Alternative Leeds Lights

somme1916 · Post by **somme1916** » Sat 09 Jun, 2012 11:16 pm

What got me off(careful.....you SL'ers) on this theme was a number of recent comments about things that are missed...no longer about.You always knew you were back home when you saw those bright neon lights such as were at.....Tetley's Brewery....John Waddington,Stourton.....Dunlop & Ranken(whitehall rd).....Cinderella/Rockafella's......Elland Rd night k.o's...amongst others.Their sheer luminescence would give you a warm glow knowing you were back on familiar territory as they were spotted from all the approaches.How a city changes at night ! Whole non-descript parades of shops come to life as they attempt to lure customers in with pizza,curry,chinese,fish'n chip places all vying for business in the same small locality.The city centre jumps to life as if taking on a whole new,vibrant personality.Bars,restaurants,takeaways,night clubs-again,all eager for your attention.I just think it's an amazing transformation,once the twilight/dusk hours kick in.Anybody else have thoughts on this ?????

book · Post by **book** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 12:50 am

Yes the evening and night time economy are very different from the day time economy. If ever a city looked sleepy through the day Leeds certainly wakes up in the evening. Apart from the peak time traffic during the day Leeds looks slow and tired unlike the nights when it's lights and economy seem to buzz.

Cardiarms · Post by **Cardiarms** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 2:22 am

there was a time when every new building hade some blue illumination on the top in the 90's.

Cardiarms · Post by **Cardiarms** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 2:23 am

And out of bounds... for me the blue star of the S&N breweries in the North East was always a homecoming.

somme1916 · Post by **somme1916** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 9:28 am

Cardiarms wrote: And out of bounds... for me the blue star of the S&N breweries in the North East was always a homecoming. There was a time some years ago when a couple of nightclubs in Leeds and Wakefield were "allowed" night time searchlights in the sky to promote their business(not sure which Leeds was,but Wakefield was Rooftop Gardens).Not seen since possibly on account of increased night time traffic from LBA and the introduction of the copper chopper.It was quite a sight though and could be seen for miles....makes you wonder what the war years were like for many big cities during the air raids.Would love to have recovered the bright red neon Tetley sign.....as I'm sure you would the S & N !

somme1916 · Post by **somme1916** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 9:32 am

book wrote: Yes the evening and night time economy are very different from the day time economy. If ever a city looked sleepy through the day Leeds certainly wakes up in the evening. Apart from the peak time traffic during the day Leeds looks slow and tired unlike the nights when it's lights and economy seem to buzz. Indeed book,and the smells that accompany them as the various restaurants,takeaways,curry houses etc fire up their griddles,ovens and woks ! very tempting after a beer or two........

Jogon · Post by **Jogon** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 1:12 pm

Cardiarms wrote: And out of bounds... for me the blue star of the S&N breweries in the North East was always a homecoming. Ah preferred a canny pint of Federation myself.

book · Post by **book** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 4:17 pm

What about the 50 shillings stuff? I had a few of those when studying in Durham

simong · Post by **simong** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 8:20 pm

The shilling names are derived from Scottish brewing law of the 19th century as the price per hogshead (54 gallons) and any beer with the shilling name that you saw in the north-east was either Youngers or S&N, but I'm not aware of a 50/- beer. When I lived in the north-east on the late 80s it was still possible to find McEwans 80/-, which is a 4.0% dark bitter, and Youngers 90/-, which was 5.5 or 6.0% and very dark and known as wee heavy. These days you can find Alloa 70/-, which is a pale and a couple of micros reproduce old recipes.

book · Post by **book** » Sun 10 Jun, 2012 9:38 pm

It could have been 80 shillings, I remember the shilling bit but it was a long time ago and it was heavy ale. The history is interesting as was the little pub at the top end of the City. The pub was run by two sisters and was a very old building with crooked floors and beams that looked as old as time.