Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral Pubs Past & Present 375 The Warwick, Westbourne Road, Birkenhead

Side view in Westbourne Road.
The photo full on, you can see in the distance the "house" which was the Westbourne.

Indexed

lived in warwick st. on the other side of street opp pub were two prefab houses played in them till i fell off the roof one day my dad came out the pub sent me home crying my eyes out left 1969... good old days...

In the early 1970s that pub was a bit of a rough-house, but did have live music, which one day attracted myself and mate along (we were both into the guitar, so a good chace to pick up some new tricks). Was a strange atmosphere (was the days of skinheads/bootboys) which we tried to ignore, the guy playing took requests I recall. Anyway, after a short break he's back and announces, 'I've had a request for this number....'. So off he starts:

"We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee;
We don't take our trips on LSD
We don't burn our draft cards down on Main Street;
We like livin' right, and bein' free"

Suddenly the temperature in the room gets colder, faces twitch and sneer towards the two of us with long hair, as the pub choruses along to this song of brute prejudice. Time to be moving along thinks I...next thing I know I'm back home, having been taken in a taxi, by mny mate, to Birkenhead General, unconscious having been bricked in the face as I left the Warwick that same evening!

I used to live in ridley street near the westbourne pub and can remember there being street back then none of these council housing estate.. Happy day the 70s -80s

My Mum worked in "The Wessie" for a while.

Did u live in alfred road

No, round the corner though

Lived in Warwick street till about 1970, my mum used to tell the story of the time my dad was late home from the pub one Sunday afternoon for his roast so she took it round to the Warwick and plonked it down on the table in front of him. I don't believe he was late for dinner again.

Passed the Warwick the other day, shuttered and up for sale £150,000

That''s a shame. Some good memories of a "pint and a fight" (as we used to call it) in there in the 60s/70s, enjoyed playing darts while 2 people were rolling across the oche fighting, with the barmaid spraying them with a soda syphon, well it cooled them down.I know it doesn't sound it but some happy times were had. One night there was a bomb scare so we all went out side except for one old gentleman who said Hitler couldn't make me leave a pint so this lot can **** off.

Had many a pint in their with with a school friend (Des Mooney) it was the type of place you really needed to know a regular, quick question, on the same road was a small house (number 46) and always wondered what it used to be?

I think you mean the house halfway up on the right, It's been a Taxi Office, A coal merchant's office and a few other things, I remember it from the 40s, it's always been an office of some description.

Westbourne House (as is), it was built as the office for the Mersey Coal's coal yard behind it. Big company with depots and offices all over Birkenhead.

46 Westbourne Rd is still there, just along from the church and a terrace property.

What Loco refers to is possibly, according to the 1938 directory, 12&12a Westbourne Rd, Jas Wm Minnis, Coal Dealer.

I assumed he meant 64 not 46, this was a coal yard and a taxi office at various times.

1938,

This was the one I meant as well

I remember Hart's Exchange and Mart, (don't remember him doing M/cycle spares) and Coglans the Green Grocers from the 40s, one of the houses by the church used to manufacture window blinds or at least suply and fit, one end wall of the house had a big painted advert on it.

I bought a bike from Hart's in 1980 and I've still got it.

1911,

I went and had a look today, the house next to the Church (54) still has the large painted sign for Weeks Blinds, it must have been there since the 40s if not longer, the way the sign is written, it sounds as if the blinds were manufactured there.

1964 Telephone Book

Thanks Bert

I have a picture running round in my head that number 54 did have a shop front on it in the 40s so they might have manufactured the bllinds there at that time.

I remember it being fully "house-ified", it wasn't a full shop front at that time but there was some remnants which showed it was at one time. I can't remember the details but I remember being disappointed with the change.

I can imagine the building at the back of 54 was the workshop (Saint), prior to Weeks & Sons was John Brocklebank, Joiner, he died 1939, perhaps that's when the blind business moved in.

Thank's Bert, realised I'm thinking about the wrong house doh!