Profile

Colin Charter

Colin was born in Arrington in November, 1934 – his father was a farm labourer working for Mrs. Bambridge on the Wimpole Farm estate, dealing mainly with horses and then latterly with tractors. The young Colin loved nothing better than going out into the fields with his father at harvest time. He has two brothers, one still lives in the old family home and the other lives in Thriplow. His sister married a G.I and lives in America.

Their mother had been in service, but sadly died at the age of 42 of tuberculosis and the children were largely brought up by their grandparents. Mr. Albert Charter was the miller at Arrington Hill windmill, he frequently used to take the young lad out to show him the Northern Lights which were often visible in those days. It was a happy youth, despite the loss of their mother and the deprivations of the war years, with a freedom which today’s youth cannot imagine. Colin has vivid memories of having been allotted a holiday task of cutting down thistles in a meadow, when he was distracted by the sight of a bird’s nest up a tree. Naturally he clambered up to see if there were any eggs in the nest when a clear, aristocratic voice said crisply ‘What do you think you are doing boy, come on down at once!’? It was Mrs. Bambridge – she didn’t quite box his ears but certainly he got back to work pretty smartly.

I had forgotten that during the war a huge and very well equipped US army hospital was built just inside the Wimpole Hall gates. Colin reminded me that at the end of the war this became a teacher’s training college and later a school. Because of the shortage of housing after the war, many families were housed by South Cambs R.D.C. in the hutments around the hospital and were later transferred into the council houses built in Melbourn. During the Cold War the building reverted to an American Airforce hospital and that is where Colin’s sister met her G.I. husband. The buildings have now been demolished, of course.

Attending the Church of England school at Arrington until he was 11 and then going to the Bassingbourn school until the Wimpole Hall school was opened, Colin left school at the age of 15 and went to do an engineering course at Cambridge Technical College. In 1951 he got an apprenticeship with Weatherheads in Royston and thence went into National Service, two years in the Royal Artillery spent in Scotland, the highlight of those years was being seconded to London to be one of the troops lining the route for the Coronation. Colin did not pursue his engineering training when he returned to Weatherheads, instead he became a lorry driver until 1973 when he went to work for Shell UK in Orchard Road, Royston delivering petrol to garages throughout the south of England.

By now Colin was married to Pauline, whom he had met whilst he was working as a part time barman at the Hardwicke Arms, and had two children Carol and Glen. They moved to Melbourn in 1984. Pauline is several years younger than Colin and is still working in Royston as a secretary, Carol is marketing manager for the Cambridge Building Society and Glen works for Marley Eternit. When the Shell depot in Royston closed, Colin transferred to their base at Hemel Hempstead and worked from there until 1994 when he retired. However, retirement didn’t suit him, and he got a job as a van driver for Enfield Electrical where he stayed until a short time ago.

We spent a long time talking about Colin’s passion for cigarette cards. He has an amazing collection of cricketers, film stars, animals, flags, uniforms – you name it, there is an appropriate set of cards. Apparently, the original packs of cigarettes were sold in flimsy paper packs and an oblong of cardboard was put in to support and strengthen the packet. One day someone had the bright idea of putting a picture onto the card and a whole new hobby was created. I well remember small boys collecting cards and doing ‘swopsies’

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in the school playground. Of course, in those days most people smoked and the cards were readily available. They more or less died out during the second world war due to shortages but since the mid 1890’s they had been a real craze amongst young and old alike.

The most that Colin has paid for a set is £80 and the most for an individual card £25. He does not specialise in one particular aspect, as some collectors do, but collects anything and everything. He has even got a set of Kensitas silk flowers and silk flags. He visits auctions and fairs and keeps an eagle eye on eBay.

But as well as collecting this ephemera, he has other hobbies. He is a keen allotment holder and belongs to the Horticultural Society in Orwell displaying his vegetables at their show every year. He loves his holidays with Pauline, taking a cruise once a year, visiting Cyprus or the Canary Islands and frequently going to visit his sister in America. He played cricket all his life for Arrington and was secretary and captain of the club. Football was played for the Meldreth Minors on the pitch near Fieldgate Nurseries and latterly he has taken up golf, playing two or three times a week at Kingsway and with Sawston U3A golf section or Melbourn Village Golf Society.

Colin has been a member of the British Legion since 1968, belonging to the Orwell & District Branch. He has a medal for being a poppy seller in Croydon for 40 years and in 1990 took part in the annual Armistice Day event at the Royal Albert Hall. He said it was a long and exhausting day, having to leave Melbourn at 6 a.m. and not returning until after midnight. There were three full rehearsals before the afternoon show, followed by the evening performance in front of The Queen.

Many people will know Colin through his involvement with Melbourn Parish Council. I always valued his quiet and considered opinions. He became invaluable in his work as Chairman of conservation, Finance and General Purposes and the Cemetery Committee. He says he will probably be remembered as the man who was vehemently against a lych gate going on the New Road cemetery. It would be all wrong, he said, a lych gate belongs on an old cemetery, not a brand new cemetery such as this and he is looking forward to the new wrought iron gates which he helped to choose being erected in March next year. He has been a Melbourn Magazine deliverer for many years, delivering to 90 houses.

On the subject of the Parish Council, Colin thinks that the village should be very proud of the acquisition of Stockbridge Meadows, a great asset to the village and obtained for a nominal charge of some £5.

He still has the invitation for himself and Pauline to attend the National Trust garden party at Wimpole Hall when the Queen Mother came to visit and remembers the time during the war when along with other schoolchildren he was given a stars and stripes flag to wave as Mrs. Roosevelt came to visit the WRVS field kitchen in Arrington Village Hall.

Colin is a typical backbone of Britain type of man, steady and reliable, devoted to the countryside and to the community within which he lives. Mavis Howard

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