Crikey, you have opened a can of worms here Allan, oooppss , fish and chips sorry! You are right, we did have a lot of fish & chip shops around the place. In Cross Roads we had three. Bocking fish shop was at the bottom of the snicket on the main Halifax Road. I can't remember who owned it during the war, but post war it was bought by Albert Steele and family from Haworth. His son Brian became a mate and still is. At the top of Cross Roads was Sowdens. Their son Kenneth was a bit younger than us. That was our closest one and then on Lees near the school was Eleanor's. I can't remember her surname, she was just Eleanor to us. Queues have been mentioned and yes there always seemed to be a queue at meal times. I remember asking them to put on some scraps for me. Haworth also had a proliferation of fish shops. The ones I remember were Victoria Road, near the Bronte pictures, (new uns), Mill Hey near the Royal Oak, Sun Street at the bottom of Coldshaw, and one up Main Street. Phew that goes back a long time.

Remember the old "mischief night" prank? you would go into a fish shop and ask them " 'ow much do yer charge for salt and pepper?" Nowt why! "OK then, I'll have a packet of salt and a bottle of vinegar thanks" and then run like hell. Cheers.

Years at KBGS e.g. 1958-1964 (optional) 1947-51

Current location (optional) Auckland, New Zealand

Ah. Chippies! – or Fish’oyles as they were known to a certain fraternity. In Eastwood, there were three – all within striking distance of ours.
Nearest was ‘t’wood’ut opposite the “kworp” in Brown Street – which linked Bradford/Emily and Marlborough Streets. Local lads got part-time work “eyeing spuds”. Earliest tariff as I recall (around 1945/6) included scone and chips (5d) ; fish and chips(6d); bag of chips (2d). Servers were usually local mams so it was kid-friendly, taking the threat out of errands. Now it is a place of worship of an oriental disposition. (to be continued)

Years at KBGS e.g. 1958-1964 (optional) 1952-60

Current location (optional) Nirvana

Next was on Bradford Road next to the pet shop at bottom of Back Emily. Taken over and greatly improved around 1950 by Norman Gosling , it sported a sign ,Gosling Fish and Chips, which a certain fraternity read as guzzling fish and chips. It was a favourite with the men at Prince Smiths who at dinner time would send a work mate with a long order.
If you got in behind one of them you could be there for the duration. Prince Smiths men would sit out up Bradford Road on a projecting course of masonry – which conveniently was mostly bum-high – to eat their meal. It was then that I learnt that fish and chip fat is an excellent solvent of industrial oil and grease - going by the clean fingers and black fists of the diners.
Then there was Barraclough’s at top of Marlborough Street in Lawkholme Lane and also as Doug pointed out Mr Willoughby’s below t’Park. Mike Nicholson (a form mate of Doug’s) did the best husky take of Mr Willoughby with his “Sorry, no scones – only fish” – ie when there were only new potatoes. But if you wanted to walk up to Station Bridge and East Parade, there was more choice.
A pie and pea van would park outside our house on a Thursday evening after Cubs and as a sign that novelle cuisine was making its mark – a pie and pea “restaurant” opened near the Park gates about 1953/4. We’ve been a “takeaway society” for as long as I remember

Fine recollections, and interesting for me (who wasn't quite yet born then) to hear of the wartime fish'oyles still churning out a supply of unrationed grub. I think I'd have had fish, scone and chips every day from 1939 to 1945 from Monday to Friday, saving my food ration for Saturday and Sunday. Spare a thought for the fishermen who must've risked life and limb dodging the U boats to bring home the catch.

Not a fish and chip tale but still food. During the war part of West Lane Mills was given over to be storage for the Ministry of Food
Some days lorries arrived with big jute bags stacked three high and we found out they held peanuts for margarine manufacture. Being nosey kids we spotted the odd bag that leaked and we could get to the far side when the chaps were unloading and find a corner which could leak and soon could pour peanuts . These were unobtainable in the war and amazingly none of us was allergic to peanuts!!! And our dad was a police sergeant.

Years at KBGS e.g. 1958-1964 (optional) 43-46

Current location (optional) Over here

Good one Mike, you have reminded me about a "nut" story going back to the end of the war, late 1945 or 46 I can't be sure now. Here is a wee extract from my own memoirs of life in Keighley during and after that war. It was a family joke for years! It is easy to forget about the shortages we took for granted. Thanks for the memories Mike. Cheers.

It was about this time I started to help mum with the weekly shopping and after a couple of practice runs with mum, I was sent off to the market in Keighley every Saturday morning with my shopping list, to buy the greengroceries. We still had food rationing of course, and I went off armed with the family ration books. This eventually led to what became a long standing family joke, when one day, when I had finished my shopping list and had a half crown left, I spotted a pile of nuts - remember I was about 10 years old, had read and heard about nuts but had never seen them because of the food shortages in the war. When I saw these I had to have some. I was so proud and knew that mum would be pleased with me, so I spent the whole 2/6 on a bag of nuts and proudly took them home to show mum. Imagine my disappointment when mum started to laugh and explained that these nuts really were nutmegs! She used these for years! It was also at this time I saw my first bananas - dried, horrible brown things!

Years at KBGS e.g. 1958-1964 (optional) 1947-51

Current location (optional) Auckland, New Zealand