The Bunny Run, Stony Stratford
The following quotes are from Stony Stratford residents recalling their teenage years in the early part of the 20th century when they used to meet on the High Street and take part in ‘The Bunny Run’.
The highlight of the week
Sundays we used to walk the High Street. Everybody did. It was the highlight of the week…Up Stratford High Street, on Sunday nights, they used to call it “The Bunny Run”. You’d walk up and down, talk to girls. Sometimes, in the summer, you walked across the fields to Cosgrove…
They used to go and stand about in the shop doorways and they used to reckon that, if you walked up the “Bunny Run”, eventually you’d get a young man. This is going back to about 1936 or ’37. It was like a promenade at the seaside. If you’d got a new coat or anything new, you had to appear…
Sergeant Rollings would come by. “Come along. Out of those doorways.”…
Meeting your partner
I think there were some people in them days, met their partners on the “Bunny Run”…If any of the shopkeepers didn’t want it, they used to put a little gate across the front of the shop, so you didn’t go in the doorway. I remember Grafton Cycles put in a little gate, so no one could go in their doorway. Oh dear. When you think about it!…
The start of courtship
The young fellows from Deanshanger, Stony Stratford and Wolverton would all walk the “Bunny Run” as we used to call it. We all used to walk and smile and nod and maybe have a word with someone and nothing ever went beyond that. I suppose, through talking to boys like that, you sort of got to know them. You might have a date with a boy and go out for a walk with him. That would be the start and then it led to courtship. Or you just had a date, where nothing came of it, and you sort of looked around somewhere else. That was a great pleasure because that was one of the only ways we really met boys unless we went to dances…
(Extract from: A Lifetime Away: memories of childhood in Stony Stratford, edited by Hilary Bell. Published by The Living Archive Project 1994)
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My sister and cousin did the bunny run most weeks i am told sister Joan married Ron Meakins who brother had the barber shop taking over from his father now a small hairdresser shop sister Joan died 2 years ago age 93 years old cousin Gwen still alive now 94 6 weeks ago unfortunately had to go into a nursing home both maiden name was Goodman Rosalie Osborne nee Goodman 08-05-2021
My sister Joan and cousin Gwen used to do the bunny run Joan went on to marry Ron Meakins who’ Reg Meakins brother had the barber shop in the High Street it was a barber shop owned by Ron Reg father and the complete family 4 children mum dad lived behind the shop with only very small living quarters Ron Joan had 3 children Gill Alan David David died age 36 Ron died a few years ago Joan 2 years ago age 93 Gwen Herbert nee Goodman is still alive age 93 who i see from time to time she worked at Bletchly Park during the war Rosalie Osborne nee Goodman llived in Stony Stratford since 7 years old begfore then New Bradwell now 82 30 04 2021
I can remember in the 60’s,on a Sunday we used to meet up with the girls from Old Stratford and walk over to Cosgrove Lodge Park and spend the afternoon walking around the lake.Happy days !!!
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