The last few decadent days of my P2 year at Keele, 1982/1983, revolved quite a lot around The Sneyd Arms.
By the end of June, my girlfriend Liza O’Connor was back at the Sneyd, working off the rent money she had needed to move in with friends Mike and Mandy in Stoke for the second half of her first year at North Staffs Poly (see Ogblogs passim).
Festival week was over, so there was a real “end of year” laziness about Keele by then.
Tuesday 28 June 1983 – Lazyish day. Ashley [Fletcher] came over in afternoon -> graduation -> Hanley – Return Of The Jedi -> Chippy.
“Graduation” was neither mine (I graduated in absentia in 1984 – more on that anon) nor Ashley’s (Ashley in the end chose not to complete his degree). But it was quite traditional to turn up at the back of Keele Hall and help those whom we knew who were graduating to celebrate their occasion.
The way the diary note is phrased, I’m guessing that Ashley must have joined us on that trip to Hanley to see Return Of the Jedi. I remember Liza being so incredibly keen on all things Star Wars and insisting that I simply must see that film with her that I don’t in truth remember anyone else being there apart from the two of us. Probably there were several of us, including Ashley and others.
I can still in truth say that I have never seen Star Wars and indeed that the only film from the entire franchise that I have ever seen is Return Of The Jedi on that historic occasion in Hanley.
This type of movie didn’t float my boat then and still doesn’t.
Wednesday 29 June 1983 – Part One results. Lazy day – Ashley came – got pissed -Liza and Martin came over – watched TV in evening -> Sneyd.
[Might that Martin have been you, Martin Ladbrooke?]
I watched very little TV in those days, but my flatmate Alan Gorman had left his TV behind in the flat for us to use during those bits of the summer when we were around, so on that evening we watched some TV. Couldn’t tell you all we watched but I’m pretty sure we did watch an episode of Blackadder, or more accurately The Black Adder, which I remember finding very funny.
I simply wouldn’t have imagined, back then, that 20 years later I’d get to know that show’s producer, John Lloyd, quite well:
Thursday 30 June 1983 – Lazy day – shopped by day – spent lazy and decadent afternoon & evening.
Friday 1 July 1983 – Easy day. Went to see Phil Rose [my law tutor] in morning – easy afternoon & evening.
Saturday 2 July 1983 – Packed during day. Lazy afternoon. Went to Micky’s Bistro in evening.
I only have the vaguest memories of Mickey’s Bistro. Newcastle-Under-Lyme I am pretty sure. Not the best but not the worst either.
Sunday 3 July 1983 – Mum & Dad came up. Lunch at Sneyd. Came down to London.
Now there was an awkward situation. Mum was totally discombobulated by me going out with pub landlord’s daughter who did not exactly fit my mother’s image of the nice Jewish girl mum was hoping for. Not that mum ever approved of nice Jewish girls she got to meet through me either, as I recall pointing out to her on the several occasions we argued over this matter in the early stages of that summer.
To add to my confusion over the matter, I was mentally checking out of the relationship with Liza myself, but sure as hell didn’t want mum to think that she could kick up a stink over my choice of girl and get her way by making a fuss.
“So what happened?”…I hear hundreds of readers cry. You’ll have to read the next instalment or three of this epic. It’s like the Star Wars saga…except without the action and without the violence and without creatures from other planets and without the cosmological dualism.
But still, epic. Watch this space.
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