An event today in Tipton was a reminder of all the great achievments weve made in the Black Country and the wealth of stories and characters that there are too. All celebrated at the event at Tipton Sports Academy.
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00:00We're here at Tipton Sports Academy Social Club and with Lisa Cox. Hello, Lisa.
00:04Hello.
00:05So you're leaning on a beautiful pump there made by Lee Howell, I believe.
00:09It is, yes. One of our local companies in Tipton.
00:13Well, I've never heard of him before, but they were quite big in the day, apparently, weren't they?
00:17I believe I had a great-grandfather who worked at Lee Howells until he was 68.
00:23Yeah, yeah.
00:23So he was in the early 1900s.
00:27So what's happening today? Is this an annual event, is it?
00:30An annual event for the local history groups to meet together and invite people in to see Tipton's local history.
00:37And there's some great stuff, a lot of displays and exhibitions, that kind of stuff.
00:41Yeah, we've got a power force display, a railway display, all up-to-date old-fashioned maps.
00:49Yeah, yeah.
00:49Tipton, all war things down the other side here. There's all different things happening.
00:54And this area really is, it's just a wealth of stories and tales, isn't it, from Yale's years gone by.
01:00You know, there's so much stuff, isn't there, that's happened around this way.
01:04Exactly. I mean, we've done a boat.
01:06Yeah.
01:06We've done an aeroplane, we've done a car, we've done a name, all in this little area of Tipton's.
01:11So we're here with two former Lee Owl employees. We've got Kevin Cox and Val...
01:18Williams.
01:19Val Williams.
01:20My brother.
01:21Cool.
01:21And this is you on the old pictures, back at the Lee Owls factory, back in the day.
01:26There's you with your posh accountancy machine.
01:28What was it like working there, then?
01:32It was family orientated.
01:34Yeah.
01:35There was that many families that worked there.
01:39It was a pleasure to go every day.
01:44And tell us about these day trips. I hear they hired a train for the staff.
01:49Yeah, they hired a train.
01:50It stopped at Tipton Railway Station and took all the workers and their families.
01:57This year, they're on one about with Skegness.
02:00Yeah.
02:00And I went to Blackpool.
02:03You went on the Mad Mouse, didn't you, Val?
02:05I did, I did.
02:05Once only.
02:07Once, never again.
02:08And then twice a year, they put on dances.
02:13The summer one was at the Wolfer and All, and the winter one was always at the Civic Hall.
02:18Yeah.
02:19And Kendrick's coaches took us there and brought us back.
02:23Oh, right.
02:23So the pumps we used, anything to do with water that needed pumping, in all kinds of capacities, yeah?
02:29All your electricity was used pumps.
02:34They used to supply CEGB at the time, Central Electricity Generation Board, the Coal Board, Fire Brigade.
02:44Saudi Arabia used to buy them.
02:46No way.
02:47And I remember, because the officer I was in, they went all over the world.
02:53Yeah.
02:53So what happened?
02:54Was it, is this another story of pumps being made abroad that came in that were cheaper and that, is that what saw the end of Lee Owls?
03:02More or less, yes.
03:03Yeah, yeah.
03:04What a shame.
03:05Plus, they didn't, yeah, and they didn't progress quickly as others.
03:12Yeah, yeah.
03:13Because every fire brigade had a real pump on board.
03:19Yeah, yeah.
03:20Every lifeboat.
03:21Every lifeboat.
03:22Yeah.
03:23Had an emergency.
03:24Yeah.
03:25Hand pumps.
03:26Made by Lee Owls.
03:27Made by Lee Owls.
03:28Made by Lee Owls.
03:29No way.
03:30So good times, good memories.
03:31Yeah.
03:32It was a bigger 327.
03:34The reason I know so much was, my first job there was working in the space department.
03:40Yeah.
03:41In the office.
03:42In the office.
03:43Yeah, yeah.
03:44And I used to have to transfer everything from the sales manager.
03:47Yeah.
03:48Into a card index system.
03:50So when they phoned up.
03:52Yeah.
03:53And said, we're from the NCB.
03:57Yeah.
03:58And they say which mine it was.
04:01They got to the card index, looked for it, find the card they wanted.
04:05Yeah.
04:06And they knew, before they even said, what pump it was and what spares it had in the past.
04:11Yeah.
04:12And Val, you used to do the wages.
04:14You were saying there was no break time.
04:16It was crack on when it was wages day.
04:17That's right.
04:18And the bosses just used to walk to the bank and get the cash out, didn't they?
04:21In a big bag and walk back with it.
04:23They weren't bosses.
04:24They were workers.
04:25Yeah, yeah.
04:26In the office.
04:27Yeah, they just used to go with a Gladstone bag.
04:29Yeah, yeah.
04:30And get the cash and then walk back.
04:32No way.
04:33When I started that.
04:34Well, thank you for your memories.
04:36Cheers, guys.
04:37OK.
04:38We're here with the lovely John Homer.
04:40A face you may recognise if you've been to the Black Country Museum.
04:43How are you, John?
04:44I'm very well, thank you.
04:45Boston, I should say.
04:46Boston.
04:47So, you're peddling your wares.
04:48What have we got here?
04:49Peddling me wares.
04:50It's a book of me poetry.
04:52Ah.
04:53Since I was little, I've been writing poetry.
04:55And my wife has always said you should publish a book.
04:57And as a surprise for my 70th birthday in March, she'd arranged for a book of my works to be published.
05:03What a cracking 70th present.
05:05There's 16 little poems in there.
05:07Ah.
05:08That are what I wrote, they are.
05:10What I wrote, they are.
05:11Well, go on then.
05:12Give us a little verse or two.
05:13Go on.
05:14Alright then.
05:15Shall I give you me Albion one?
05:16Yeah.
05:17Go on.
05:18Yeah, give us a scene to Sweden and Samwell.
05:19Alright.
05:20They'll be an A as good as wolves, I told.
05:22Is that how it starts?
05:23This, I wrote this when me dad died in 1998.
05:27It came in the flash of inspiration day.
05:29Yeah.
05:30If I had a wish, I'd wish there are a lad, walking up Alfred's Lane, holding hands with me dad.
05:35It's another cold Saturday at 23, but the cold don't matter when it's my dad with me.
05:40Weaving past buoys and hardworking chaps, with mufflers and scarves and rattles and caps,
05:45on to the turnstile with the beam on me face, and onto the smedican, me and me dad in our
05:50usual place.
05:51Then the smell of the pipe smoke pervading the air, the banter that chatter, there's noise
05:55everywhere.
05:56Me dad sees a mate and he shouts out, aye, aye.
05:59Then the teams reach the field and up comes a cry.
06:01Fire up the baggies, I yell and I shout, but dad says, hold up or your voice will get
06:05out.
06:06The match is fantastic, we sing and we cheer, and I tell me dad, I'm glad that we're here.
06:10At the end of the match, I chant and I sing.
06:12Brown scored the winner, but Astor's the king.
06:15Holding on to me programme, we race home for tea, by a November fireside with mum, dad
06:20and me.
06:21Now, wishes are pipe dreams, but I really don't care, cause all of this happened, I know
06:25I was there.
06:26I'm grateful it did, cause there'll always be, memories of match days, Astor the King,
06:31and my dad and me.
06:33Absolutely stunning.