I first started to work in Gardening Lane when I was 12 years of age.
My father gave me a job as a messenger boy in different far places.
It was a summer job.
What struck me was the characters that worked within Gardening Lane.
You had the Lancet Tommy Perkins, big, jolly, soft type of line, and very gentle.
A gentle joint.
Very helpful to everyone.
Then there was Frankie Arkles.
Frankie was an inner city dog with a great character.
Different generations, from father down to son, uncles, cousins,
they were all integrations of little companies within the Lane.
Even here today we have Johnny Arkles.
Johnny was the son of Frankie.
Frankie used to perform in the Clifton City Retire.
We have the Malloy Brothers.
We have one of their sons working here.
Traditionally, people used to draw labels from around here.
My father started a business in 1947.
It's a far place manufacturing company.
It is located within Gardner Lane, which housed many other small businesses over the years.
A lot of them now have moved on.
For instance, we had furniture manufacture.
We had an engineering company, which we used to make tanks for Saudi Arabia.
We had a clothing company.
We had a coffin making company.
All these companies were small, autonomous little family businesses that operated within Gardner Lane.
It is my understanding that the total number of people employed within the Lane was in excess of 500 people.
Since then, there probably is to date about 30 people.
New technology has displaced jobs.
All traditions, some of the jobs have become obsolete.
The advent of the industrial states on the outside of the prohibitions of the city centre.
Because of the traffic congestion within the city, it has been very hard to run a small business
and to get the noise of vans out early in the morning.
Everyone used to operate with each other.
For instance, there was a baker in the Lane.
If there was a bread strike down, the baker would issue a bread to everyone in the Lane to bring home to their families.
I remember the football matches that used to be played between the companies within Gardner Lane.
They were very intense and the rivalry between the various companies to win these matches
was supposed to be a friendly match during lunch hours. It was incredible.
All cars had to be removed from the Lane.
That was an accepted thing. All cars had to be removed so that they could play football.
All these little sort of traditions and little set ways that we had a phone on,
and miss an off lot when we will have to move out of Gardner Lane.
And I will be sad to move out of here because it has been part of my life for the last,
well, family since I was born, 52 years ago.
My own life since I started living here at 12.
And then I came in full time by accident in 1979.
I remember at the time we had a manager here, Gabriel Lance, and Guy was leaving.
He was leaving Clifford's for our parents and my father was very bad in stock.
But it was ever only intended that I would work here for six months,
and then I would move on to another job.
That's 27 years ago when I'm still here.
