1958-68: Changing Aylesbury

A film by the Aylesbury Cine Club depicting changing Aylesbury -- from old buildings and scenes disappearing to new ones appearing. Film found in collection of the late Tony Greenslade of Stewkley.
Author(s): Members of the club. Source: 16mm silent film. Produced with captions by the Stewkley Film Archive. Length: 27m. Copyright: Stewkley Film Archive.
Here, the film is largely unedited, except that each section is preceded by a shot-list description compiled from information found in the film can updated and corrected with help from Karl Vaughan of Aylesbury Remembered. The description "improvements" was as used in the original shot list.
Beginngs of Gatehouse Estate
Cow & Gate Sports Club before Bicester Road development
Old sewage disposal works
Top of High Street before rebuilding (short shot)
Stocklake Industrial Estate before development
Stocklake along railway line panning via prison to fields at the rear of the Moorhouse factory and back to the railway line
Aylesbury Motor Company’s “new: showrooms, Buckingham Street
Buckingham Street - Bicester Road junction before improvements
White Hill - Bicester Road junction, Ardenham House before demolition and improvements
Bedgrove
Borough Arms
Jenns, Buckingham Street before and during demolition
Walton Street before demolition and Osterfield butchers shop
Great Western Street and the Falcon pub soon to be demolished
Great Western Street on to the bottom of Silver Street. The Greyhound pub awaiting demolition.
Whitehall Street at the junction of Bicester Road and Buckingham Street
Whitehall Street where it joins White Hill
Bicester Road junction before improvement
Kingsbury “bottleneck”
Kingsbury
Kingsbury through Buckingham Street
Buckingham Street
Gatehouse Housing Estate
Priory Crescent viewed from Weedon Road
Canal bridge over Wendover Arm approach to Halton Village
Cambridge Street
Old industry craftsmen Curtis and Horn
Commencement of Bedgrove with farm before development
Old Thing Road School
Broughton School building work
Coffee Lane before improvement, now Oakfield Road
White Hill car park before National Health Executive Offices
Bourbon Street baths, carer pan to Friarage
George Street from the Queen’s Head
Kingsbury from George Street
Silver Street before demolition of pubs, camera pan to Market Square showing ‘Weaver to Wearer’
Carrington’s Allotments, prison in background, before development
New Borough Arms, Park Street and bier ton Road
Upper Hundreds and Cambridge Street
Cambridge Street junction before demolition showing Jarvis’ new store being erected
Bicester Road roundabout shortly after completion
Griffin Lane before road improvements
Progress on Gatehouse Industrial estate and gas hold erection
Electro Power gears before erected
Great Western Street, Market Stree demolition of the Greyhound & Falcon

[@susanandrews6769]

What a fabulous record! It was pure genius to have the foresight to record those wonderful old buildings and sites before they were dug-up and demolished to be replaced with characterless concrete, . Many thanks for posting this film, it gave me so many memories of the town I used to know. I hope it shows the generations that live here now that poor planning decisions made can alter your lives irreparably. Floreat Aylesburia!

[@Rapscallion2009]

Some of that I can remember as a kid (70s onwards). I remember those pole things on Kingsbury square. I remember being able to drive around the market square in a car (well, my dad being able to). I'm personally a big fan of repurposing buildings rather than demolishing them and building a new one. I'm sure some architect somewhere would disagree with me, but personally I think all buildings boil down to a large box (splutter!) and as such can be repurposed. You can redecorate and renovate a building and come up with something interesting and unique - and I think it's really clever and interesting when a bank is turned into a nightclub an old grain silo into offices or a disused warehouse into a shopping mall.

[@04022100]

Fantastic video and historic record of Aylesbury, can’t believe how many lovely old buildings have gone!

[@kengibbs2079]

I can remember this a lot of memory's came back to me I was just 18 years old it was a lovely town not like it is now I worked with a chap that made films and use to take to differenc camera clubs

[@mspupcat53]

This made me want to cry it was such a beautiful town now totally spoilt I hate going there now. What a wonderful record of life gone by.

[@royknight5532]

Roy Knight. Ye village of Aylesbury!! Memories.

[@megatronsfury8048]

What a lovely town this used to be. It's an absolute trash compactor now sadly

[@DavideMazzetti]

I've lived in Aylesbury all my life and agree that the older buildings had character - but in 100 year's time, people will watch videos of Aylesbury as it is now and say 'what a pity those lovely old buildings were demolished. Rose-coloured spectacles.

[@rsqyoung]

What?

[@derekaxtell3594]

what a wonderful record, born in '56 and broght up on Tring Rd I remember all of these places, even brought back memories of the Queens Head where my school friends dad was landlord...lol.

[@jayarajjohnson2476]

Sad to see so many Lovely Old buildings gone and replaced by drab modern synthetic construction

[@rosshannemann7772]

My bit of Aylesbuy was farm land redevelopment.

[@apr748]

As an ex-resident seeing the old Silver and Great Western streets and the squares etc really bring it perspective how much was demolished, but some of old buildings with probably no heating or running water must of been deteriorating beyond repair for the decision to bulldoze so much of it. If they could all go back in time , I wonder if the council would do the same thing knowing how much people seem to like the old town rather than the redeveloped one . Precious film though , great viewing

[@SimplyT0m]

I never thought I'd see the place I live on KZbin, it looks rather decent in the past but for the 18 years I've been alive and lived here it's honestly been a craphole. But what would you expect from a city 🤔

[@DavideMazzetti]

It's not a city, it's a town.

[@SimplyT0m]

@@DavideMazzetti Ah I see, as Aylesbury has gotten bigger I assumed it was a city now. Thank you for correcting me

[@tmb8807]

20:55 Never seen this road before. I'm guessing it's Rickfords Hill? And it came out on Great Western Street at the bottom?

[@AylesburyRemembered]

That was old Friarage Road and it did indeed come out onto Great Western Street.

[@tmb8807]

@@AylesburyRemembered Interesting, thanks.

[@jaybell1390]

From a Lovely and Quiet Rural Market town to a Hump Landfill where Any and Everything is Dumped......!

[@stewkleyfilms]

Thanks for your comment, but please re-edit without the f word in any form

[@vickirhodes9910]

💔😞

[@johnsmith-rs2vk]

When a boozer was a boozer !

[@ronnieparkerscott6223]

If you look at Kingsbury bottleneck on Google Street View... it's all still there!

[@Wobbin-js8bp]

This place is the upside down. If youre a young buck, LEAVE IT AND NEVER TURN BACK. CARTI WAITING ON THE OTHER SIDE VRO, NEVER TURN BACK.

[@cliffwheeler7357]

Cyclists giving hand signals as they head for White Hill on the Oxford Road. You rarely see that now.

[@ianthompson662]

when England was England look no foreigners

[@user-dn6yh8jr1o]

@@mspupcat53 the british literally asked peiole to come and fill up the work shortages lol 😭😭

[@user-dn6yh8jr1o]

nope it’s called capitalism and industrialisation the whole world has changed not just england 😭😭😭

[@shirleyfrancis4515]

When the English had taken over Africa, India, the Caribbean, Australia, etc!

[@nickmiller76]

Indeed.

[@conbro0985]

Multiculturalism is our biggest mistake, if only we could reverse the damage.

[@jonno1468]

Too many moany comments about the ‘good old days’ along with some racist undertones… you people are the problem. Stop crying about the old days, build a bridge, get over it and live in the now. Yes I can appreciate how beautiful my town was, but it has its beauty now- which can be found if you allow yourself to see it.

[@mikey_360]

I remember chuck I ad a poop out side that old bar I did 😢😢😢