A scurry of squirrels …. two restaurants ……. and the story from my friend Tony .... part 1

Now, this was a fine story in the making and one that challenges that simple observation that there is always a place for originality.

Arno's restaurants, undated

So, in April 2023, the restaurant Street Urchin opened at 72 Gt Ancoats Street, and one of its specials was “English Grey Squirrel”.

At the time I thought that was novel, but then I suspect that squirrels turn up on menus across the country and but Tony may just have come up with a squirrel restaurant that predates Street Urchin by 94 years and just a mile away on Brazennose Street. 

Brazennose Street, 1961

At which point as Tony did the research based on some family memories, I will just hand over to him.

“Hi Andrew, whilst reading the book, ‘Manchester Memories’ the author mentioned that he recalls a squirrel restaurant in Manchester, run by Arno Rolls, have you heard of it at all?  I looked on your site and there is no mention.  

The reason I was so interested was that after my dad left the army, where he qualified as a chef, he worked at the Roll’s Restaurant in Manchester, on Brazennose Street, until it closed around 1962/3. 

He then went into partnership with my uncle (my mum’s brother) and they bought a café in Rusholme on Wilmslow Road, called the Rusholme Snack Bar.  It seemed too much of a coincidence for it not to have been the same place, but my dad never mentioned cooking squirrels.  

I did some investigating and all I could find on Google was an advertising poster for "Roll’s Squirrel Restaurants" (no date) which had two eateries, one on Oxford Street and the other on Brazennose Street, so it was the same place.  

A quick thumb through my directories and I found that in 1929, the restaurant at 29-31 Oxford Street was listed as ‘Roll’s Squirrel Restaurant’, but the one on 46 Brazennose Street was just listed as ‘A Roll, Restaurant’.  

So presumably, by this time he certainly limited his squirrel dishes just at Oxford Street.  By 1954 (when my dad was employed there) he had no restaurant listed on Oxford Street and the Brazennose Street eatery had moved to 44, where it remained until closure, around 1962.  

I have one photo, taken from the Manchester Council image site, that shows the Roll’s in 1961.  

Chorlton squirrels, 2022

I don’t know too much about his time there, other than when it closed, they sold off a lot of catering equipment and dad brought home cutlery, and various kitchenware, some of it, quite fancy such as a silver-plated soup urn.  

He once took my sister to Manchester centre and called into the restaurant and from what she remembered, it was quite up market, catering for Town Hall staff.  

Would you be interested in adding this tale to your site?  I have attached the image site picture, the advert from Google and the cuttings from my directories.  

I also have about six photos from the inside of the restaurant with my dad and a few of the staff”.  

And of course I leapt at the opportunity to tell the story and am looking forward to those pictures. 

Leaving me just to thank Tony for the idea and the research and reiterate no squirrels ended up in a pie or a casserole in this story

Location; Brazennose Street and Oxford Road,

Pictures; advert courtesy of Tony, Brazenose Street south side, H. Milligan, 1961, 00455, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass and two squirrels not in a restaurant, 2022, from the collection of Balzano

Army Book 64 .... one young soldier ......and a story

Now, as we all know you can pretty much find stories about the past in all sorts of things, and today I came across a Soldier’s Pay Book.

Army Book 64, 1941

To give it it’s full title it is Army Book 64, Soldier’s Service and Pay Book and it belonged to C. Petrie who served in the British Army from June 1941 till 1946.

And I have never seen one.  

Had I been just six years older, I might have been called up and done my 18 months National Service with the armed forces, and a pay book would have been an essential part of my kit, which according to the instructions at the front of the book I was “always to carry on my person”.

So, looking through the book courtesy of Mr. Petrie’s son has been a fascinating insight into just what the book offers up.

As you would expect it lists his physical characteristics, his enlistment, details of training undertaken, the name of his wife, and home address, along with his religion, the vaccination’s he was given and the number of times he went on leave.  

And I know that of the 23 occasions he was granted leave all but three were accompanied by a free travel warrant.  More chilling but necessary was the inclusion of Army Form B. 2089, which gave details of how to fill in in a “Soldier’s Will" with a template.

Making a will, 1941

Happily, his family never had to call on it.

I have seen army records from the Great War, which include much of this information but never ones for the Second World War and so it is indeed a fascinating document.

Mr..Petrie and his comrades 1942

His son Anthony has added “I have my Dad’s paybook l which he used to keep in a big metal container along with a few of his army photos and his army revolver and a pouch of bullets.  

How he managed to sneak those items out when he was demobbed, I don’t know.  

I can only assume that security was quite poor as the government attempted to demob millions of men as quickly as possible. 

There are a few army photos and on this one dad is 4th right 2nd row from the front.

Going on Leave, 1942-1944

Pages 6/7 of the pay book lists records of leave given and as my sister was born on 15th July 1944, we can trace the time of her conception as being during the seven days leave in October 1943 on page 6.  

Page 11 lists his and his next of kin’s address, which originally was 82 Neale Street in London and crossed out.  

Before and during the war, my mum shared a flat at Neale St with her sister who both arrived in England in 1937 aged 13 and 15, with their older brother, Mike aged 20.  Mike was enlisted and fought in Italy at Monte Casino.  

My dad joined them at Neale St in 1942 after they were married.  My nephew (who lives in Barnet)  and my son recently visited Neale Street and took a photo at 82 Neale St which survived the blitz and the planners. 

When the V1 and V2 rockets started to hit London, my dad suggested that the mum, her sister and my should move to the safety of Manchester and they settled at Parkfield Street, Rusholme, or Packfield Street as was listed by the reporting soldier in dad’s passbook.  

Training, 1942-1944

No doubt my dad’s thick Cypriot accent confused the soldier making the change.  His poor English was a problem that was to later haunt me as when he went to register my birth, my Christian name should have been spelt Antony, without the ‘h’ – the Greek spelling and Petri, without the ‘e’- also the Greek spelling.  

The registrar entered both names incorrectly on my birth certificate as Anthony Petrie – the English spellings and my dad’s written English was not yet good enough to correct him.   

My dad arrived in England in 1935 and within two years it must have been fairly apparent that war was imminent.  

He could have simply returned to Cyprus and saw out the war in Cyprus which apart from a few food shortages was untouched, but instead stayed and ended up spending six years in the army.  I’m pretty certain that I would have been on the first boat back to Famagusta”.

Pictures; Mr. Petrie’s courtesy of Army Book 64, 1941 – 1946 and unit picture, undated, courtesy of Anthony Petrie