Recollections of a life in Hedgerley
Rita Maycock
Rita Maycock is proud to have lived in Hedgerley for over eighty years. Her close friend, Iris Sullivan, shares that distinction so, collectively, they can claim more than 160 years of life in the village. When John Lovelock and I met them to share their memories, we were conscious of being mere youths by comparison. To our delight, Rita and Iris were lively raconteurs and the conversation flowed as they regaled us with stories of Hedgerley life through the Second World War and beyond.
You would have to have a hard heart not to forgive Rita for being born outside Hedgerley. That honour goes to Rose Cottage, School Lane, Stoke Poges, in 1935, just beyond the parish boundary. Within two weeks, the Shanks family crossed over the boundary and relocated in the Quaker House in Hedgerley village. The Quaker House is one of the oldest Houses in Hedgerley (possibly dating back to 1580) and, at that time, was divided into three dwellings. Two years later, Rita moved to one of the new houses that had just been built by a local builder, Mr Gregory. 1 Vale View, Gregory Road, would be her childhood home. It was there that Rita would begin her lifelong friendship with Iris, who lived just a few houses away in Boundary Cottages.
The Shanks family were well established in Hedgerley. Rita’s grandad, Thomas Shanks, a blacksmith, was recorded as living at Hedgerley Dean in the 1921 census. Thomas pops up again, in the 1939 Register at the start of the war, this time as the occupier of Nursery House, along with his wife, Flora, and a few other family members. Rita remembered the house well. As with many homes at the time, it was very basic, with no electricity or central heating, no bathroom, and extremely cold in winter. She recalls that her gran, along with her dad, Robert, reared pigs during the war. The rule at the time was that most of the livestock had to be handed over to the Ministry of Food when they were slaughtered. Out of a litter of eight, they were allowed to keep one, which would still provide a welcome addition to the wartime rations. As there was no refrigeration, the meat would be quickly shared out amongst family and friends. Nothing went to waste. This cycle would be repeated every six months. Thomas Shanks also shared his home grown vegetables with the local community, the bus driver in particular. This typified the caring and sharing atmosphere in the village during the war. Many men were called up for active service in the armed forces but Rita’s family was fortunate enough to stay together. Her dad worked as a cable joiner for Southern Electricity, a reserved occupation; Robert was exempt from combat duties but took an active part in the Home Guard with regular training sessions in the evenings and at weekends. Rita also had an uncle and aunt, William and Mabel Shanks, who lived close by at 6 Hillview.
Life was tough in Rita’s early days. Britain was gripped by a prolonged economic depression in the 1930s, highlighted by the famous Jarrow Crusade of 1936 when 200 unemployed men marched the 282 miles from Jarrow to London to present a petition to parliament, asking for help in their beleaguered town. Although Hedgerley did not suffer the crippling unemployment and grinding poverty of Jarrow, these were still lean times. They were followed by the austerity of the war years and beyond; food rationing, for example, did not officially end until 1954. Both Rita and Iris grew up with a succession of hand-me-down clothes, a way of life for most families at the time. Rita was not able to save up to buy a new dress until she started work in 1950. Luxuries, such as sweets, were scarce but, if you were lucky, you might get something from Mrs Jones who ran a shop at the entrance to her home, Corner House, in Gregory Road. Rita remember a bag of dolly mixtures cost 1d (in old money). Mrs Wateman, at One Pin village store could also be relied upon to take a kindly view of rationing. The One Pin stores later became an antique shop and is currently the Pinfield Hotel. Mrs Saunders ran the local post office, initially at ‘The Mere’ (now Kiln View) in Gregory Road and later, under Mrs Hearne, in Hedgerely Hill.
Despite the privations of war, Rita and Iris recalled the strong community spirt of Hegerley. There was a shared Anderson air raid shelter In Gregory Road. Seasonal pastimes, such as hop-scotch, marbles and conkers, provided simple enjoyment and were fondly remembered. A kind local lady, Mrs Todd, organised the VE celebrations for children in the village. The village fete was an annual fixture, initially hosted by the Golding family at Court Farm and, later, on the village Green in Hedgerley Hill. New Year’s Eve was celebrated in the Memorial Hall up till the end of the 1970s, with families bringing an array of food and drink. Chris Pickett, a local man, looked after the appearance of the village by pruning the hedges and trees and tidying up the grass and kerbs. The coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953 generated lots of excitement and Rita’s family, along with many other in the country, purchased a television for the occasion. There were few cars, which meant lots of walking, but nobody seemed to mind. On a good day, you might catch the bus from the One Pin to the junior school in Hollybush Hill but, when it snowed, you walked with your friends. Rita’s memory of the bus timetables was astonishing. Seventy years ago, the Greenline bus 441 started at 7.15am and ran through till 10pm each day. There was a reduced cost of 2d if you caught the ‘workman bus’ before 8am.
Rita enjoyed Holly Bush School, in Christmas Lane, especially the mental arithmetic test, at which she excelled, every Friday. There were two classes, one for ages 5-7 and the other for 7-11. At the age of 11, she moved on to Stoke Poges Secondary School in Holly Bush Hill, near to the house where she was born. Rita left school at age of 15, as was usual at that time, and started work with Weatherill Brothers in Farnham Common as an apprentice tailoress.
Rita has been involved in Hedgerley Church for as long as she can remember, and has been an active member of the choir since the age of five. She recalls with fondness the youth club, especially the monthly trips with youth club members to Richmond ice rink, with a stop to eat fish and chips on the way home. Hedgerley Church would change Rita’s life forever when she met Ken Maycock. Ken was a Yorkshireman, born in Wakefield, but, by the 1950s, resided in Loudwater, where his father was a rector. Ken made the short trip to Hedgerley to play the church organ as a temporary stand-in, a role he would end up keeping for many years. Ken had served in the war from 1941-45, carrying out the role of stretcher bearer which enabled him to remain true to his religious beliefs and save lives, rather than taking them away. Rita and Ken soon fell in love and married on 24 March 1956. Rita recalled the wonderful three tier wedding cake made by Mrs Ridgely for the princely sum of £6 10s (£6.50 in modern currency). Money seemed to go a lot further in those days. The arrival of two children, Stephen in 1961 and Sheila in 1965, would complete the family. Ken, incidentally, would have a fleeting part playing the organ in Hedgerley Church in the 1972 film, ‘The Amazing Mr Blunden’, being eclipsed by Diana Dors for the starring role.
Rita and Ken lived outside of the village, in Farnham Common, for nearly three years, returning in 1959 when the new houses in Hedgerley Hill and around the green were built. She has remained in the same house ever since. The close community spirit of Hedgerley had not diminished. In 1959, the villagers came together in a campaign to save the green from development. Door to door collectors raised sufficient money to buy the green for the parish and communal use. Rita remembers regular Sunday morning football matches, followed by cricket in the afternoon. In recent years, it has hosted rugby fixtures as well as being an area for play and recreation.
Rita and her friend Iris were asked to name the three things they liked most about living a life in Hedgerley. Sitting comfortably at the top of the list was the people who, throughout their life, have been so willing to help each other. Next came the peaceful, tranquil atmosphere of the village, with its lovely natural beauty. Finally, the community spirit which they still feel, in their older years, in local groups like the Tracy Trust.
Maurice E Ridgley
‘Hedgerley is a lovely village, and my wish is to keep it this way’
Maurice Ridgley celebrated his 80th birthday in July 2022. He is one of a select group of octogenarians who have spent most of their days in the village of Hedgerley. As with others who have shared their story, Maurice has much to tell us about the earlier life of our village
Possibly due to the vagaries of the Second World War, Maurice was born outside the parish in a Catholic nursing home in Candlemas Lane, Beaconsfield. Within a few days, he made the short journey to the family home in Robert Road. At the time, most of the residents of Robert Road worked for the local builder and joiner, Mr Gregory. Ronald Ridgley, Maurice’s dad, was Mr Gregory’s foreman and one of his formal duties was to round up the workers by ringing the morning bell in Robert Road. The road, incidentally, was actually named after Mr Gregory’s son and Mr Gregory himself lived in Woodcrest, Gregory Road. A few years later, Maurice’s family would move to ‘Derwent’ in Hedgerley Hill.
Along with other Hedgerley children, Maurice attended Holly Bush School in Christmas Lane from the ages of 5-11. Maurice recalled that pupils walked to school through Kemsley Wood, often stopping to play games along the way. The edge of the wood, where it crosses the road to Christmas Lane, referred to as Corner Wood was heathland in the 1940s and was a popular spot for games, especially in the summer. Rounders in the long days of summer, hide-and-seek at any time, and seasonal pastimes like marbles and conkers enlivened village life. The more daring children added to the excitement by using the flexible silver birch trees as a parachute; when you climbed to the top of the tree, it would bend and lower you to the ground, before springing back up with great force.
Maurice moved up to secondary school at Slough and Eton in Ragstone Road, Chalvey, in 1953. He remembers catching the 441 bus from Hedgerley to the Prince of Wales pub in Slough (now McDonalds). Maurice left school at the age of 15, then spent a year at Slough College learning general engineering skills. Maurice officially started work in a role commonly referred to as a ‘grease monkey’, with Kingsway Garage in Farnham Common, for a grand weekly pay of £2 10s (£2.50 today). After deductions for his keep, a practice that was usual in families at that time, Maurice was left with the princely sum of 10s (50p today).
It is fair to say that the Scouts played a significant role in Maurice’s early life. He joined the Cubs at the age of 5 before graduating to Scouts, Senior Scouts and, eventually Rover Scouts. Initially, they met at the scout camp on land owned by Mrs Todd at the top of Gregory Road, and later moved to their current site in Hedgerley Hill. The Scouts would take Maurice beyond Hedgerley, with wonderful camping trips and adventures, particularly to Wales. In turn, Maurice and his peers would build the scout hut, manufactured by Mr Gregory in his builder’s yard at the back of Gregory Road. Apart from some modernisation, it is essentially the hut that is still in use.
A Scout leader arranged Maurice’s next job, at the National Cash Register Company (NCR) in Marylebone, initially sorting letters in the mailing department and later keeping track of parts and machines. Maurice enjoyed the four years he spent working in Marylebone, even the gentle teasing from colleagues, who would refer to him as a ‘country bumpkin’ because of his roots in Hedgerley. The one drawback was the heavy smog in winter, for which London was notorious at the time. His later career, would see him working as a household appliances salesman at Cady’s, eventually graduating to designing and selling kitchens. Maurice latched on to the new wave of ‘fitted kitchens’, and can remember selling a split level cooker to the media celebrity, Terry Wogan. He had a convenient arrangement with his dad: Maurice sold the appliances and units and his dad would fit them.
Maurice has vivid memories of Hedgerley village life in the 1940s and 50s. The Memorial Hall was the hub of many activities, such as the youth club, social evenings, dances, a base for the cricket club, even the scouts’ gang show. There was a lot more freedom for children to play in that era. They would often walk over to the derelict house in Hedgerley Park to play in the sand pits, they explored the new houses that were built around the village green in the early 1950s, and enjoyed playing hide and seek in the partially constructed buildings. Bonfire night was one of the highlights of the year, with a huge communal fire on scrubland in what is now Jones Way. There was a strong sense of community; Maurice, his dad, and a few more villagers all came together to build the vestry in St Mary’s Church in 1962. Winters were much harsher and Maurice can remember villagers helping the local milkman complete his round when the snow was too severe. The milkman would return the favour by walking their dog.
Maurice was asked what he most liked about Hedgerley. His abiding memory is of a lovely village and his wish would be to keep it that way. He lived outside Hedgerley, in Wendover, Penn and Denham Green, for a few years, but nothing could compare to the place where he grew up. Maurice knew where his heart belonged.
By Kevin Langford
HHS 