Headington shops in 1976: Stephanie Jenkins
I originally intended to write about the way the local shops have changed beyond recognition since I moved to Headington in 1982. But after wrestling with such problems as “When did Michel’s restaurant open?”, and “What was the name of the Asian shop on the Bateman Street/Windmill Road corner (and when exactly did it become a vegetarian café?)”, the only way to make progress was to go further back to 1976, when all the shops are conveniently listed in the last Kelly’s Directory ever published.
In 1976, Headington was mainly a residential suburb. The John Radcliffe maternity hospital had been open for four years, but the hospital proper would not move to Headington until 1980; and although Oxford Polytechnic had been in existence since 1970, it was very much smaller than the present Brookes University. Thus the multi-occupancy of houses was rare; Mattock Close was still a rose garden; and there was a much greater sense of community. All Saints Church House had been opened by Princess Margaret just three years earlier, and the Moulin Rouge cinema at the top of New High Street was still going strong.
The shopping centre was excellent, and people could do most of their shopping without leaving Headington. As well as far more independent shops than there are today, it also had the largest supermarket in Oxford, MacFisheries (later the International Stores and now Somerfield), so people made a point of coming to Headington to shop, and its delights were often advertised in the local press. There were three other smaller supermarkets in the centre of Headington. Fine Fare was at 98 London Road (later Kwik Save and now Peacock’s), and Fine Ware Supermarket was at 108/110 London Road (later Bejam’s and now Iceland). The Co-op was spread across every one of the shops that lie between Windmill Road and Holyoake Road, as well as occupying the shop that is now being rebuilt on the other side of Holyoake Road. Meanwhile the present site of the Co-op supermarket on the corner of Stile Road was still occupied in 1976 by Eyles & Coxeter Ltd, motor car agents.
Setting up home in Headington was easy. You could get your decorating materials from Reeve’s at 104 London Road (now part of the empty Olan Mills shop); your furniture from Walker’s at 71 London Road (now Starbucks/Blockbusters); and your carpets from Lander Wilson at 4 The Parade, Windmill Road (now Frog Orange).
You could sort out your gas and electricity supplies (and purchase your appliances) at the Southern Gas showroom at 104 London Road (now Olan Mills) and the Southern Electricity showroom (now the corner of the present Feather & Black site). Electrical goods could also be obtained at Rumbelow’s at 112 London Road (now the Trade Exchange); and if you lived nearby, they would bring them straight down to you on a trolley.
Televisions were still often rented in 1976, and there was a choice of Rediffusion at 114 London Road (now a Cancer Research UK charity shop); Loyds Retailers at 107 London Road (now Chancellor’s Estate Agents), or Visionhire at 108 London Road (now Marie Curie Cancer Care).
For ironmongery, in addition to that good old survivor Headington Homewares you had Edgington’s at 12 Windmill Road (now Leopard Press/Choice Tiles) and Shergolds at 87 London Road (now Lloyds TSB). When Shergold’s shop was demolished in the early 1980s, they moved to 138–140 London Road (now being rebuilt, and latterly the Cotswold Collection), and became Carpenter Shergolds.
You could get soft furnishings at H.O. Textiles in Simon House (now Africare Hairdressing); and if you wanted to make your own curtains, you could go to the Sewing & Knitting Machine Centre (on part of the present Feather & Black site). You could get almost any other everyday item at the Lesandon Discount Store at 95 London Road (now Pen to Paper) or at Headington Discount Stores at 2a Windmill Road (now Clover’s).
As well as the supermarkets, there were still plenty of old-fashioned specialist food shops. There were two greengrocer’s shops: Durham’s at 121 London Road (now Jem-i-Ni) and Bonner’s at 106 London Road (now Cartridge World). There was also a fruiterer: W.E. Smith & Sons at 94 London Road (on the site of the British Heart Foundation charity shop). The central florist was Just Plants Florists at 11 Windmill Road (now McGill’s Hairdressing). There were three baker’s shops: A. Butler & Co. at 1 The Parade, Windmill Road (now Queen's); Berry’s at 3 Old High Street (now La Croissanterie); and Vallis’s at 123 London Road (now the Mojo's). Berry’s Bakery had started up in Old Headington in 1863, and you could see the goods being made in their bakery, which was behind 1 St Andrew’s Road facing Larkin’s Lane; while Vallis’s Bakery had started up in Quarry at almost the same time.
The four butcher’s shops were Baxter’s at 113 London Road (now La Plaza Café), Alden’s at 77 London Road (now Scott Fraser); Harold Weaver at 148 London Road (now Yummy); and Dewhurst at 5 Windmill Road (now Electric Aids). In addition to their big supermarket, MacFisheries actually had a fishmonger’s shop on part of the corner site where Londis is now.
Supermarkets thirty years ago did not sell alcohol, stamps, or newspapers. For wine you went to Gough Brothers at 79 London Road (now The Garden) or Arthur Cooper at 15 Old High Street (now Thresher’s). For stamps you had either to go to Headington Post Office (which was then a full Crown post office offering all services, and twice the size it is today) or to the smaller Highfield Stores and Post Office in All Saints Road. You could get your newspapers at English & Son at 14 Windmill Road (now vacant, latterly Balfour News), your stationery at John Menzies at 97 London Road (now vacant, latterly Filipino-Oriental Groceries), and your sweets at J. Chaundy’s sweet shop at 76 London Road (now the east side of the Mount Pleasant Hotel). Toys were on sale at Fleet Toy Dealers in Simon House (now Lee & Lindars estate agents). G.H. Williams cycle shop at 115 London Road (now Café On-Line) was already in its 54th year (although it had started life on the opposite side of the road). It was not, however, Headington’s oldest business: that honour went to S. West & Son, which had been at 74 Windmill Road site since 1893.
For fashion items and clothes, there was Edney & Son Men’s Tailors at 99 London Road (now Crown Group Newsagents); Hamilton-Smith Fashions at 65 London Road (now the Sun-Kissed Tanning Salon); Penge di Roma tailors at 5 Simon House (now the empty Special Days card shop); John Lane Menswear at 81a London Road (now the eastern part of the Cancer Research UK charity shop); D&A Fashions at 119 London Road (now Sobell House Charity Shop); Miranda Ladies outfitters at 77a London Road (now Squash Café); Miranda Junior at 7 Old High Street (now Monaco); and H.H. Windows Outfitter at the north-west end of Windmill Road. Shoes could be purchased from Bailey’s at 5 The Parade (now the Thong Heng Chinese supermarket), or W.D. Smith & Sons, ‘high-class shoe retailers & repairers, wools, haberdashery’ at 93 London Road (now Brambles). Shoes could also be mended at Quick Service Shoe Repairs, which was on part of the Londis site.
There were two jewellers: Lily Crane at 9A Windmill Road (now Launa Stone) and Robertson Jewellers at 109 London Road (now vacant: latterly Adkin Estate Agents).
Everything for the baby could be bought at Walker’s Baby Shop at 8 Windmill Road (now Alliance Pharmacy), while Pet Garden & Hardware Supplies at 150a London Road (another one of the survivors) catered for pets. For record and cassette players you could go to Oxford Audio Visual at 19 Old High Street (now Audio T).
R.J. Hollier Sports Outfitter at 82 London Road (on part of the Feather & Black site) sold sports clothes. Headington United had become Oxford United in 1960, and the Oxford United Club Shop was at 118 London Road (now Reynolds Blinds).
Chemist’s shops in the centre were Boot’s at 96 London Road (which is still going strong), and Bellamy’s of Oxford at 69 London Road (now S. & R. Childs Funeral Directors).
Lucky Charm Antique Dealers were at 6 Windmill Road (now Japlene), and much further down at 72A was the Oxford Buy & Sell Stores (now vacant: latterly Ford’s Secondhand shop).
Sketchley’s at 102 London Road and Regency Cleaners in Simon House were both at the same premises in 1976 as they are today, as was the Truwash coin-operated laundry at 4 Simon House. In 1976 there was also the Speedwell Cleaning Co. in Kennett House (now the Clic charity shop).
There were two betting shops, both described as ‘turf accountants’: Ladbrokes at 10 Windmill Road (now Choice Tiles) and Daltrey & Reeve at 1b New High Street, to the north of the cinema.
Robert Stanley Opticians were at 137 London Road, as they are today. The Headington Travel Agency at 63 London Road is now vacant, but was latterly Oxonian Travel.
Away from the immediate centre, some corner shops (most of which are now private houses) still survived. Hodgetts & Marriott butchers were on the corner of Bateman Street at 58 Windmill Road; F. & L. Margetts grocers were at 107 Windmill Road (now Barclay Antiques); and D. Garner grocers were at 59 Kennett Road. There were other handy local shops such as the Co-op at 295–299 London Road with a butchery department next door (all now Sharp & Howse). The end of the small grocer’s shop was nigh, however, and in 1976 the one at 39 New High Street (on the corner of Bateman Street) had already closed.
During the early 1980s, all the other corner shops lost out to the supermarkets, in the same way that the supermarkets themselves are now losing out to hypermarkets. In their latter years, these corner shops were expensive, tended to have stale food, and could not offer much choice; they were only of real use during the evening and on Sundays, when all the shops in Headington centre were of course closed.
There were also non-grocery shops and businesses away from the immediate centre. For example, in Lime Walk there was Evelyn Caple florist at No. 109; B.M. Machin, a dentist, at No. 61; Alfred Burton, a hairdresser, at No. 65; F.A. Newman, a removal firm, at No. 19; Mrs O.E. Lines, a chiropodist, at 59a; and Fransman’s Car Hire at No. 4. The Driving Test Centre was then at No. 2A, and Reginald G. Mallett, funeral directors, at No. 124. Central Headington was not yet a smokeless zone in 1976, and you could get your coal at Cade Heat Ltd at 291 London Road (now AEG Washing Machine Repairs).
The largest group of shops in Headington today is made up of cafés, restaurants, and takeaways (there are at least 16 of them, and still increasing). Back in 1976, the choice was not large: there was the Windsor Fish Saloon at 150 London Road (now Posh Fish); the Golden Kitchen at 81 London Road (now vacant and awaiting demolition: latterly the Mediterranean Fish Bar); the Kyrenia Restaurant at 92 London Road (approximately where MailBoxes is now); and the Barbican at 148 London Road (now the Hang Chow). The Shanghai Chinese Takeaway at 127 London Road was then the only takeaway. This is an area in which life in Headington has definitely taken a turn for the better.
The second largest group of shops today is made up of the ten hairdressers. In 1976 there was Marcus Petersen at 4 Manor Buildings (now Evoke Hair & Beauty); Oxford Hair Care at 111 London Road (now Accent); W.J. Bowen at 66a London Road (now Sir); Anita Coiffure at 68 London Road (now Cut’n’Create); Martin of Oxford at 2 The Parade, Windmill Road (now Styles); Paolo of Florence at 2B New High Street (now flats); and Mrs J. Hobby at 4D/E New High Street (now Joanne Hairdresser).
The third largest group today are the eight banks and building societies. In 1976 NatWest, Midland (now renamed HSBC), Barclays, and the Coventry were all situated just where they are today; Lloyds (now renamed Lloyds TSB) was at 85 London Road but its new building incorporates No. 87 on the corner as well. Bristol & West used to be at 101 London Road (now Andrew’s Estate Agents), and next door at No. 103 was the Trustee Savings Bank (now the new Ladbroke’s).
The fourth largest group of shops in Headington today are the eight estate agents. In 1976 there were Dines & Gill at 9 Windmill Road (now Daisy Chain Cards); Allen & Harris at 129/131 London Road (and still there); Town & Country Estates at 1 New High Street (swallowed by Standon Court), and Vernon & Son at 117 London Road (now Annie Sloan).
The fifth largest group of shops in Headington today are the seven charity shops, but in 1976 there was just one: Oxfam at 133 London Road (into which the Coventry Building Society has now extended).
Stephanie Jenkins, 2006 (names of present shops updated in 2008)