One of the memories of Mrs Kathleen Burdett (nee Hinde) who was born in London in 1940.

We resided in a block of flats in Popham Street in Islington, London N 1. There were two lampposts in the Square, one either end. These lampposts were also a source of entertainment for us. My Dad being a builder was able to fetch home sash cord rope: this was long enough to make a kind of very large lasso. We would throw the rope over the shoulders of the lampposts, and this was made into a swing, the seat being the rope itself.

We would position ourselves in the rope and push against the floor and go around and around the lamppost. There were many times that we knocked ourselves against the pole if we never stopped quickly enough, but it was good fun.

The boys in the buildings would get some wood and four wheels from the 'Green Hill', off some old pram that had been dumped sometime or other. They would have a long plank of wood down the middle and then another piece of wood across the top, looking like a cross. The wheels would be placed two at the top and two at the bottom, then a piece of rope tied to the two top wheels. This would be the rein to guide it with. The boys would then race up and down the Square.

My old Nan used to drink Guinness. The tops off the bottles were used to make 'tops'. Then my dad would make us a 'whip'. He would get a piece of string and secure it to a piece of cane and then we would chalk on the top with different coloured chalks. When we whipped our top it would spin and all the different coloured chalks would make a pattern. We would see who could keep their top spinning the longest, whipping your top all the time to keep it spinning.

Our other game was 'Gob and Bonsters'. This consisted of 5 cubes, which you placed on the back of your hand, threw them up and caught them with the inside of your hand. However many you caught you played with and any dropped ones were put to the side.

Then you went through a sequence of games, the crab, where you had to throw the 'gob' up in the air and form a crab-like figure with your other hand, and move the 'bonsters' one at a time through your fingers.

There was a wealth of things to be found on the Green Hill. One of the treasures were bits of broken glass, these were used as 'chippers' for playing hopscotch. If you had a good 'chipper' you hung on to it, and took it everywhere with you, just in case you had a game.

In 1952 the old King died and we had a Queen, Queen Elizabeth II. All the streets had a party. The mothers and fathers of all the children went round knocking at doors and collecting money every week. This was how we bought flags and food.

Myself and some of the other children put on a show, we sang and danced on a homemade stage in the buildings. My Mum made our costumes from crepe paper - red, white and blue of course. We looked very good but God only knows what we sounded like!

Kay Hinde, Georgina Potter and Margaret Crossman