General Chat

How come some of you have interesting names like "Bob in Monte-Carlo" or "Sue on the beach in Australia" when I am plain old Nigel Redford? It would be nice to have a different name.

I think Nigel Redford is a lovely name! But if you want to change it to something a little more "exotic" go to Edit/View Details (left of GC screen) enter your password, and change your details - to anything you like!!!!!! Dierdre X

Oooh dear - I think I must be turning into one of those folks everyone moans about on the board. When I last looked at my emails t'other day, I had rather a lot to reply to! Perhaps I better go and have a look - sorry Bill By the way - thanks Deirdre for the hint about how to change name. I like my name but might change it for fun.

Hurrah - it worked!! Now I have to decide what name to have! Thanks ofr the tip :o)))

isnt there a nursery rhyme with banbury cross in it? Ive racked my brains and cant remember the words lol Too many old ancestors filling up the space happy hunting Debbi

Well, Elizabeth I is one version of the nursery rhyme. However, the other one, and much more likely is: RHIANNON who was the Celtic goddess of the underworld. Crouch Hill, just outside of Banbury was a centre of Celtic worship, and a fair in honour of Rhiannon was held in the Giants Caves near Banbury was held on April 13th until last century. Bnabury is quite a dark place really, they have a hobby horse festival every year, and you get lots of morris dancers walking round with horse skulls on their heads, terrifying the local children. We proud of our antiquity (though perhaps not the darker pagan part) here in Banbury!!!

HiHi Not compleatly sure but I thought the Cross at Banbury was there because its one of the resting places, (like Charing, now in London), were the body of Edward I's wife (dead of course! :-) ) Eleanor was rested on the journey from Scotland to Westminster. I seem to remember their were 13 of them, one for each night of the journey. 13 days!?? See traval between the North and London has always been bad, not just since the demise of British Rail! ;-) All the Best Peter

Hi Nigel, You are just up the road from me. I shop in either Banbury or Oxford. Apparently the original Banbury Cross was located in Market Square (there is a plaque saying where it originally stood) but was destroyed by Puritans in 1600 who were opposed to pilgrimages. Cherwell District Council are considering relocating the Cross to the original site as the new one is in the middle of a busy town centre crossroads. e. Banbury was at the top of a steep hill and apparently Queen Elizabeth I was lent a white stallion (cock horse) because her carriage could not manage the incline and she wanted to see the huge stone cross which has just been placed there. She was accompanied by minstels (she shall have music) - todays Morris Dancers?? Apparently there were many other crosses in Banbury all destroyed by the Puritans. Kathy in Bicester

Wow, another Oxonian! And from Bicester too - the place of my 9-5 toil. Hi Kathy, yes, the original one was in the market place. I will have to look on Saturday and see if there is a plaque at all where it used to be. As for Elizabeth I, I have lived in Banbury all my life, and had never heard of that version until I saw the official website a few months back. I suppose no-one really knows! Some say it was Celia Fiennes from 17th century. Peter - yes, the original was one of the Eleanor Crosses. The modern was does not look quite so impressive as a stone monolith. I told the kids in my youth group that it was originally the spire on a church that was bombed in the war. They almost believe it :o)

Hi! Do any of you Oxonians have any connection with Woodford Halse or Aston-Le-Walls? Especially in the 1950's-1960's! Asking alot I know but it's worth a shot! By the way, we used to live in Oxford too! We lived in Polstead Road (student accomodation for Ruskin College) off Walton St. TTFN Eleanor & Tonyx

Hi Eleanor&Tony No links to Woodford Halse myself, but I have cousins who've been there for about 15 years, and I really like the place

Hi Nigel, As I said, it was worth a shot! My husband was brought up there by his foster parents and went to school at Aston le Walls and Woodford Halse between approx 1960-1969. He has no photo's of himself as a child and his foster parents both died when he was very young. I have often wondered whether the schools took school/class photo's and whether he might just be on one! I have phoned the schools in question but they have no records! I just keep hoping that I will stumble across someone who went to the same schools who has photo's taken at the time Tony was there! You'd think that somewhere out there the must be one or two pic's of him! Thanks anyway, Eleanorx

Eleanor, nice part of Oxford you lived in - I know Jericho quite well, as I worked at OUP in Walton Street for 9 years... you've just bought back memories of many a happy lunchtime spent in the Jericho Tavern... By the way, going back to "ride a cock horse", I'm led to believe that the term cock horse was used because the horse was obtained from the Cock Hotel/tavern (of Cock and Bull fame) in Stony stratford ?

Just trying out the name change thinig myself. Here goes Pam

Hi Eleanor I've sneaked in to this thread - ex Northants is surely near enough - as my uncle (married to one of mum's sisters) was born and grew up in Woodford. His parents lived there all their lives as far as I know and would have been there in the 50s, 60s and early 70s. Sue