tryin to find to footedge ov them gettin blowen up

still looking for footage mate but found this .how they looked just after they were built

The building in the centre is the Angel pub which was left standing when the buildings came down

johnno i think it was 1 ov sound lads threds mat but carnt find it

It will be in one of his wirral memories or wirral past vids but he has lots on here and on you tube so good luck

cheers kido

The demolition of Oak and Eldon Gardens is on a video called Wirral Memories of the 1960's and 1970's which is available by mail order from the Wirral Champion.

http://wirralchampion.co.uk/index.asp?section=products&page=4

I have seen this video which is made by Pleasures Past and is narrated by former Radio Merseyside presenter Monty Lister.

I didn't realise that they were right near the Angel.
I thought the name was Oakeneldon Gardens when I was a kid - didn't realise they were separate names. Why did they think it was ok to call an ugly block of flats 'gardens'?

Watch the video here

wow, showing my age now, we went on a coach trip from school to see them demolished! i think i was about 7 years old, what a sight it was
x

I think the pub was Duke of Connaught 6 Park Street 6 1 St Annes Street
The Angel was at the end near to where photo was taken

I remember them been built, had a mate who moved into the top floor corner masonete of Eldon Gardens as the first tenant of it. within 18 months he along with a lot of other residents where sick of the flats due to all the ... that destroyed what could have been a peacefull life for all the good law abiding tenants who where attempting to raise there familys in a safe enviroment.i am going back to as early as 1962 when the flats started to go down hill due to the ... that where always hanging round making trouble.

wow how surreal that pub looks amognst those huge buildings
by looking at this pic, one couldn`t imagine it was birkenhead.

I vuagly remember them, think it was mid 80`s, I definatly remember the Angel, lovely reputation apparently!! I was working in Milton pavement in the precinct. Remember the flats being blown, dont know when tho!! Just remember the Angel standing on its own afterwards for years in a wasteland!

They were blown in the late 70's/early 80's. I know this for a fact as I still lived in Birkenhead when they went and I moved to Rock Ferry in 1981.

Ive just checked mate, you where nearly right n i was wrong!!!
They were blown on Sunday 30th September 1979!!!! Dont ask what bloody time tho!! LOL

Sometime between 11:30am and 3pm

lol

i think it may of been even earlier than that as my dad was a milkman at the time in upton village and i went with him one day and i remember we heard the explosion in upton village and my mum did not hear it in singleton avenue prenton which we thought was strange. dont remember it being on a sunday either.....or maybe my memories are playing tricks on me,getting on a bit now..40 this year lol

was deffo on Sunday 30th sep 1979! Did milkmen deliver milk on sundays to houses? Did to shops know that. may be

hmmm .i am all confused now,must speak to dad.

Can someone show me on a street map where they used to be please?

.

Weren't they further over, by Watson Street, where Oak Street and Eldon Place are on this 1910 map?

WHen I was a kid I thought the name was all one word - Oakenelden

70s aerial (1971-1973)

Thanks for that.. just wanted to confirm they were where I live now...

Just found this electric bill from 1958 in loft

For people who havnt seen my videos which can be found searching the Index of WirralHistory which is located Here i thought i would post the snippet on the 1960's and 1970's video for you to see the Demolition of Oak and Eldon Gardens.. Enjoy

[youtube]HSGmjjsWmYc[/youtube]

I worked for mighalls garage on Conway street bottom of exmouth road at the time of the demolition of oak and eldon and i remember the council came round on a Saturday afternoon(think it was the council) and boarded up the plate glass windows in case they got blown in. They came in and took them down on the monday afterwards ....

I used to go in the angel for a drink with an ex boyfriend who was on their pool team, i remember it as being a lovely clean welcoming place. My aunt edith lived off watson st in a small terraced house and i remember in the early 70s going to vist and the house shaking every time a train went through the tunnels under the houses.. she also still had gas lighting with little sock covers which i thought was very dark ages, us having a draylon suite and all that.

Excellent Soundlad. Thank you.

I was there when they were blown. My mum collected for 'Telebank' emptying rented TV's at the gardens. At 43 seconds in Soundlads video, I know the lad in the bottom right.

Nice one Lee! Your videos are great.

Just like to point out fella not my videos am afraid although id like to take credit i cant. They are avalible from pleasures past which you can find googling around the full credit goes to Angus Tilston who has made some fantastic history vidoes here on the wirral.. I just put them up on Youtube as they are a good source of information for the History part of this site but thanks any way fella

Yeah, no problem Lee.
Anyway, I have watched all your history video's and commented too. My user name is ukspeedbag on you tube, you have left a comment sometime ago on my channel.
It was the demolition video info that got me to join the forum. So thanks for that mate.

Vini

Yeah the Angel improved dramatically when Oak and Eldon went and became a busy bikers pub - complete with superb real ales and 'heavy' (we called it 'smelly' music) music.
I remember at this time as it was completely isolated as the new private estate in the St Annes Street/Price Street area had not been built yet....

Any more photos of oak and eldon?

Yes, it was definitely 30 September 1979 and it was a Sunday. I stood at the side of the old General Hospital and watched it from there. In fact I recorded it on a portable cassette recorder.

The flats were at the side of the cygnet pub and the row of shops had scaffolding in front of them to protect them from the blast. There is a small housing estate there now.

As far as I know the Ford Estate was completed around 1970 and many people from Ilchester Square went there. Oak and Eldon residents are more likely to have been rehoused on the Noctorum Estate.

Some of the big pieces of concrete from Oak and eldon were put on the beach between Wallasey Beach and Leasowe. That was before the existing sea wall was built/

Another view of Eldon Gardens in 1958

I watched them being blown up!early 80s

You mean late 70's
It was Sunday 30th September 1979

I have this saved on my computer. I thought it was off wikiwirral but I can't find it anywhere?.. so will post it

Before and after looking from Price Street direction. Cygnet pub in front.

Brilliant photos, good thread. Many happy nights in the Cygnet when I was home on leave, used to drink with some of the Gardens residents. A lot were moved to the Ford. Remember it was always their case that their lot would be improved if they had proper gardens etc. Some lovely people there as well as the .... The only trouble was that the ... set about knackering the Ford as well. My own mum and dad ended up on the Ford as well, couldn't stand it and ended up moving back to town.

Always fascinated by these because I remember them so well. They were demolished while I was in foriegn parts. When I got back to UK the following year it was quite a shock to see them gone.

like the pics
Gives me a good idea of where they were looking at the Cygnet
These are at the other end compared to the pics I've usually seen

That vid on page 2 is sound soundlad, im 1 of the kids on it 35 secs in!

some pics to compare

Can anyone cofirm if these pub names are correct on pics of Oak and Eldon

301 Duke of Connaught 60 Park Street 60 1 St Annes Street

Clarendon Hotel or Burns Cottage Hotel St Annes Street Watson Street

Boars Head to Eldon Street/Market Street probably demolished before flats built

I remember these flats only because Mum and Dad took me there whilst young to visit their friends, Beryl and Jack. They were daunting to say the least and I would not have liked to live there.

my mum said they went to look at a show flat when they were built. she said it was nice inside very modern. she went with a couple of my aunties,one lived in park street where europa pool is now,she couldn't get granada only htv because of the flats, she was made up when they came down.I went to see them getting blown up, id only just started going out with my hubby.Oscarpops was with us. we watchd from watson street,we got covered in dust.

her she is coming down peeps will post a better pic soon got lots to sort through enjoy!

I remember them well. My Mum used to work for Howards the Liverpool HP firm and we used to deliver good there usually at Christmas...kids toys and that. You had to watch out for TVs being through from the balconys above.

used to go that way to cathcart street school sometimes,from our house in marion street,used to get chased.good days.

Very nice area now

Knew a lot of brilliant people in those flats, there were a lot of nutters as well. They served their purpose well, housing people from the back to backs in the town.

the back to backs were the heart and soul of birkenhead. i enjoyed my childhood,brilliant. leave the front door open without fear,i lived very near oak and eldon,awful places,gettos.

Was it an actual original back to back that you lived in or a two up ,two down?

Hello! I remember this well. Me and my mum went into town to watch it. We stood at Charing Cross opposite where McDonalds is now. Heard some loud cracks then down they came. It was definiely a Sunday and I seem to recall it happened at around 10am. Later that evening, my Dad took us for a drive as close to the site as we could get. I was 7 at the time and the next day in school it was all everyone could talk about!

Boars head was on the corner of 18 Eldon and 191 Market street although it's address was 18 Eldon Street my Great Grandfather ran this pub in the 1920's

they were blown at 11 o clock because they knocked on the doors to make sure you weren't in and they got me out of bed

i lived in marion street which was backed on to dacre street.

What was the name of that church behind the Cygnet pub?

think it was St Lawrence (St Laurence?)

The nearby school is St Laurences...

The church was St Laurence, there's a picture and information on it here.

hi all, just viewed the demolition of oak and eldon gardens-remember it well. there is a mention of angus tilston and his local history videos. i had the pleasure of going on a business trip briefly with him in the mid 1990's. he was working for merseytravel then so may have local transport stuff if anyone is interested.
on a personal note, i loved drinking in the angel, we would then go to the argyle(roughly where argos is now).

My dad lived in the Duke of Conault (spelling bad) pub before he moved to Rock Ferry with his family. He remembers people building the flats and he remembers them being knocked down. people on here most probably know him or his family.

Oak and Eldon?

You're right on the money there, used to live on the 5th floor at Livingstone Gardens and it was no joke, useless lifts and although most of the neighbours were grand, one or two were a pain in the arris and you couldn't get away from them. Moved out into Hilbre Street once we'd had enough. It was ok when you didn't have anywhere else to go though I suppose.

hello any photographs the surrounding streets to eldon gardens and conway street thanks

Great pictures,Thanks for posting.

I remember "throwing a strop" because my dad would not take me down there to watch them being blown up! It was said at the time Terry Wogan was viewing the demolition from above in a helicopter maybe for a TV report? I would have been 11 years old at the time.

Back in the early 80s there was a sitcom call The Cowboys about a company of dodgy builders. It starred Colin Welland and Roy Kinnear. One of the episodes was based around them getting trapped in the basement of Oak and Eldon Gardens as the flats were being blown up. IIRC they found a way out and were only pretending to be trapped to get some sympathy and extra money off their boss. In fact they spent the day nipping to The Bluebell on Freeman St.

Doubt the series has ever been repeated and I'm sure it isn't on YouTube.

I vagely remember the series, the episode was called "Remember Honky Stubbs "S1 EP 3

"Workmen use explosives to demolish an old building, not realising that Geyser, Wobbly Ron and Eric are in the cellar, playing cards. Joe panics at the thought of his men entombed under tonnes of rubble. Actually, they could not be safer - Geyser finds an exit by kicking a hole in the wall of an adjacent men's toilet. Rather than go home, they decide to milk the situation for all it is worth ( they are on over time ) by pretending to be still trapped when in reality they are in 'The Dogs' Dinner' pub..."

From here: "Remember Honky Stubbs"

More here The Cowboys...

Well done for the research Chris!

Hi I lived in 57 Ellon street only had a tin bath and outside loo which got frozen up in the winter if dad forgot to pit the lamp on in the night..my aunt Audrey and jack McKinley lived on the 7th floor in Elldon gardens and me and my sister use to go there every Sunday for a luxury bath them were the good old days

Hi all. I worked for Ogdens, when they demolished Oak and Eldon,and did the drilling and burning,on the windows which can be seen in the photos. which enabled the way the buildings fell inwards...also did the drilling and laying of the charges but not laying the Cortex, the line or fuses,as it was too dangerouse,i believe...the actual explosive was useless on its own and useful for lighting the fire....When the buildings were blown I was stationed on the St lawrences junior school roof, to signal the area was clear...and was really surprised when the flats eventually were blown at the shock waves. near blowing me off my feet...the end of oak gardens refused to fall and Mick (the boss) had to go in and set the charges again as the cortex got severed by flying debris thus not allowing the charge to carry on,,,so it took two blasts to finish them off............I have some foties which have never been published so ill add them on here soon........Kind regards to all

I was the police beat officer on duty the night before the flats were demolished. My understanding is that the reason part of the building did not collapse was that our inspector drove his car where he should not have done and broke some wires.

We had a number of problems in the weeks leading up to the big day with former residents breaking back in to grab souvenirs

I finished duty at 7am and hung around to watch the deed. I had worked out that there would be a lot of dust and so I stood upwind. Some were not so forward thinking and got hit by the cloud.

I think I am right in thinking that this was the first time in the UK that a block of flats had been blown up in this way.

About 9 or 10 am. I had just finished shift as the policeman on that beat. I hung around to watch the show before going home to bed!