Lets all hope Norman was right?

by Andrew Wastling

________________________________

 

I remember well that gangs of kids from  Spotland and elsewhere  used to regularly , and in those seemingly endless  summer holidays almost daily, play on much of the land around the old Turner Brothers factory site.  It was I must be honest a brilliant space to 'doss around' on.  We could refight world war two in the old concrete bunkers near the old Ammunition factory further along in Healy Dell, become a tribe of lost Apaches still evading Custer, the Reservations & small pox blankets , or map out & explore the woods & abandoned railway lines of the 'Dell' at our leisure.  All we needed was a couple  of butties and a bottle of pop in a cheap canvas army surplus shoulder bag. Some readers may remember the amazing well constructed 'Tree House' and swing set back from the road?

Many local kids played there.  This was the days of three channels on TV and eking out a miserable existence on the proceeds of an exploitative daily paper round from cheerful but slightly tight fisted  proprietor of the long gone Spotland Bridge paper shop.  Though I did try unsuccessfully to sign the other paper lads  & lasses up into the Labour Party Young Socialists & unionise then for higher pay!  We remained locked in perpetual industrial conflict for much of 74-75 , like much of the rest of the country at the time.  The 'Bosses' sought to divide and rule with additional perks of Curly Wurly's  and Mars Bars to the most compliant so although I still maintain we held the high moral ground we lacked the necessary resolve, strike fund reserves  & industrial militancy to decisively win that particular battle in the class war.

Our second private enterprise venture of recycling 'Ben Shaws' bottles collected from miles around with home made go-carts at 'Alice's' on Willbutts Lane failed utterly to raise us from our humble working class origins.  Although Thatcher would have been proud of our aspirational private business venture I'm sure ?

The 'Tree House' swing was the best for miles around easily far superior to the lesser facility at Cop trod.  The 'Crag' near to Shaw field School too held its attractions -  especially when playing 'hooky' from school - although the then stinking blue-grey river with its snake like threads of grey fabric washing out of a locked concrete drain into the stream & river direct from the Turners site was I have to admit an acquired taste.

Away from the 'Tree House', along a stretch of the same river besides the well stocked vegetable allotments.  We found leaping into the refreshing depths of the 'Spod' from the concrete bridge crossing the river on the footpath leading uphill to Rooley Moor Road was by far and away the best free entertainment for council estate kids available for miles around in summer - especially the glorious summer of '76 !

If my memory serves me correctly I remember a slightly decrepit dumper truck regularly lumbering along through the newly planted saplings to dump skip loads of rubble and general junk into a pit that from time to time had soil bulldozed over it by way of landscaping.  Occasionally we'd spy men in white overalls conducting weird & wonderful tasks beyond our understanding with clipboards and with sticks and bits of white tape.  We christened them ' Martians' at the time and thought no more of it.  Although one of the more excitable younger kids did think it was a prelude to an alien invasion but he was a compulsive Doctor  Who fan so nobody paid him any mind.

Security was never a strong point at Turners, even then . Though we did get an official letter from Turners formally threatening  our gang to keep off the river bank- my first officially recorded  brush with authority - where we'd catch the odd small fish or newt, which perhaps with the benefit of hindsight thankfully we let go rather than keep!

It would be interesting for some research to be conducted with the participation  those 70's street kids to  see if any of them have any long term health issues that could be attributed to our toxic playground?  I know at least three of our gang have moved onto bigger and better things in Poland, Australia and the USA, but others remain contactable.  One of my close friends father worked for many years at Turners and passed away of an asbestos related disease.  His blue overalls and flat cap as well as his incredibly wide ranging intellect meant he was a fascinating and well known Rochdale character who could talk knowledgeably for hours at a time on a huge range of subjects from Edwin Waugh to John Pilger & Deeply Vale.

He's still much missed & unique individual.  A truly wonderful mentor & friend .He always treated me and his son as adults and had more books lining the walls of their terraced house on Rooley Moor road than you could find in the entirety of  Spotland Branch library.  Their Manchester brick terraced house had the added bonuses of having not only a brilliant & voluminous vinyl collection but a well stocked fall-out shelter in the cellar , with copies of both Protect & Survive but Protest & Survive along with  hand written signs saying:  'Zdravstvuyte tovarishch!'  or 'Hello Comrade!' in Russian Cyrillic text.  A wise post apocalyptic survival tool we all agreed at the time  given the dire state of local civil defence contingency plans  which had recently been vilified in the Ob for having immovable metal filing cabinets wedged in front of the door leading to Civil Defence  Regional HQ then located  in the Town Hall cellar !

My mate's dad Norman, always resolutely maintained that the 'truth would one day come out about what had gone on at Turners over the years', but it wouldn't be 'for many years when those responsible were long dead and buried'.  Such was extent of the cover up by local politicians & businessmen who had royally screwed up with the site and feared that truth and the real extent of the problem would finally out one day be dragged out into the cold light of day.

Lets all hope Norman was right ?

Norman Smith MBE & lesser critics of N.V.

Northern Voices Editor - Brian Bamford

THE letter below from the former Rochdale Mayor, Norman Fowden Smith MBE, who has recently died, was sent a decade ago to Harold Sculthorpe, who was then part of the editorial committee  of Northern Voices.  It is addressed to the editor, Brian Bamford, and purports to be a complaint about coverage of Mr. N. Smith in the NV No.6 edition of that journal in which there was reference to his support for developers on the Spodden Valley site with its serious issues with regard to the threat of asbestos disturbance.  Norman had been referred to as 'a stout defender' of the developers.  Mr. N.F.Smith is of course the brother of the then famous and influential figure Sir Cyril Smith, who lived on Emma Street in Rochdale.  Norman Smith was perhaps the first person to threaten Northern Voices, but others followed; notably the veteran anarchist, Ronald Marsden, of Barlow Moor Road, West Didsbury who, in 2009, objected to something in NV in which attention was drawn to his acquisition of some photos of a refugee camp in Lancashire: he went on threaten NV with 'criminal libel' and bullied our printer and some of our outlets.  Then there were two individuals Matthew Baker, formerly an aide to Simon Danczuk, and the former police officer and later lecturer, Gordon Mills, who both complained that NV had wrongly said they were 'sacked' from their posts.  We corrected these admitted errors but both Baker and Mills went on to threaten NV with allusions to defamation.  In the case of Gordon Mills he also challenged the Guardian, the Morning Star and the USI over similar issues.  We understand that the GMB union is presently his target.*
Besides these litigious personalities there have been other valiant attempts to persuade us to watch our backs.  In 2012, the 'anarchist' former school teacher, Sally Miller nee Hyman, recruited a contingent of schoolboys to ambush a bookseller at the London Anarchist Bookfair and tried to have the publication removed from sale. 
The letter sent a decade ago from Norman F. Smith to Harold Sculthorpe and addressed to Brian Bamford as editor, is as represented below, it was all in capital letters:

FROM MR NORMAN SMITH MBE,

TO:  MR BRIAN BAMFORD

NORTHERN VOICES.

DEAR MR BAMFORD

THANK YOU FOR YOUR LETTER AND COPY OF YOUR NO.6 N. VOICES.

        I VERY STRONGLY OBJECT TO YOUR ARTICLE.  I HAVE NEVER ONCE DEFENDED THE DEVELOPERS RE. SPODDEN VALLY, OR SUPPORTED THEM.  TO SAY SO IS A LIE AND YOU KNOW IT.  I FIND YOUR ARTICLE AND REFERENCES OBJECTIONABLE AND SEE NO REASON TO REFER TO MY BROTHER.

I HAVE SPOKEN TO MY SOLICITOR, AND I HAVE GOOD REASON TO CONSIDER YOUR ASSERTIONS TO BE LIBELLOUS.

ALL I HAVE EVER DONE IS STATE THE LEGAL POSITION, PLANNING WISE AND HOW – NOT IF – IT SHOULD BE OPPOSED.

I REQUIRE A FULL PUBLISHED APOLOGY FROM YOU, IN YOUR “NORTHERN VOICES” AND A STATEMENT OF THE ABOVE FACT, AND AN ADMISSION THAT WHAT YOU WROTE WAS AN UNTRUTH.  I ALSO REQUIRE YOU SEND ME THE RELEVANT ISSUE – FREE.

Norman F Smith.

Owing to our knowledge of the past involvement of Sir Cyril Smith MBE with Turner Bros. Asbestos Company, and the supportive comments of his brother Norman F. Smith MBE with regard to the developers plans to build on Spodden Valley, Northern Voices refused to give either an apology to Mr. N. F. Smith or to offer him a free copy of Northern Voices.  We heard nothing further from either Norman F. Smith MBE or his brother Cyril.

*  A retired policeman who worked for a secretive unit monitoring political protests is suing a trade union over claims that he colluded with an unlawful blacklisting operation that prevented construction workers from getting jobs.

In a libel claim lodged in the High Court, Gordon Mills, who worked for five years in the unit, has accused the GMB of defaming him and is claiming up to £10,000 in damages.
His legal action is being defended by the GMB which said it had been acting in the public interest. The union said there was “credible evidence” suggesting that Mills, while he was a police officer, shared information with construction firms which were funding a clandestine blacklist of workers.

For more go to

Former police officer suing GMB trade union for defamation | UK news ...

https://www.theguardian.com 

Former Rochdale Mayor, Norman Smith dies

THE former  Liberal Democrat Mayor of Rochdale, Norman Fowden Smith MBE died on Wednesday evening at Rochdale Infirmary following a long illness.  The 84-year-old who was also a town councillor, and was the younger brother of Cyril Smith, the former Rochdale MP.

Norman Smith MBE died on Wednesday night (4 January) at Rochdale Infirmary after a long illness.

He was born on 22 March 1932 and leaves behind his wife Shirley, daughter Christine, son Craig, five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

He was the youngest of three children, Mr Smith was brought up on Falinge Road, where he shared a house with his older brother Cyril Smith (who went on to become at different times a major figure in the local Labour and Liberal Parties in Rochdale), his older sister Eunice, and their mother and grandmother. He lived in the Rochdale until his death.

He was Mayor of Rochdale between 1986-1987 and was also a councillor for the Spotland ward for over 25 years.

His previous occupations included leading ambulance man in Heywood, chauffeur, running his own taxi business, and running a corner shop in the 1950s - which I think was actually a branch of the Co-op up Castleton.  He finished his National Service in the 1950s.

Mr. Smith received an MBE from the Queen on 31 December 1991 for public service.  He was also awarded Freeman of the Borough on 23 June 2004.

Details of the funeral arrangements are yet to be made.