Off To Margate

Dr Clarke Case

On one occasion we went into the Crombie shop, just off Kingsbury Square intending to frighten the manager of the shop.

What had happened was that I had a blue mohair navy suit made to measure by him . How ever the jacket did not fit right and even after many alterations it did not fit properly. This was whilst Michael was in Borstal. So on Michael’s release, and him hearing about the suit, we decided to go an get our own back and frighten the manager to pieces. He was about 21 years old and we were younger. So we went into the shop and put Dr Clarke’s case on the counter and proceeded to get the chloroform out of the case intending to put the manager to sleep. We had no other intentions but simply to frighten him. When he realised what was about to take place, he was terrified and I had to stop Michael from knocking him out with the Chloroform. On one occasion we set off to Margate, on one Bank holiday. This was a custom amongst our generation of Mods. We all seemed to migrate to Yarmouth, Margate or Brighton. This was Whitsun bank holiday.

Off To Margate

1966 and Mod and Rocker riots were common. On this trip to the coast my brother was true to form he had borrowed a 22 Webley air pistol from Pat Jones and was determined to have a good time. He had fired the occasional pop shot at one or two girl’s bottoms, which cause many amusements to us all. This was not what I would have normally done because I remember how shocked I was at 11 years old a boy I recalled boys having air gun fights in the woods on the way home from school. I thought then how dangerous and stupid it was. However her was my brother older than I acting fearlessly. I just went along with it suppressing my natural cautiousness.

As we past through the various towns in London the air pistol was used to cause alarm. (As I write I shrivel up at the thought of what was done) We found it amusing to shoot at ladies bottoms as their reactions of shock was funny. As we passed through Lewisham several people must have reported