Archive for Langeleben Internet forum for Langeleben Reunion Members.
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Bill Lloyd
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6th Feb. 1958With the papers full of the Manchester United air crash at Munich, I thought someone might mention the subject. So, I will start it.
At the time I was with 12 Wireless, 50 miles south of Munich. We had been on duty overnight, and with so many AR88 sets in the room, you would have thought someone would have picked up the news...but no!
It wasn't until the next day, the 7th, our 'Day Off', when a few of us had gone through to Kufstein, in Austria, and having a beer, that the owner brought us a copy of the morning paper. We didn't need to understand German to see from the pictures in the paper what had happened.
A bit like where were you when??....Kennedy... Mount Everest climbed.. the Coronation...
Showing our age, I am afraid.
Bill Lloyd R.S. 1957/58
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GerryK
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5th Feb 1958Thanks Bill for your post. I was still in civvy street then and living five miles or so away from Old Trafford, in fact I used pass by it on my way to work every day. I shall never forget the sight of seeing so many people,men and women crying in the street. What a sad time it was. 
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Gordon
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Bill
Your post started a train of questions in my head, in particular: Why can't I remember where I was when I heard of this sad event? Perhaps it's because way back in 1958 I don't think there were many personal radios at Langeleben. For news I relied on a weekly digest of the Guardian newspaper, sent out to me from home, so big events sometimes passed me by for a while. That, plus the disorienting effect of working a shift system, and the bitter weather of early 1958 may have been the reason.
Good to hear news from the Kingdom o' Fife. I lived at Strathkinness for several years. Great view over the Tay!
Gordon
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Ernie Callaghan
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May 1958I was on the 1-5 watch when the news of the crash came through, one of the lads picked up voice from a English station whilst knobbing, we listened through the afternoon without letting on to Rusty Rosson our watch commander. We where then relieved by C watch who continued listening in and then we picked up the latest on our midti, it was a terrible day and I remember even now the horror of hearing the news of the deaths of individual players as they came through, it seems only yesterday, where have the 50 years gone?
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paul croxson
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Not being a football fan, the effect (I nearly said 'impact') on me was not particularly significant. I do remember being treated with total contempt for not knowing who Duncan Edwards was by one friend. So much so that until this day I still remember his name. One of the very few I do recall; plus, with a bit of effort, 'Gordon Banks' and Norman Williams, also at Langeleben, who went on to play for Wimbledon as they proudly entered the 4th division. That's real fame!
Whilst mentioning 'Gordons' fancy our very own Gordon getting a weekly dose of the Grauniad. No wonder, reading that sort of subversive literature, he didn't become one of the chosen few and get elevated to the dizzy depths of a commission. My sister sometimes cut out the Telegraph crossword for me and posted them in batches.
It's amazing how often the article on the rear of something cut out of a newspaper can be so interesting with the best bit invariably being cut off.
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Gordon
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Paul
You've reminded me how subversive the Guardian was. When the Suez fiasco was grinding to its ignominious end I was strongly "advised" to keep my copy well hidden. It was about the only national paper to tell the truth, which eventually turned out to be more squalid than anyone expected.
Actually, I don't think I missed much of importance by reading a digest of the week's news. I despair when I look at the size of some daylies, particularly the Saturday editions. Do we need all that bumff? Do I need to know all about Britney's trials and tribulations or Paris Hilton's
latest shopping expedition? Not really.
Somewhere I have a pic of myself reading the Grauniad with the Langeleben MT sheds in the background. I must look it out.
Gordon
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paul croxson
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One thing about newspapers that I have learned from commuting daily to London since 1956 and that is that your next door neighbour's newspaper is always more interesting than your own.
Those amongst us old enough to genuinely remember eating fish and chips from newspaper with print on it(and that was much longer ago than you think) will also remember finding something interesting to read on the wrapping, especially if it was the Screws of the World which was banned in our house.
It was probably about 1947/8 when things were really short, I recall that if you didn't take a newspaper in you didn't get served in our Chippie in Mitcham. They weren't very big in those days - 4 pages perhaps - not like the modern processed trees you get on a Sunday. Gordon, I discover, shares my dislike of these;I no longer buy the things having very little interest in sports, gardening, travel, holidays, motoring, personal finance, Oh and of course news., the colour supplement and Entertainment.
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ken vipond
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Hi Paul,yes i can remember going to our local chippie with the old news paper,s,but elfin and safety put that all that out of bounds,but thats just as well as i could,nt fancy eating my fish and chips out of the page three of the Sun newspaper,or would that give one a better appertite,oh mamories,mamories,i think i spelt that wrong,best regards from Ken
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paul croxson
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Ah Ken, it's good to grow old disgracefully.
Chip paper leads inexorably to other uses of newspaper and we oldies will remember Izal and toilet paper in flat interwoven packs or rolls. We always ran out despite exhortations to use both sides, and had to resort to newspaper frequently. Granddad with whom I was evacuated was very much an old soldier and used to cut the sheets very precisely and string them together to hang in the outside khazi. This reminds me of the only funny moment I ever saw in Steptoe and Sons when the old man tore a piece of newspaper off, saw it was a picture of Hitler .... you guess the rest.
The one virtue of the Izal was at least one did not poke one's finger through it. It was virtually blast proof.
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marleneandgypo
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Swiftly coming back to 1958 and Busby's Babes. I was 14 and gutted. I am from Kearsley near Farnworth which wasn't too far from Old Trafford and Man U inspired me to play football and even though I say it myself, I was good. Scored a goal with my backside once as a kid. Alan Ball played for the other side that day. I was also in the Langeleben football team. Marlene was our groupie.
A few years later in our courting days I took Marlene to a few matches and she was particularly struck by Georgie Best and his expertise with a ball. Magic! He scored a hat trick the day I first took her and one was from a corner. Not quite as impressive as my one from my backside, but he did OK.
As for toilet paper, my dad hated spending money and trust me he had a bob or two and owned his own place with garage, yet he still spoiled the effect by cutting up the telephone directory with a saw and hanging it on a nail in the downstairs toilet. And this was in the early 70's! Old habits die hard. Marlene and I had to go and buy our own toilet paper when we went to visit.
Clive
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Mike Webber
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6th FEB 1958Not sure exactly how I got the news, probably on watch. But I do remember clearly the reaction of one of my mates in the I Corps billet. Lance Disley was from Manchester, and never stopped talking about his beloved United. It must have been the evening after the crash his bed was opposite mine, he was in shock and crying bitterly. It left a lasting impression on me.
I couldn't believe what had happened either. I played for the camp team (when available) and remember 'Yorkie' Banks, although most of the time he didn't play in goal. If anyone remembers the Officer running that team was Mr Gentles.
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