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Welcome to Martins Bank’s imposing
office at Grange Road in the millionaires’ playground of West Kirby. This lovely photograph shows West Kirby
Branch in the 1940s. Our text, accompanied by images of various items of late
1960s Branch stationery, comes from 1954, when, according to colleague Chris
Barker, he was a bank junior, still “wet behind the ears”, and it was
commonplace for his manager to insult the customers – in fact they expected
and enjoyed it…
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In service: 21 April 1897 – 15 January 2021 |
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Image © Barclays Ref 0030/3152 |
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As well as being a member of the ARGOSY PLAYERS he was a stalwart of the OPERATIC SOCIETY and it was quite usual for him to stand at the
back of the office, customers or not, and give us a stirring rendition
of whatever part he was playing including full vocals. There can have
been no better place to start work. We were expected to get in by 8.30
and he and I used to catch the same bus from the village where we lived.
Getting on at the stop before mine he always sat in the same seat and
occasionally, if I was a bit on the drag and had to run to catch the
bus, he would be waving his arms about encouraging me to get a move
on. If I did miss the bus I would
hear about it for days afterwards. Equally, he liked to catch the 4.10
bus home and if I hadn't finished the remittances by 4 there was
hell to pay. Fortunately it didn't happen often. In the summer if we
did miss that bus we used to walk the three
miles home - he was nearly as wide round as he was tall and reckoned the
exercise did him good. |
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The customers loved him as much as his
staff did. West Kirby in those days was an up-market residential area
for Liverpool and it was quite usual for some customers to arrive in
their chauffeur-driven cars to collect the housekeeping, usually on a
Friday. There was one particular pair of widowed sisters who came
and he would always greet them with some pithy comment whether there
was anyone else in the banking hall or not. We never knew what he
was going to come out with, but it was usually something along the
lines of "what do you want you silly old bats?" They loved
it. Another customer had won £75000 - then the maximum - on the
football pools and used to pay for all the staff to have dinner at the
local pub on balance nights. Apart from the routine jobs like the local
clearing and stoking the boiler, I did have other less usual duties to
perform. We had an elderly widower who was an alcoholic and there was an
arrangement with his family whereby I had to deliver to him one bottle of
Johnny Walker every Wednesday afternoon. Needless to say I always
received a warm welcome. I was a very keen cricketer in those days and
was selected to go and play in a match in Wakefield which necessitated
taking the Saturday morning off. The assistant manager and I used
to have regular discussion about the game and I was explaining to
him how I had had to turn down the opportunity because I was working. The Manager must have overheard me, half
an hour or so later I was called into his office and told to go as long
as it didn't become a regular practice. As well as being kind he was
also strict and I learnt a lot from him. At one point I had bought a
huge pipe and I was called into his office and told in no uncertain
terms never to speak with it in my mouth. That was embarrassing enough,
but how many other managers would have told me the same thing, but out
in the general office? |
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Image © Martins Bank Archive
Collection Redacted Image © Martins Bank Archive
Collection Redacted Image © Martins Bank Archive
Collection |
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Title: Type: Address: Index No and District: Hours: Telephone: Services: Manager: |
11-33-90 West Kirby Full Branch 22 Grange Road West Kirby
Wirral Cheshire 48 Liverpool Mon to Fri 1000-1500 Saturday 0900-1130 CALdy 5742 Nightsafe Installed Mr P H Mellor Manager |
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21 April 1897 by 1914 18 December 1918 3 January 1928 15 December 1969 15 January 2021 |
opened by the Bank of Liverpool at
6 Grange Road West Re-numbered 22 Grange Road West The Bank of Liverpool and Martins Martins Bank Limited Barclay Bank Limited 20-94-33 West
Kirby Closed permanently from 12 noon |
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