Firstly, hello and apologies to anyone in Greens Norton that might remember me.

If you do then you remember the legendary Norman Parker and his somewhat younger wife, the lovely Jean and their sons Peter (Pecker) and "Wolf" Parker, their sons.

I worked behind the bar for a couple of years before I went to college and, of the memories that I have, had a great time with what can correctly be termed and with no offence, the old "Tosspots" of the village, most of whom must have surely been long-since gathered, it was, after all, a lifetime ago.

Sadly, some of the younger ones of us have also gone too, Tony Hooley whom used to regularly poor beer over my head is no longer with us and can't have been older than forty when he met the Reaper.

So, times to reflect; I remember a great skittles team and a few bikers; are any of them or you still going or do you remember?

Although our antics were frowned upon, they were heady days! Had it been now...

Ed,

Just got notified about your message on the Greens Norton bulletin board through a complicated route involving the British Legion Club ("Like the back of an artic with chairs up either side and a bar at one end") – and I did get your earlier message on Friends Reunited, but was too tight to do anything about it…

Blimey! – A message like this when one is reflecting on the turn of the year is a powerful thing! I’ll respond one by one…

[EG] Firstly, hello and apologies to anyone in Greens Norton that might remember me.

Don’t apologise, I’ve only good memories of a time when it was all in front of us and anything was possible, and building on your last sentence I think people were generally more tolerant then (or perhaps we didn’t notice the disapproval)

[EG] If you do then you remember the legendary Norman Parker and his somewhat younger wife, the lovely Jean and their sons Peter (Pecker) and "Wolf" Parker, their sons.

Norman passed away in ’99 at the age of 91, Jean is doing part-time voluntary work looking after witnesses at Northampton Crown Court, I’m trying to do the best for my two lads (10 and 12) and maintain remaining semblance of sanity through racing MX and Enduros when I can (not as quick as I used to be but a lot more crafty). Dave has also dabbled with enduro bikes after a lifetime of road bikes but has now gone back to a Triumph Street Triple.

[EG] I worked behind the bar for a couple of years before I went to college and, of the memories that I have, had a great time with what can correctly be termed and with no offence, the old "Tosspots" of the village, most of whom must have surely been long-since gathered, it was, after all, a lifetime ago.

There’s a few still around but the village is different to what it was (maybe rose tinted specs maybe property prices etc.) I haven’t been to the Butchers for a good few years but Dave tells me it has just changed hands and is now on the up. If there’s any specific names you are interested in, let me know and I’ll see what I can find out.

[EG] Sadly, some of the younger ones of us have also gone too, Tony Hooley whom used to regularly poor beer over my head is no longer with us and can't have been older than forty when he met the Reaper.

This stopped me in my tracks. I’ve very fond memories of Tony although I did let him down over a girl once. I particularly remember him going to the Isle of Man with us one year; three things stick out:

He fell off his bike at 5mph turning round in the road on the Mountain Mile (normal speed along there is anything north of 100mph). I always thought it was cool to be able to say you had fallen off on the Mountain Mile…

When we came home it threw it down from Liverpool to Greens Norton, everyone else was on big bikes and left us to it. Tony was on a Suzuki Super Six and I was on a 250 trail bike. Took us about 6 hours. We stopped at Corley about 3 in the morning and I remember us sitting in the middle of the restaurant with about a gallon of water round our feet – parents were pointing us out as a warning to their kids.

It got worse - by the time we got to Watford Gap Tony's lights had gone so I was riding shotgun for him on the hard shoulder. As we pulled up IN THE PETROL STATION my saddlebags caught fire - the bracket keeping them off the exhaust had broken. The rest of the garage was treated to the sight of me ripping stuff out of the bags and putting them out in a puddle, I've stil got a pair of (then) brand new Levis with holes burnt in them which I kept on Tony's advice "no one will believe it in 20 years"

Finally, I presume the bike you referred to in the Friends Renuited post was Jethro?

...your response to the Post "Man in Village" is excellent...

Peter,

I do believe you were secreting a notebook or voice recorder which you have now used to good effect, who was it that said that about that stalwart establishment?

I've just got back from a quick 1500 km, two day tour of England delivering some of my antique stoves; the miracle being that my GPS actually took me close to GN and I made the detour to drive through (didn't want to be too ambitious and stop) for the first time in around 25 years... it was great to see the window behind which I lost my innocence for the first time. Shame it's mow uPVC.

Spooky, hasn't changed very much (apart from getting smaller; doesn't everything, when you go back, although it depends how long you leave it or am I just using a double entendre for the sake of it?) More cars though, certainly.

I'm probably less prone to the rose-tinted than most people but whilst people were more tolerant then, they didn't really have that much to complain about and, if asked, they normally admitted to having once been young and just being disappointed that they weren't any more.

I have very fond memories of Norman ("packet of Rothos") and remember vividly his brother Jack visiting. Least said! They were, however; legends and I remain proud to have known them.

I have very fond memories of Jean too, I'm pleased to have heard from her after so long and have suggested a meeting of the remaining tosspots later this year...

Jethro may well be back in service this year but he hasn't run since I seized the engine with Tony on the back in, was it, '79? I ran a GT550 until that threw a conrod in Putney High Street then gave up. I now have a Renault Master and a 1970 Citroen DS (lost my Corsair after my divorce and several Senators due to unforeseen hard things in their paths...)

As for names, does anyone else read this? I'm just going for who I can remember in no particular order (and in the event someone that I know/knew is reading this; you were on the list this afternoon but I've forgotten you for the moment. So (some of these might be duplicated to protect those doing the ring the bar button from the off-sales bit to see who's in the bar so I can spend a few minutes in the car park);

Len
John(?!) cigarette holder
Bessie (or was it Dorris or Betty?)
Bill, stable lad, Guiness(bottled), non-tipped cigarettes, aged 82 in 1979
Woman that used to ring off-sales bell to see who's in the bar
Man wanting to go to car park
Woman with piece of rice in blood stream that would appear at various parts of her body, honestly!
Worried-looking man
David Polwkca
Troy Bayliss, perm; I know it wasn't Troy, he's a good biker (apart from F1)
Another worried-looking man, friend of first worried-looking man, husband of one of the foregoing
Bones
Steve (Kwaka Z1, normally on back wheel)
Sam, cook (normally on back)
Sandra
Helen
Tracey
Steve(!)
Fat man playing skittles
Steve(!)
Aiden, shared a house with Tony. Ate the lightbulbs. Expect glowing re... oh, Please!
and the chewer of tobacco...

Loads more, really sorry, quarter of a century at least.

I think the phrase that you let Tony down over a girl once says it all; how many people would say that now? I didn't know you smoked a pipe old man; and people called me old fashioned before I left for France. Certainly not complaining, we were reasonable fellows and remain so, I hope.

I remember the stories of your trip to the Island with Tony and I didn't see him again afterwards, I spoke to him about 6 years ago having got his 'phone number from his mother, I think. He was Tony, bored and there we left it. I only found out by chance from a friend of a friend that he was no longer with us, one of those marvels that had 10p credit on Friends Reunited and used it, most people, apparently, don't.

I think the last thing I did with Tony was the Reading Festival in 1980, can't remember how we got there or got home but he did then have a girlfiend with him. I still fit the jeans! I remember the last time I saw Tony in the Butchers'. He was renting a house with Aidan and went home to find no illumination; Aidan had (literally!) eated all the lightbulbs...

As with any memory, there is the sweet and the not so sweet. Newcomers to the village will expect certain things (to whit, naked men not running down Bengal Lane; my mind's eye shows me naked women chasing them; I don't have a problem with that). They should accept country ways if they want to live in what is now the pseudo country. This is not meant to be offensive, it's just the way the replacement generation of "tosspot" sees it.

We do, undoubtedly, have a tint of rose in our view but it was fun, we didn't become the stabber or stabee and blood was only rarely spilt and then only in cut-lip quantities.

They were Happy Days.

I do hope the story continues.

As per separate email, I will need time to work up a worthy response but in the meantime...

By weird coincidence today would have been Norman's 100th birthday (Jan 14 1908) so if anyone reads this(?) feel free to raise a glass...

Glasses have been raised in Normandy to the Legendary Norman Parker. Long may his memory continue, as far as I am concerned he was the best and I have many fond memories of him