Dad brought home from his office and I’d ,go and buy those little tiny bags of sticky flaps you stick the stamps in with my grandpa would give me sixpence and he’d sometimes buy me a little packet of pretty stamps. I willed away many happy hours.

My sister and I would make perfume out of rose petals and water. When our lovely scent was ready we would put it in jam jars or tins and take it to the neighbours houses as presents. We genuinely thought they loved it.

Wiled away lol

A Scalextric race track which my dad made for me, from wood, tinfoil and patience, complete with race cars etc.
The days when money was really tight, Mum and Dad always came out trumps.
We all had lots of fun on this game.

Roaming around the woods with friends, making camps & having picnics

Has to be when I got my bike and went for bike rides with my friends.

Sharing my Fathers hobby of stamp collecting with him.

Learning how to play chess from a very young age with my dad

We used to live near a stream and we spend hours just jumping across it, back and forward without a care in the world.

Playing escalado, a racing game with my kids and my late father who used to have them in stitches making horse noises. We miss him so

Loved playing hopscotch outside. We would chalk a new one every day.

Playing two ball against the school wall

My sister and I used to make a den from an old fashioned wooden clothes horse and old sheets and have a picnic in the hideaway behind the shed.

simple things really, playing on our bikes, walking along the stream looking for treasures! happy days!!

The Blue Peter projects.

What I liked most was receiving a new paint box and brushes. In fact I was totally intrigued by the number of shades of different colours with each having a name of its own. Not only did I love using each small rectangle of paint to create dozens of imaginative paintings but it taught me many new words referring to colour which I have never forgotten to this day. Carmine, crimson, maroon, burgundy and vermilion are just a names that have always stayed with me. I was always very careful to keep each colour clean ready for my next painting session.

As an only child in the 50's I used to love entering colouring competitions. I remember trying to make sure that my painting stayed 'within the lines' and took to shading to try and make my entry stand out. Entering children's crosswords in my local paper also took my fancy, and I even managed to win a thing or two. Those were the days!

Climbing trees

The game I really enjoyed was playing conkers with my brother and our friends but unfortunately the conker season only lasted a short time although we tried all sorts of things to make them last and harder like baking them in the oven and putting them in vinegar. The best part for me was going out conkering in the woods near to where we lived, we used to spend all day their without a car in the world, happy days.

skipping, I loved it and wish I had the energy to do it now!

Playing nurses with my dolls, roping my little sisters in as patients. Yes I did become a nurse!

I fondly remember playing with a long skipping rope ( some Mum's washing line ! ) and all the kids took turns to skip. It
stretched a fair way along the street, but no cars to worry about in the 50' ! Happy Days !

Playing ball against the wall, and if there were enough of us, who remembers 'The Big Ship sails through the alley alley oh, the alley alley oh, the alley alley oh! The Big Ship sails through the alley alley oh on the last day of November!"