"i Was There!!"

[Bry Nylon]

Following on from Clapham Gull having (i) been in Stockwell tube station when Jean Charles de Menezes was shot dead, and (ii) having been in Warrington at the time of the IRA bombing...

Well, have you ever been inadvertantly caught up in / near the scene of / involved in an event that resulted in world-wide coverage or repercussions??

No lame ones, please. This thread is reserved for the BIG stories that made national and / or international news....

 

[BensGrandad]

I had just passed Victoria station going towards Chelsea Barracks when I approached the last set of lights before the barracks. they were on my right and I was going to turn left at the end to go over Chelsea Bridge, for some unknown reason and I do not even now know why, I stopped at the lights when they were green, and by the time I realised, they had gone to red and before turning green again the bomb went off.

Had I carried on through the lights, as I should have, I would probably not be here pestering you lot.

 

[clapham_gull]

Obviously too many to mention here..

 

[Buzzer]

Not me personally, but my Auntie Janette was one of the women who cleaned up the flat that Ronnie (or Reggie) murdered Jack the Hat McVitie in. She was going out with one of the lackeys at the time apparently.

She emigrated to S Africa very shortly afterwards.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

I got caught up in a riot in Quito, Ecuador. The president had declared a state of emergency and there were a series of riots.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/593310.stm

Myself and two friends were on the edge of the main riots, but managed to flee when tear gas and guns were being fired at will. Great fun at the time!

 

[clapham_gull]

John Peel (the sadly deceased DJ) was in Dallas when JFK was assasinated and was at the press conference when they brought out Lee Harvey Oswald, Jack Ruby was in the room with him.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Not me personally, but my Auntie Janette was one of the women who cleaned up the flat that Ronnie (or Reggie) murdered Jack the Hat McVitie in. She was going out with one of the lackeys at the time apparently.

She emigrated to S Africa very shortly afterwards.

This is the sort of thing we're looking for! Stoke Newington, right? I used to live just down the road from that flat (many, many years later, I hasten to add).

Oh, and BensGrandad - for what its worth, I'm glad you f***** up at the lights

 

[BensGrandad]

This is the sort of thing we're looking for! Stoke Newington, right? I used to live just down the road from that flat (many, many years later, I hasten to add).

Oh, and BensGrandad - for what its worth, I'm glad you f***** up at the lights

Thanks for that BN. Was the flat near The Atlas pub in Winson Road.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Thanks for that BN. Was the flat near The Atlas pub in Winson Road.

Don't know about the pub, but the flat was in Evering Road. I lived around the corner on Brooke Road, and my girlfriend at the time (later to be my wife), lived in Evering Road. (More Clapton than S. Newington, tbh).

 

[Gully]

Two earthquakes in the Netherlands, the first was in 92 and made the UK news, several people were killed in Germany.

 

[Buzzer]

Dunno too much about where my auntie was, Bry. She was very coy about it all. Understandable really.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Dunno too much about where my auntie was, Bry. She was very coy about it all. Understandable really.

I think I know her name, but it would be wrong to post it. Initials C.W?

 

[Buzzer]

umm...no. Maiden name Janette Reid. Quite safe to say so now as she died about 8 years ago.

I'll try and find out the lackey's name.

 

[Cian]

My dad had just turned on to Kildare Street on his motorbike when the third UVF bomb went off on South Leinster Street; didn't realise it had happened until he turned up at the house of the old aunt of my mother he was visiting and she was crying paranoid - as she knew that was his route from work.

 

[BensGrandad]

For a time in the late 60s, we ran the Bird Cage Pub, which was in Stamford Hill and also looked after The Atlas, whilest they didnt have a manager and the said 2 gentlemen used the meeting room upstairs for meetings. Unbeknown to us who they were, until I had a slight argument with them about drinking up and going and soon found out their names, but thankfully they were very good about it and took to my wife and I.

 

[Bry Nylon]

For a time we ran the Bird Cage Pub in the late 60s which was in Stamford Hill and also looked after The Atlas whilest they didnt have a manager and the said 2 gentlemen used the meeting room upstairs for meetings. Unbeknown to us who they were until I had a slight argument with them about drinking up and going and soon found out their names, but thankfully they were very good about it and took to my wife and I.

"BensGrandad tells the Kray twins to drink up and sling their hook"

Why doesn't that surprise any of us??

 

[Curious Orange]

I was on that train that crashed on the way to Paddington.

(though I got off at Reading)

 

[BensGrandad]

"BensGrandad tells the Kray twins to drink up and sling their hook"

It is perfectly true and was gone midnight and they were still up stairs. As I said I didnt know who they were so I went up and asked them to drink up and leave and made a joke about me being only in my early 20s so had things to do during the night. They laughed and within 10 minutes had drunk up and as they left gave me one of their cards in case I ever needed help. Their company was called Kray Enterprises.

 

[Lady Bracknell]

"BensGrandad tells the Kray twins to drink up and sling their hook"

Why doesn't that surprise any of us??

You mean he didn't tell 'em to fork off?

 

[Beach Hut]

You mean he didn't tell 'em to fork off?

Nope he probably asked them where the play-off money was (cheap joke and apologies BG)