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Shropshire retro: Look back at 16 festive moments guaranteed to make you smile

Enjoy a little teaser ahead of a bumper gallery of festive-themed pictures we’re saving for Christmas Eve.

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By Tania Taylor
Published

Here we see a turkey fit for a Prime Minister, Santa making a quick stop at the hairdressers, and even swimwear at Christmas… 

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Staff at the Grand cinema, Wellington, in 1959. The page in the scrapbook gives the caption: 'Grand Theatre, Wellington. Pat Turner, Pat Chatham, Anne Weaver (manageress), Hilda Jones, Elsie Royale.' Also the 1959 date. Obviously it must have been around Christmas given the decorations in the background. This picture is from Mrs Lynne Purcell, and is from the collection of her late father Fred Brown, who came from Wellington and was a historian of Wellington. On leaving school at 14 in 1937 he was an assistant projectionist at the Regal cinema at Hadley, and then was projectionist at the Clifton cinema in Wellington from 1938 for 24 years. Later he was projectionist at the Grand Theatre in Wellington until it closed down.
Staff at the Grand cinema, Wellington, Christmas 1959. The caption: 'Grand Theatre, Wellington. Pat Turner, Pat Chatham, Anne Weaver (manageress), Hilda Jones, Elsie Royale.' The picture is from Mrs Lynne Purcell, and is from the collection of her late father Fred Brown, who came from Wellington. On leaving school at 14 in 1937 he was an assistant projectionist at the Regal cinema at Hadley, and then was projectionist at the Clifton cinema in Wellington from 1938 for 24 years. Later he was projectionist at the Grand Theatre in Wellington until it closed down.
Vincent Greenhous (Wellington) Ltd Christmas dinner at Heath's Town House, Wellington. Picture taken on Tuesday, December 21, 1965. The caption reads: 'Mr Patrick Greenhous (extreme right), chairman and managing director of Messrs. Vincent Greenhous (Wellington) Ltd., chatting to guests at the staff party and dinner at Heath's Town House on Tuesday. Chief guests: (back row, left to right): Mr B.A. Vaughan, Mr H.C. Gittins, Mr A. Pritchard. Front row, left to right: Mrs P. Greenhouse (sic, but presumably correctly Greenhous), Mrs H. Gittins, and Mrs B. Vaughan.'
Vincent Greenhous (Wellington) Ltd Christmas dinner at Heath's Town House, Wellington. Picture taken on Tuesday, December 21, 1965. The caption reads: 'Mr Patrick Greenhous (extreme right), chairman and managing director of Messrs. Vincent Greenhous (Wellington) Ltd., chatting to guests at the staff party and dinner at Heath's Town House on Tuesday. Chief guests: (back row, left to right): Mr B.A. Vaughan, Mr H.C. Gittins, Mr A. Pritchard. Front row, left to right: Mrs P. Greenhouse (sic, but presumably correctly Greenhous), Mrs H. Gittins, and Mrs B. Vaughan.'
Christmas 1963, Wellington Girls Secondary Modern. Wellington school girls. Looks like a cookery class with cakes. Charlton moving to a new site in 2016. Library code: Wellington nostalgia 2016.
Christmas 1963, Wellington Girls Secondary Modern. What appears to be a cookery class with Christmas cakes.
Father Christmas at Church Stretton, December 3, 1965. The caption reads: 'Santa made an early appearance on Saturday at the annual Christmas fayre of the Church Stretton British Legion Women's Section. Surrounded by fairies in the Rainbow Room, he distributed toys from his large sack. The three children with him are Robbie and Stephen Horner and Suzanne Gough, all of Central Avenue.'
Father Christmas at Church Stretton, December 3, 1965. The caption reads: 'Santa made an early appearance on Saturday at the annual Christmas fayre of the Church Stretton British Legion Women's Section. Surrounded by fairies in the Rainbow Room, he distributed toys from his large sack. The three children with him are Robbie and Stephen Horner and Suzanne Gough, all of Central Avenue.'