0:00 Introduction 0:01 George Stand Wellesley Rd 0:12 Park Ln 0:25 35 Wellesley Rd 0:41 East Croydon Station 1:34 Whitgift Centre 2:01 Surrey Street Market 2:45 Church St 3:11 West Croydon Bus Station July 1975
Poor old Croydon. Lived in the borough most of my life. The decline is terrible. When I first moved down to England, Croydon was (To my eyes.) so prosperous. We drive over to Guilford now for shopping trips. Nothing left in the town.
I was born in 1997 so I have no idea what Croydon was like in the 70s but I can remember what it was like as a boy in the early 2000s and early 2010s back when Alders were (just about) in business and the whitgift centre had a few decent shops there was also a massive HMV on whitgift high street. All gone now Croydon has lost its heart and soul which saddens me as I'm Croydon born and bred.
Such a shame all the old houses were pulled down to put characterless office blocks in. Even the train Station looks like an unfinished mechano set. :(
Croydon, my Croydon. Going to school by bus on my own aged 7. 1960's Christmas at Grants, Kennard's and Alder's. ..snow on the ground. How desperately, desperately sad...😪
Croydon had that 70’s regeneration 👍🏻 it looked clean , new and cool back then . That round building is fab , if that were flats I’d like to live in there .
Croydon today always reminds me of 'Back To The Future 2'. When Marty returns , the whole area has gone to shit. Successive councils have destroyed a great town. Pedestrianisation, Tram link, allowing far too many fast food outlets, knocking down iconic buildings like East Croydon station, allowing planning for the current crop of sky scrapers, etc etc etc. Only trouble is, we can't go back in time to fix it!
Same thing happened with Coventry. It used to be a history book medieval city now it is just a conglomeration of shoe box monstrosities. Greetings from a brit residing in the USA.
Why are you pretending that the trams, the buildings, the pedestrianisation are actually problems?? Every single person in Croydon knows it's the people that are the problem! The multiculturalism and ethnic diversity has turned every town in London into a shithole! Someone please tell me I'm wrong! 🤔 Oh yeah and not to mention all the steroid induced chicken shops that they've brought with them.
Heartbreaking to see the market gone. I've not been back to croydon properly for the best part of a decade. The difference is pretty shocking coming back to it for the first time.
As a 10 year old going to school in Croydon, I saw the Nestle tower being built in 1964. I lived in the South Norwood/Croydon area, travelling daily to London from East Croydon station until I was 21 and recognise everything in the video. Thanks for the memory!
An Aunt and Uncle of mine, Don and Doreen Watson, used to live in Whitehorse Lane in South Norwood, with their daughters Jean and Ann at one time. Sadly Don and Doreen have since died, whilst Jean lives in Caterham and Ann near Bedford now with their families too.
@@brucedanton3669 From school in Croydon, I used to get off the No 68 bus at Whitehorse Lane/South Norwood Hill to walk down Woodvale Avenue and home. The bus stop is still in exactly the same place. 🙂
I worked in W H Smiths in Croydon in about 1970 as a trainee manager (shelf stacker). I remember great nights out and no danger of being abused or assaulted. Oh how things have changed for the worse since then.
I know when we used to go to Croydon we would go to WH Smiths in the Whitgift Centre, mainly looking at the books and maps at the time-very nice it was too! I have not been there now for a long time though then.
It wasn't part of London, it was Surrey. They changed it for some reason. Nobody living there back then (including me) thought of it as London even though it came under the Great London Council for some of that time.
@@explorewithgeoff I went to the new then Croydon Technical College to study for my BSc. Lovely days only the noise of the pile driving for the underpass was living hell.
@@nickhickson8738 I also went to the college one day a week, day release from an apprenticeship. Honestly when I went, it was quite rough (the students) and you could see the way Croydon was going.
I remember all of this then and now. But fortunately got out and now live on the other side of the world with beautiful sunny white Sand beaches just 5 minutes walk from by front door.
My sadly alas now late parents both came from Croydon. They later moved to near Dartford which is where I live; but I do remember we often used to drive there at times to see other family members though. An Aunt still lives in Norbury though. I do remember some of these views though of old; a shame that some have changed though of course. Thank you anyway.
The Aunt of mine, Yvonne Goodwin, lives in Norbury as I say. She used to live their with her husband Mike, who sadly died in 1986 I think with a heart attack. They had two sons, Edward and Marcus. Both are married with families now. Edward lives in New Cross-also of course in south London; whilst Marcus lives in Oxfordshire so then too.
Yes my late parents, Audrey and Jack came from there to where I live now. Audrey was a Watson until she married my Dad. She lived in Lansdowne Road in Croydon at Albert Mansions. She lived their with her Dad Thomas who died before I was born; also her stepmum Dorothy whom we all called Grandma Watson. Donald was her brother. She also had a sister called Maysie who married Ted Walmsley and then they moved to East Grinstead with their sons Michael and Christopher. Maysie and Ted have sadly since both died too; but Chris and Michael still live where they do now then.
They also had another brother Peter. He was married to Susan and then Jane and Sheila later on. They moved to Sanderstead near Selsdon; then to Dormansland/Dormans Park; and then to the Meads area of Eastbourne. He sadly too died a few years ago; Sheila now lives there and has a daughter Karina as well too.
My Dad Jack lived in Violet Lane, on the council estate that was there near the old Croydon Airport site and Purley Way. He lived there with his Mum and Dad Dora and Percy, who of course are not around now. As well as him, they had his brother Brian, who married Fleur Campion, they moved to Newport in Shropshire where he was in the RAF at the time too. They had their children Julie and Simon there. Julie married Matt Bacon and is now a vicar in Yorkshire. They have a family there too. Simon was married to Maddy, but alas she died a few years ago; although at least they had their son Sam and they live near Northampton now then too.
Then they had Yvonne and then Michael who was known as Mickey as far as I know then too; although he sadly died some years ago then too. Brian also died a few years ago; but Fleur at least now lives with the family in Yorkshire as far as I know then too.
Green line 725, Heathrow to Dartford a coach compered to today's X26,Moved away 18 years Ago still go through it once or twice a year, wouldn't what to live there now just tower blocks of flats!
Places start out sparsely populated and unpopular. They grow in population and become desirable. Then they eventually become overpopulated and undesirable. The Heyday of any place is the era when it has become popular, but isn't overpopulated.
I've wondered what Croydon was like in the 1970s. Back then I was an American kid who loved watching Doctor Who. In Sarah Jane Smith's final episode, the Doctor drops her off in a quiet neighborhood. She looks around and says, "This isn't Croydon". (The joke: his sense of direction was terrible.) Thanks for the video!
Blame the lack of regulation on companies being able to screw the British people over when it comes to housing and employment and rich developers for why Croydon is the way it is now.
@@LondonPower but did you read what I asked? Is only 1 primary school in south norwood by the name of "SOUTH NORWOOD PRIMARY SCHOOL".the question is /was , what bus/buses pass out there by that particular school?
Born in Croydon in the mid sixties, as children we would ride our bikes on our street play on the street and know everyone who lived on the road, it was a great community then, now it doesn't feel safe, the whitgift centre has been destroyed by Westfield, who promised to build a new complex but have just let it rot away, and with all the tower blocks it looks more like an American city, shame on the council's who have let Croydon become such an uninviting place, now I have moved to Reigate,
@Mildly Displeased , yes I agree it's the cars. It's cars that stab and shoot people, it's cars that go round in gangs screaming and hollering at eachother, it's cars that have no respect, it's cars that graffiti everywhere, it's cars that spit on the pavement and litter the streets. When are they going to do away with cars?
It's all over the West, we abort over 200k kids a year, and have contracepted ourselves out of existence, do the maths. Immigrants stimulate the economy, whilst this does cause problems, it's our own fault. Leftist politicians would be unable to bring in such large amounts if there was no vacuum to fill. As a right winger I wish it wasn't this way but it is.
34p for 20 Silk Cut.Those were the days! Mind you, real men wouldn't be seen dead smoking them. Now, your high tar unfiltered Woodbines that was a proper ciggie. I'm joking of course!
Out with any character and in with the sterile, generic use of cheap materials, plastic signage, bland architecture, thoughtless planning, chain shops and everyone dressed as overweight athletic hopefuls or car-thieves. :0/
