The Kidger brothers identify Fisons building

Part of the Fisons complex off Regent Street

LAWRENCE Barry Kidger and his brother Tony both rang in to identify a mystery picture from the Looking Back pages

The Echo believed the photograph had been taken in the late 1950s, early 1960s, but we didn’t know its whereabouts.

But the former Fisons worker brothers identified it as one of the old company’s buildings in Regent Street, backing on to Union Street.

The building has long been demolished, but Tony, who was an electrician with Fisons, remembers it very well.

The brothers’ father, Kitchener Kidger, was a security guard on the site.

Tony, 68 remembers his father showing him around the area, when he was about 10 to 12 yearsold, and recollects a company making glassware for the labora- tories and also said that some of the workers made little glass animals.

Tony has a good memory of the building, as he was later an electrician for the complex and remembered the heaters which were fitted in the roof that he used to repair.

In total Tony worked for Fisons, which had around five name changes, for 44 years, until he retired.

The Regent Street site (now Regent Place Retail Park) closed in 1994 and the buildings have long since gone.

Tony has also sent in two photos of the Fisons site, one looking down Regent Street towards Derby Road, with the mystery building on the right.

He said: “I believe it to be what was originally the Loughborough Glass Company factory where they made glass laboratory and scientific equipment.

“When they moved out probably in the 1960s it became a warehouse for Fisons Pharmaceuticals, and later a packing hall for Fisons Consumer Health up until the site closed down in 1994.”

The second picture Tony sent in is: “From a Fisons Journal dated spring 1957, which shows the proposed buildings which are adjacent to the Loughborough Glass Company building, I assume these were built in 1958.

“The building on the left with the larger maroon gates became the main entrance to Fisons Consumer Health from about 1984 to 1994 when, as previously mentioned the site closed.”

Both Tony and Lawrence say that whole families used to help make up the Fisons’ workforce.

Lawrence, 66, started there on June 6, 1982 and worked as a serviceman, ensuring all the materials were ready for packing, until he was made redundant in 1994.

He said: “It was fantastic. It was like family. Everybody was brilliant. There was waiting list for overtime. I used to work on Saturday, go to the Brush Club for a meal and then went back to work in the afternoon.”

Another Looking Back regular, Philip Thorpe, of Barrow-uponSoar, also got in touch about the building saying: “I am fairly sure this was an extension to the Genatosan factory (later Fisons) situated between Broad Street and Regent Street.

“This extension was on the corner of Regent Street and Union Street and replaced houses and a bakery, which were demolished for this. I used to live not far away in Oxford Street till late 1960.”