Johnno in a nutshell

[Johnno]

Hello Sherry,

Welcome to the Sundowners site and thank you for sharing your Earls Court adventure memories.  

We, along with many hundreds of other Aussies and Kiwis in that era spent our first nights on English soil at the Hunter Hotel or Lodge. Quite a culture shock. The owners were I believe, Ken and Sheila. He was South African but she was English, very much in the Sybil from Fawlty Towers mold. If I recall their story, Trebovir Road was bombed and badly damaged in WW2 and I think her father had owned the hotel prior to them. They took me to dinner at the Ritz hotel one night, very salubrious.

Not so salubrious were the Hunters hotels. I think it was around 4 to 5 pounds per night (paid in advance) and was used by Sundowners(and Nat) to book passengers at the beginning and end of  tours if requested as a "preferred" cheapie hotel. My memory of the rooms being tiny even by English standards was confirmed when I checked out the site of the now Trebovir Hotel and I think the Lodge is now the Lord Kensington Hotel. Don't bring your cat!

I think we would all love to be able to live so cheaply again like you in those days taking home a balance wage of 6 quid a week. We seen to have been able to live successfully on the smell of an oily rag (Luxury!) but looking back fondly remember we ate out regularly thanks to such places as The Pot restaurants, kebabs, Indian, pub meals and all you can eat Tuesday nights at the Pizza Hut. Besides that we could somehow afford to attend the pub for drinks on a regular basis, probably too regularly if I am honest. No wonder we came home broke!

I do recall the NAT office also being in Hogarth Road near the Earls Court Road corner.It was a very vibrant area in those days full on antipodean travellers coming and going with the beginnings of a Middle Eastern influx. Lots of the afore mentioned cheap restaurants, pubs, sleazy travel agents, money changers stretched along Earls Court Road but now it seems to be a very expensive and trendy place with those dilapidated terrace buildings being mostly renovated, at least on the outside. Alas the golden days of The Pot are gone!

Regards Johnno

[John]

I stayed at the Hunters Trebovir Road in 1980 and 1982,at that stage it was owned by Kevin Dunning and David Deiann(sic) . Kevin was also running a travel agency behind the reception while David(JB) run the hotel.JB or "Jingle Bells" because he was so "tight" he only ever bought a drink at Xmas time.

This was at the time when the London pubs use to shut in the afternoon so JB was making a killing at the hunters guest bar in the off time.They had it all worked out,outsiders would get a fake room key so when the cops showed up for a spot check all the bar drinkers could show their room keys.Seeing even some of the cops used the bar It was all a bit Nudge Nudge Wink Wink I think as it was not real hard to work out a hotel with about 30 rooms should not have a bar with 60 or 70 patrons all waving room keys.

The main drinking hole in the area back then (for me anyway) was The Prince of Teck,with publican Bill Steele and his wife "Sniffy" Pat.There were more headbangers in the Teck's "Snake Pit" than you could point a stick at.Impossible to even have a rough guess at how many times a night they would play on the jukebox that f'ing "Shaddap You Face by Joe Dolce.

Anyway good memories dragged up by stumbling upon this site....Cheers  

[rjw]

It might read 2011, but is still good reading today hope for the upgrade to 2018.soon.regards Bob Wilko Wilkinson.

[Vicar]

I enjoyed your account of the antics of the time.