Memory lane leads me a merry dance

WHEN I was a young man living in london, my mates and I used to go to the popular Tottenham Royal dance band venue.

We would listen to music and watch young women dancing around their handbags.

I would drive there in my little Morris 1000. We dressed smartly in the hope of making a good impression, but for some reason, those handbags got more dancing time than us! A lifetime later, I had moved out of london and was looking for some specific bathroom tiles. I was told about a specialist shop in Tottenham and a phone call confirmed they had these in stock.

I drove to collect the tiles and then decided to drive to the Tottenham Royal and have a look around the area. After not driving in london for a long time, I had to keep my wits about me. I came to a familiar road and joined a line of cars that looked as if they were turning right.

It all came flooding back to me. That right turn would take me to the Tottenham Royal. however, the line of cars in front was just not moving and my patience was wearing thin. After ten minutes, I was wondering what the hold-up was. It was only then that I noticed the car in front didn’t have a driver — I had been fooled by the high headrest. The right turn I had used all those years ago was now a parking area and the old road had closed.

I pulled out to drive past the row of cars and suddenly spotted the parking sign.

I later found out the Tottenham Royal was no more: it had been demolished in 2004 and replaced with housing. Don Townshend, Chelmsford, Essex.