Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Guardian Royal Exchange office party and street scenes, Xmas 1987 mp4

My dad, Ken Platt, filmed what I think is the Guardian Royal Exchange office party, Xmas 1986. It includes street scenes in Hanley, the Xmas dinner and the office itself, complete with manual typewriters, telephone switchboard, fax machine and other relics of a bygone office era.

[@theliberatingmachines5051]

Great video, I wasn't born till 1999 but all of the buildings are very familiar to me, so cool to see all of the different shop signs, and to see Hanley actually functioning as a working city centre 🤣

[@MarkSmith-hg9vr]

The year I was born 😮

[@dataterminal]

Oh wow that's a throw back. The Christmas display brings back memories. It's crazy how things have moved on, both with technology (or lack there of) to see people using relics of the past, and not using mobile phones at all... but mostly how much Hanley really hasn't changed over the years.
Thanks for sharing this, teal memories here.

[@suebosson3755]

Love this. I presume the office party was held at lunch time as they were all wearing the same clothes in office later. I worked at Bullock and Bosson in those days and the office equipment was all too familiar to me. I liked the fact that one lady had a word processor for weeks which hadn't 'been plugged in yet'. Who would want to go back to those manual typewriters although I think our modern equivalent makes us lazy as it's too easy to make corrections.

[@ukraine7249]

All we see here are no longer with us sad😢

[@liveloud9894]

It’s funny to see people smoking at their desks which was completely acceptable back then 😮

[@NatJB]

Great video, where were these offices located, what part of Hanley?

[@steveplattify]

Hi Nat. They were at 39 Trinity Street, directly opposite Lower Foundry St. It's now called Unicorn House (likely was back then as well). It was just a small mainly open-plan office on the first floor.

[@NatJB]

@@steveplattify thanks for that. It's such a good video, just to see those years again. Was the business in trouble, there was some mention about it being possibly the last Christmas?

[@leigh6417]

Was your Christmas dinner in the Due Drop Inn?

[@steveplattify]

I don't know where it was held. It's my dad's video and he died in 2011, so sadly I can't ask him.

[@leigh6417]

@@steveplattify aww mate sorry to hear that. These are wonderful videos you’ve shared that your dad filmed. That Lewis’s Christmas display at end took me right back. Remember it well as a kid.

[@leigh6417]

@@steveplattify I’m pretty sure it was the old Due Drop inn which is no longer going. I recognise the Balcony Dining area. It was situated on the corner of clough st and the A5006 a stone throw away from the old Theatre Royal.

[@steveplattify]

@@leigh6417 The location would make sense - I'll ask my sister if she knows. Great name for a pub.

[@steveplattify]

Spoken to my sister and a friend who knew it well and yes, it was the Dew Drop Inn - now a takeaway, I think.