Wigan Album

When I was a kid in the 50s this whole area was our "Adventure Playground" It's where we went "Brid Neesin', where we built rafts on the ponds, where we made slides down the Wutchie. It's also where we pretended to be John Wayne fighting the Indians and where we re-enacted the last war. We fished in the Fiver and camped round the pond. Never a grown-up supervising and never a worry about being attacked or molested, happy days.

Kids today can't make their own amusement anymore unless it has a battery or a plug attached. To be a youngster in the 1950's was a great time. I know that people looking back always say it was better when they were kids, but it really was an age of innocence when most kids believed in Father Christmas until they started senior school.

Typicall children of the fifties..... Playing out in all that fresh air no 'elf n'safety issues! Rarely any obesity seen and if you did hurt yourself you just limped home and got a plaster and went out again. The only thing I got in trouble with was if I went home wit torn clothes and lost ribbons!

Favvers young Frank's gett'n 'is 'opalong Cassidy shirt on wi't' tassles. A berr 'e mythered 'is mam t' deeuth fer tha.

Kids today are so wrapped up in cotton wool that they don't know what its like to play outdoors without the need for constant 24/7 supervision. This is because of all of the media fear mongering and brainwashing that we have slowly been conditioned in with child safety and silly health and safety regulations, and its not for the good in my opinion. Today all you see is kids with parents with them in a playground with CCTV everywhere and a fence around it looking like a prison; schools are just as bad. Then we have those that are just glued to their phones and Facebook or indoors playing video games all the time.

Remember you and your Aunty when I lived down Bolton Road

Yes Allan very good times then

Ah that was a carefree Granville Crompton before he discovered the Pink Elephant, Lloret, the Latics and Danny Priest!

Superb photo Granville, thanks for sharing it.

Just adore this picture, speaks volumes.

Why do we have to GROW UP??????

Ron Hunt. Well there benefits to growing up you know. Its getting old that I can't stand. I think (in my mid 60's) I could have coped with being 30 again for a long long time.