Churchill Square
Working at Mr Burt
Mike Denley
Ahead of its time
The Burton store where I worked in Churchill Square was ahead of its time, they sold the top fashions in every way. The older Burton stores were behind and very much like Dunn Brothers, very traditional. 'Mr.Burt' was more a 'Top Man' type of store with modern popular music hence the eight track system. The system played albums like 'Dark Side of The Moon', 'Wish You Were Here' by Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney and Wings with 'Band On The Run', Lou Reed and his album 'Walk On The Wild Side' and lots of other really cool music. The store was very modern at the time, with an open staircase which had a ranch rail from the ground to the first floor and all the way down to the manager's office and the basement.
Remember the newspaper seller?
Churchill Square was very different than it is today. I remember that there was a newspaper vendor’s shed on the front corner of the square by the Crambourne pub. Opposite the pub there used to be a very good traditional butcher, he was always busy. Where 'Waterstones' now is, there used to be a Pizza parlour restaurant which served superb pizzas; next door was the 'Ravel' shoe store. I remember Sainsbury’s being built and Habitat which came later. Tesco’s was on the lower level; BHS has always been on the front of the square. Of course there was Dixon's where I bought my first SLR camera.
Do you remember?
Did you ever shop in Mr Burt? What did you buy and how much was it? What other shops do you remember in Churchill Square around this time? If you can share your memories with us, please leave a comment below.
This page was added on 07/12/2013.