White City Blues

John Dove

Even as my father approached retirement and was not longer required to be in his office at weekends, he still used to make the journey up to London on a Saturday morning; his excuse being that he enjoyed the luxury of having a seat on the train once in a while.

There was however another attraction that drew him to being in town at the weekend. He loved athletics and in the 1950s major athletic meetings were often held at the White City Stadium on a Saturday afternoon. He could imagine no greater indulgence than an afternoons feast of athletics followed by high tea at Lyons Corner House in the Strand. I did not realise it at the time but as I approached my teenage years and was able to travel to London on my own, I was able to be of real service to him. By inviting me to joining him at the White City and thus as he justified to himself taking him off his mothers hands, he could both indulge himself and return home on a Saturday evening a little less guiltily. ... (continues)