bermondseyboy wrote:Posted by dibley47
I wonder if Bermondsey could obtain lottery money to rebuild this wonderfully nostalgic and architecturally beautiful slide?
Posted by ianmartinHi Maureen
Wouldn't it be fantastic!?! My thoughts exactly, I like your choice of words in describing the slide, it was, after all, unique?
In today's context, it's fate is an absolute crime! The thing is though, nobody seems to be absolutely sure as to what did happen to it?
The general consensus on here is that it was dismantled during the 70s due to vandalism etc, in fact during the latter 60s the whole Church was a bit of a state, apparently it was under threat of demolition.
Anyway, having recently re-visited Bermondsey, a few times now, and St James's Church in particular, what struck me was how good the Church, and the yard, are now looking....minus of course though, The Slide!! If that were there now it would be complete! So I decided to see if I could find out, first I sent an email to the current vicar of St. James's:-
Dear Sir
I am contacting you to find out if you, or any of your colleagues, can furnish me with any exact information as to what finally happened to the old slide in St James's Churchyard.
I am a member of a forum called Bermondseyboy.net, you may have heard, or even be a member yourself? If not, it is made up mainly, of more 'senior', ex-residents of Bermondsey, and the Southwark area.
As you will appreciate, there is a huge sharing of anecdotes and photos on this site, I doubt there is an area in the whole capital that has undergone more changes in the last 60 years, but nobody seems to know what the final sad outcome of the slide was.
The conscencus is that it fell into disrepair, the council weren't that interested, and it was demolished sometime during the 70s (most of the contributors, despite being born and raised in Bermondsey, had moved away by then) I actually have a photo (only discovered yesterday) that I am reliably informed was taken between November 1985 and July 1986 clearly still shows the slide in the churchyard grounds (whether or not it was still in use is unknown), I am also researching the source of that photo for more information.
My interest is quite simply, historical fact, added to the facts that my maternal ancestors all lived in the area, my parents were married in St James's Church, I was christened there and played on the slide many times as a child when I was visiting my grandparents.
One source I read thought perhaps the slide was dismantled and stored away somewhere? It would be nice to think if it were that with lottery funding, or some rich benefactor (they now appear to be in more abundance in Bermondsey now!) it could possibly even restored to it's former glory........if it were, I could certainly guarantee a queue of geriatrics all turning up for a go (I include myself in that of course!!).
I visited the church a couple of weeks ago for the first time in years, it looked splendid, inside and out, well done to you all for its upkeep.........I just miss the slide!!
I really hope to hear back from you with some news or information!!
Thank you for taking the time to read this
YoursAnd then this was his reply:-
Dear Ian
Thanks for your enquiry.
Yes! The ‘Old Slide’ is very important in Bermondsey’s History and there are many ideas about its fate. You mention 2 of them
1. It had to be taken down as it was either vandalised or the wood rotted.
2. It was taken down as many slides were in the early 1980’s because they did not conform to modern safety standards
3. The Council dismantled it and it is in storage somewhere. Southwark Council Parks dept. have searched but it has never been found.
Perhaps it is like the quest for the Holy Grail a mystery without a solution but keep searching, who knows?
Best Wishes to the Bermondsey Boys. If you want a place for a reunion let us know and we will help if we can.
Kind Regards
Stewart (Vicar)