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| Trolleybus Number 1253, which once operated on the 555 route |
I think that it was during the autumn of 1958 while sitting on a trolleybus traveling along the Hackney Road that I came to fully appreciate that nothing lasts forever. Although I was having this sudden epiphany here, obviously I was aware that things changed and that nothing stayed still. I knew that families from time-to-time picked up and moved and that people changed jobs and that not all relationships lasted. I knew that eventually one’s own parents would die and that the day would come when even I would die. Still it is one thing knowing this and quite another thing KNOWING IT!!!
Up until
that day, places like the corner baker’s, the little dairy across the road and
the local newsagent’s had not changed and had remained under the same management. This represented stability as I knew
it. The only real changes that I had experienced
until then were related to me personally.
By now, toy shops had lost their fascination and book shops were becoming
less boring. This was also a time when I
realized my appearance was important
and certain forms of dress were beginning to
catch my eye. I was taking longer
now to comb my hair and I was using a lot more Brylcreem.
 |
| As the advert said: A little dab'll do ya! |
I was
sitting upstairs on the trolleybus and enjoying a cigarette. I was sharing the upper deck with a group of
youths who were older than me and who were evidently out working, since they were dressed in suits in what was known as
the Italian style. Their hair had been cut in the style
reminiscent of Perry Como. Although I
did not dislike their suits, I was appalled by their haircuts. This was the age of early rock ‘n’ roll in all of its
rawness. Teddy Boys with creased back
hair and drainpipe trousers and drape coats were still seen. What was this new fashion and how on earth
could these youths reject the Ted look for
it?
As bad
as it was to have to share the upper deck of the 555 with these forerunners of Mods,
it was the tune that they had started to whistle in unison as we rumbled
along Hackney Road that really upset me.
In 1958, Rock ‘n’ Roll was the
most popular music genre amongst the
young. Here was an exciting sound that
got deep into your bones. I was a great
devotee of early rock and I especially liked Elvis, Little Richard and FatsDomino. I was horrified by what seemed
to herald a change in the current musical tastes of the youth. At that time, the radio and the music
newspapers could talk of nothing but Calypso! Calypso
was the latest type of music to reach our ears and was being hailed at the next great musical trend!
 |
| The True Kings of Rock 'n' Roll |
As
musical genres went, Calypso was
fine. Harry Belefonte had released some
good songs by this time. However, it was
what the musical critics and writers who thought themselves knowledgeable about
Cultural Affairs said and wrote that
both annoyed and concerned me. They
claimed that Rock ‘n’ Roll was on its
deathbed and that Calypso was driving nails into its coffin! No one, and especially not these
self-proclaimed pundits, could tell
me that calypsos were as exciting as the great songs produced by those early
Kings of Rock ‘n’ Roll! And despite my musical tastes having
broadened over the years, I am still of that mindset.
 |
| Harry Belefonte through the years |
While I
sat there on the trolleybus unable to tune-out the sound of those youths
whistling Tea for Two Cha Cha, the Odeon Hackney Road came into view. I had always liked this cinema. To me, it was the perfect Odeon.
Odeon cinemas were classy establishments and going to an Odeon always felt special. The staff wore chocolate and gold coloured outfits
and always looked smart. There were
potted plants in the foyer and some even had a few at the edges of the
screen. The décor of the cinemas was art deco and appeared to me to be
slightly understated, which only added to its attraction. Each time I went to an Odeon, which was rare since we did not have a real Odeon in Bethnal Green, it felt like an occasion, which was obviously what Oscar Deutsch, the founder of
the cinema chain, wanted.
 | |
| Odeon Hackney Road opened in July 1938 and together with the Odeon Peckham were the first cinemas to be converted into Top Rank Bingo Clubs. The erstwhile Odeon Hackney Road came under the auspices of Mecca Bingo in 2005. Top right: soon after the opening; Top left: as it was when I used to go there; Bottom left: soon after it became a Bingo Hall; & Bottom right: as it is today. |
I
remember sitting there on the upper deck of that bus and being stunned when the bus arrived at the
cinema. I saw that the most beautiful of
Odeons was no longer an Odeon!
Outside the building were notices advertising that the management was proud to announce that
it was now a Bingo Hall! There I was, frozen to my seat, with the
sounds of Tommy Dorsey’s Tea for Two Cha
Cha ringing in my ears! How could
the Rank Organisation, the owners of
the Odeon circuit, sell this most
beautiful of cinemas? Weren’t there
lesser ones that would have done equally as well? Were all cinemas doomed and destined to
become Bingo Halls? I felt ill. I felt sick.
Suddenly my world was crumbling about me – Rock ‘n’ Roll was on its deathbed and now one of my favourite
cinemas had been turned in a Bingo Hall!
A few
passengers got off the 555 and new
people got on. It seemed that no one but
me had been affected by the change in the fate of the Odeon. Not only that, no one
seemed to notice. Were they in a dream,
I wondered. Don’t they realise what has
happened? The trolleybus lurched forward
as we took off down the road. I felt
lost and could only sit there and those youths continuing with their incessant
whistling as if nothing had happened!
Of
course as I later realised Rock ‘n’ Roll was
not on its deathbed and the Odeon Hackney
Road continued on. Although no
longer a cinema, the Odeon was not
demolished, as were so many others were.
Over the years I have passed the one-time Odeon many times on what is now the number 5 bus since the trolleybuses were also withdrawn from service soon
afterwards. The building once owned by
the J. Arthur Rank Organisation has
been sold to various other companies,
but has continued in its usage as a Bingo
Hall. The exterior of the building
has undergone numerous changes and has little resemblance to the Odeon of my childhood, but the it continues
to thrive and now has been a Bingo Hall
for more years than it ever was as a cinema.
Now who would have guessed that?
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READER'S COMMENTS
Peter from London wrote:
As usual a very good story.
It brought back memories of my traveling up and down the Hackney Road on
the 555 trolleybus although I cannot remember where it went or where we were
going! However I can remember the metal ‘things’
(poles?) that frequently came unhooked from the overhead wires. This of course brought the bus to a
standstill and the driver had to get out and hook them back onto the wire
before we could continue our journey. Do
you have any pictures of this happening?
As for the Odeon Hackney Road, I remember my parents taking me
there and my dad buying sweets. I think
that he bought some sort of coconut ice at least that was what it was
called. My dad had a sweet tooth! The sweet shop was directly opposite the
Odeon. I don’t remember them selling
sweets in the cinema, but they did sell ice cream and I would get some if I was
lucky!
Lovely story, keep it up.
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