The Exeter 'Comment' from Exeter Memories

This site is run by a resident of who loves the city - Previous Comments

Memories of an Exeter 'Pop' drummer - 10th November 2011

It was way back in February 2009 that Mike Ewing posted to the forum, requesting people who had memories of Exeter 'pop' scene in the 1960s to contact him. The thread had been the most popular on the forum with 54 subsequent posts and more than 10,000 views. Mike has now written his considerable memories of his time playing drums with the Cordettes and other Exeter bands – these memories can be found at Memories of a pop drummer. I am sure that many will be interested in reading of gigs, bands and people from their teenage years – which leads me to a request. If you were involved with an Exeter band, saw the Stones, Beatles, Pink Floyd, Who, Lead Zeppelin, Dusty Springfield or one of the many other acts to play in Exeter during the 1960s and 70s, why not get your fingers typing and produce a record of your memories for Exeter Memories. If you are a child of the 60s, Flower Power, Mersey Beat and Love Love Love (Lennon) get remembering before its too late. Let the house, garage, grunge, boy band and electro pop generations know about the trail blazers!

Twitter, Facebook and Page Comments - 24th July 2011

I have added buttons on every page for Twitter and Facebook members. You can Tweet about the page or put a comment on your Facebook wall about something you find interestin in Exeter Memories. The 'Send' button also allows you to email your friends from the page, even if you are not a member of Facebook. I have added an Exeter Memories Twitter account and a Facebook group page, so why not become a follower and find out what's new on the site.

It is also possible to comment about a page using the Comment button – if there are previous comments, just click on the button to read them. It may be a comment adding some trivia, or a personal recollection of an event or place; it is up to you. In some cases I may use the information in the page with a suitable acknowledgement in the Source line at the bottom of the article. So get Twittering, and tell your Facebook friends about Exeter Memories and add your comments to the site.

Exeter's naked bike ride - 10th June 2011

I was not able to attend Exeter's naked bike ride on Saturday - it is an event that should be remembered for future generations, so I would like to include it on the 21st Century page. For this, I require a photograph of the bikers in the High Street or some other prominant place. If you took some photographs of the event, perhaps you could send a couple by email for me to include on the page - contact me HERE.

One hundred memories - 17th March 2011

James Bell wrote his memories of the blitz and wartime Exeter about five years ago, and they were some of the first on the site. Today I uploaded three pages of memories of James' school days, starting in the infants in 1936, and finishing at Exeter Technical School in 1946. Take a look if you went to the Episcopal Infants School, Mary Arches School, St David's School, Episcopal Boys School and Exeter Technical School. Even if you didn't attend these schools, the memories are full of James' usual humour and sharp observations.

Since I wrote the above, James has submitted more memories of wartime Exeter – his detail regarding the shelters, chicanes and roadblocks around the city, salvage and children's songs and ditties are worth a read. See Story List for links to the pages.

Fifty years since the great Exeter flood - 18th October 2010

Wednesday the 27th October will be 50 years since the first of the two floods that devastated St Thomas, Exwick and many country districts that year. The Environment Agency will hold an event between 10am and 4pm on the 27th October outside the National Westminster Bank to commemorate the event. During their preparation for the event they were contacted by Tony Melhuish with some new photos of the flooding in colour. To see these photos, plus many other unique photos of the 1960 deluge, see the Exeter Floods.

Sorry for the lack of updates - 11th September 2010

For the last few weeks I have unfortunately been indisposed due to illness, preventing me from researching and adding new pages to the site. I am on the mend and will be adding some new pages over the next few weeks, and updating many of the existing pages with further research and corrections. Before I was ill, the Exeter's Executed page had been extensively updated, with many extracts from the Flying Post and contemporary broadsheets. I am also in the process of extensively updating the history of the three mills in Exwick with some new, exclusive content; this is a work in progress which so far has unearthed some interesting stories of industrial strife at the time of the Tolpuddle Martyrs, and pushed back the history of one mill to its origins. So, to find the most interesting, and latest, research into Exeter's past, keep returning to Exeter Memories - and remember, I am always pleased to receive your memories, research and photos about Exeter for inclusion on the site.

That's all for now,

David Cornforth - My Contact E-Mail