Our coalman and his mate wore those heavy-duty, sleeveless jackets..Built to last, as most things were then..I was born in 1949 so by the time I was thinking, we had a glamorous new Queen and all was right in a world that was still in black and white but showing promise..Kids still pored over comics showing the dastardly hun being crushed beneath various hero's boots and England was still a mess.
The old man across the road, Mr Bardsley, who wore one of those massive boots that some unfortunate folk wore in those days as a result of some childhood problem, lived with his son and his German wife, Emmy. It's only with hindsight that I realize why they kept to themselves so much.