Recalling the wonder of Woolies

Kevin Cawood took to Facebook to remind everyone of “savoury sandwiches from Iris in Woolies; keep her talking and she used to fill them to overflowing, then you asked for an extra bread bun. Magic times hope you’re still around Iris.”

Marion Nicholson recalled her first job at Woolworths: “as a Saturday girl on the bread counter, at the top of stairs with a lovely lady, Mrs Pyle. Miss Yarrow was the personnel lady and the manager was Mr Frank. If I’m correct, in 1970 Billy McDonald and Ian Reid were floor-sweepers and always getting into trouble for talking to everyone!”

Many other “Saturday girls” also got in touch with their memories.

Caroline Edwardson revealed how “my first Saturday job was in 1957/8, in the basement on the ‘electricals’ – knew nothing, but enjoyed measuring the flex out! I miss Woolworths.”

Karen Allan said: “I was a Saturday girl, selling records and cassettes, it was the cool counter! Wasn’t fond of my orange pinafore though!”

Lee Chow took to social media to say: “Used to love going downstairs to the toy department in Woolworths when I was young. I wanted all the Tonka toys but I never got them, happy memories.”

For those with a sweet tooth there was good reason to remember Woolies – the pick ’n mix counter.

Sylvia Neilson said: “Loved Woolworths especially the pick ’n mix” while Colin Brown simply posted “Pick ’n mix in Woolies.”

Heather Ditchburn Curry may have been fond of Woolies but she certainly wasn’t too keen on using the stairs due to the fact that she kept “getting electric shocks from the bannister.”

However, as Karen Allan reminded us, in order to get to the record department, you had to us the stairs.

Lynsey Freestone took to Facebook to say: “I bought my first seven-inch single there about 1982”

Ann McDonald would have been a familiar face to many as she “used to be the window dresser with Mrs Wardropper, a lovely lady.”