New Town from Old (1962) | Hemel Hempstead Promotional Film |

[@lovemussb1940]

I’ve lived here all my life,I’d love to see an updated video of Hemel now !! It’d be like the scene in back to the future 2 when marti arrives in hill valley in biffs parallel world!

[@London1064]

We moved to Hemel from London in the sixties. I wish Hemel was still as good today as it was then.

[@hymatwat9412]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/p6GmnKJjodV3fpY

[@markmywords312]

The pedestrianised centre has taken the soul out of the town. It's just not accessible. Like all pedestrianised town centres you have to pay for parking ie pay to use the town, yet it's free to park in the out of town shopping parks. Madness

[@hymatwat9412]

markmywords312 idiot

[@maccagrabme]

Must admit, it looks pretty bad now compared to back then when it looked so nice. Its been underfunded and overdeveloped, most of the money has gone on roundabouts.

[@ZeldaFitz]

@@maccagrabme If families didn’t insist on owning 3 cars then there wouldn’t be a need for roundabouts and mass car parks. your not in traffic, you are traffic.

[@Ishouldknow1]

I was born in Hemel 1956. My parents who are now long gone moved out from Southwark & Walworth to Adeyfield . My father worked for Alford & Alder, my mother Addresagraph Multigraph. Growing up in the early 60's Hemel was just perfect. Loads of open space, quiet & hardly any cars on the road. Long hot summers, run outs, playing on the Nicky Line Station at the Midland. Churchill Swimming Pool, Saturday morning pictures, mum collecting green shield stamps to pay the coal bill at the co-op. It did make me laugh seeing the car park in Adeyfield with just a couple or cars. Try getting a parking space there now! God how I miss it 😢 Just look at it now. I try telling my children about it and they just don't understand. Wish I had a time machine. I'm a grandad now so it keeps me going.

[@devilsforkdigital1490]

Thanks for this! Grew up and lived there from 1964-88, still recognize some of those shops. The Wimpy!

[@gailsokol7832]

lovely to watch many memories

[@hemeljohn1]

This used to be the perfect, model town when it was built.

[@Lee-ox2xt]

Oh do behave you live in cloud cuckoo land I'd rather have grown up in west ham

[@MartinBernard-d5z]

I was born in the St Paul's hospital hemel Hempstead and I lived in the town all my life etc only moving from the area in 2016 to Oxfordshire but my heart is always in hemel Hempstead as it is my birth town

[@thornbird6768]

I like the 60’s and 70’s architecture 👍🏻 it was crisp and clean looking , one thing lacking in new developments. are the lovely flower beds they had back then .

[@stevealexR1]

I agree! When you look at Contemporary and Brutalist architecture in films of the era, the then new buildings looked so fresh and clean cut. Unfortunately the concrete didn’t weather well so the buildings usually ended up looking grubby and unkempt.

[@woodycfc3429]

My home town I was born in 1965 great seeing it we were hemel Punks & the 2nd generation Adeyfield lot I moved out about 9 years ago and will never go back by choice.

[@colinhazell6259]

I lived there from1963 to 1982 having spent my first 9 years in Hatfield - attended South Hill primary school and Highfield secondary school and Dacorum college it brought back many memories!

[@michaelroberts7374]

The 3 storey car park is a motif for such new town architecture. Fascinating film

[@geraldwright905]

I'm sure the people of the small town called Hemel Hempstead were so pleased that thousands of Londoners were moving in to take over their lovely little shire town, not

[@Naughtybaz]

The dream. Became a nightmare.

[@GypsyHunter232UK]

Still here and it's no better now than was then.

[@kingsley_faz4102]

Oh how Hemel has changed :(

[@bill53uk]

lived hear all my life and it has changed soo much you would not reconise it now. i am in my 70,s now and its not very nice to live

[@ciganyweaverandherperiwink6293]

You're right. The amount of rubbish around the streets of Hemel is UNBELIEVABLE. What a dump. How sad to see these old film reels. :(

[@bill53uk]

@@ciganyweaverandherperiwink6293 born in 1953 when we had 2 hospitals and a good market and a railway that ran through the town. Look at it now, no hospital no market and a stupid town centre

[@ciganyweaverandherperiwink6293]

@@bill53uk Once again, you're 100% bang on. I just wonder what it is that's made the recent generations of residents and new arrivals to the town-- kids, teens and adults alike-- feel so remorseless about littering. I lose count of the individual items of discarded rubbish when I go on my perambulations around Hemel. Literally, I just raise my gaze from ground level because by 100 yards into my stroll I've already forgotten what number I was up to. Isn't that a tragedy? And isn't it a great mystery too? You'd think with all this talk about 'saving the planet' kids and adults alike would have evolved in their attitudes, not degenerated so disgracefully. :(

[@skwijit]

grew up here, sad how much it has changed :(

[@thornbird6768]

How nice and new and well kept our country was back in the day 🤬 the estate I grew up on looked very similar to Hemel Hempstead , now it’s a dump !! full of people who don’t work and don’t care !! Sad 😢

[@colewells4254]

Aptly put full of scumbags now

[@leoroverman4541]

One of the schools not mentioned was Heath Brow, in Heath lane 1963 was the year I left. My Aunt and Uncle lived in Adeyfield.

[@therealgraeme]

Oh my, look at the little car traffic and ample parking space in roads and shopping centres! Damn, it is the polar opposite now. :-( Thanks for sharing though, it's fantastic to see such history. I'm only living in Hemel Hempstead for 7 years now, and loving it. Though it seems back in the 60's it would have been even nicer - not so cramped.

[@eddiesven]

Now where did I put my rose tinted specs?No mention in those days of the magic roundabout!

[@lugash4]

Born (1961 at home)and bred and still here......lost it's identity many years ago but still some interesting and delightful places about the area.

[@vanessaboman8143]

My hometown

[@batch6792]

Now thats a familiar name.

[@fredflintstoner596]

Mrs Richards: " I paid for a room with a view!" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window ? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment ?

[@johnrowland3105]

.....but watch out for your council who one way or another will bleed it dry and make it uninhabitable.

[@ciganyweaverandherperiwink6293]

You said it.

[@martinoconnor1484]

Been living here from birth early 80s I remember quite abit from the video things have changed not for the better tho all pound shops takeaways now bring back the 80s

[@trudilouise9368]

Most of the town centre long demolished. All fur coat and no knickers.

[@paianis]

10:18 This was all demolished to make way for the Marlowes Shopping Centre in the late 80s.

[@Drugov78]

I was born there in 1987 and never came back since then 😂

[@vanessaboman8143]

Huh! Where's highfield??

[@anathema2me4EVR]

Where was the building at 1.13?

[@ChangesOneTim]

Old Town, near St Mary's church.

[@owenz1945]

the housing still looks the same, the town center has changes a bit you cant drive on the high street because that's where the market is now and there are shops and a shopping center lining it. the old market square hosts the occasional meeting of some sort and there are lots more cars. but it still looks nicer back then... If only

[@paianis]

Unfortunately many of the modern buildings were not as visually appealing, particularly in the long run, as they should have been.

[@freddiegreen6760]

Bennett’s end❤️

[@prodchxrlie]

Freddie Green that’s my g

[@freddiegreen6760]

Charlie that’s my g

[@johnobrien8398]

I bet it’s full of STANS now all chanting fucking Islam

[@chairmakerPete]

Interesting to see the slum architecture when it was new. They must have realised they'd goofed badly straight away. Town planning is a disaster.

[@simonwood1402]

Town Planning! 😮 What Town Planning? 😳

[@hymatwat9412]

Seen too much bad stuff re Hemel

[@hymatwat9412]

Stevenage better