Oral history audio recordings of 'pioneer settlers' who moved to the area designated as Milton Keynes from 1967 onwards.
The ‘Peoples History of Milton Keynes’ project includes approximately 324 oral history interviews recorded by and on behalf of the Living Archive. This selection of 53 interviews were recorded between February 2000 and October 2001, with residents who moved, from 1967 onwards, into the area which had been designated as Milton Keynes. The interviews in most part cover the interviewee’s reminiscences about the development of the new town, and their thoughts on the subsequent changes.
Some interviewees have requested that the transcript should only be accessed for educational purposes.
Extent
54 audio tape cassettes
Reference number
PMK/005
Records in this Group
Marilyn Booth was originally from Kettering and moved to Newport Pagnell in 1970. In 1975 she applied for a job as an Arrivals Worker with Milton Keynes Development Corporation. She talks about her job, and the changes she saw to Milton Keynes over time.
Meena Sadera first moved to the area in 1971 when Milton Keynes did not really exist. She talks about her awareness of the new city developments, the changes this would make to the area and the changes she saw over time.
Interview with a female resident who moved Wolverton in 1967.
The interviewee has requested that the content of this interview be used for educational purposes only.
The content of this interview may be accessed at the discretion of Living Archive.
Roy Nevitt moved to Stony Stratford in 1967, initially to work as a lecturer in drama at Bletchley Teacher Training College. After two years there and three and a half years in the USA, he returned to Stony Stratford and was appointed Director of Drama at Stantonbury Campus. He talks of his heavy involvement ...
Sam Bassnett was born in Bletchley. Her parents moved to the Lakes Estate in 1971 to find cheaper housing than London. She remembers enjoying the Lakes Estate adventure playground and Bletchley Leisure Centre. The new shopping centre was ‘so different to Bletchley.’ When she was a teenager, the only entertainment was really the Point and ...
Frank Stevens moved to Milton Keynes with his wife and two young children in 1977 from Harrow, Middlesex. He needed to establish his business as a medical representative in this new area. He recalls Netherfield in the early days as ‘like a desert’ and comments it was a pretty basic environment. He ...
Barry Staniland moved to Milton Keynes in 1975; as a bricklayer, there was plenty of work for him. They settled quickly in Greenleys, making good friends largely through the new local football team. However, he remembers a certain amount of resentment of newcomers among the older original residents. Having worked on several MK housing ...
June Shrewsbury moved to Milton Keynes with her husband and family in 1976 after seeing an MK TV advert; they thought MK, with brand new schools, might be ‘just the place’ for their daughter’s education. Her husband, a milkman, got a job in MK, and they were offered a new house on Fishermead. She ...
Geoff Cooksey came to Milton Keynes in 1971, appointed as headteacher of the proposed new Stantonbury Campus. He briefly describes his previous career in education, then moves on to discuss the educational philosophy which shaped the development of Stantonbury as an ‘open’ school. During the three years before students arrived he worked ...
Maria Dyke was born in Turin, Italy and first came to the UK 1973 for a few years as an au pair and in other jobs; she married in Italy in 1979 and returned to the UK, moving to Neath Hill, Milton Keynes in 1980. She describes her first impressions of MK, and comments ...
Dr Donald Wright arrived in Milton Keynes in 1974, to start up the first Health Centre, at Eaglestone. He describes the medical service when he first arrived, and setting up the new Centre. He covers topics such as the lack of hospital, development of a service to collect blood samples, ‘a flourishing maternity unit’, ...
Having trained in film and photography, Colin Barratt obtained a three-year contract in Milton Keynes in 1977, funded by Milton Keynes Development Corporation and British Telecom, working as a ‘project animator’ for Community Access TV station Channel 40. He describes the organisation and talks of colleagues such as Bill Billings, Bob Jardine, Jane Turner and ...
Richard Peters moved to Milton Keynes from Harlow in 1975 when his job with Legal and General was re-located. He bought a house in MK Village, where he and Kathy still live; they had some initial concerns about its odd design. They talk of choices for shopping at that stage, getting about in the city ...
Ron Titcomb came to Milton Keynes area in 1971, appointed the first Head of Watling Way School on Galley Hill. He was enthusiastic about the new middle school age range. He describes the early days while the school was being built, living in temporary accommodation, and visiting many other local schools to meet the Heads ...
Neville Rose came to England in 1957 from Jamaica to seek better employment, initially staying with his sisters in London. He came to Milton Keynes in 1976 from Luton; there was increasing violence in Luton, and he hoped for better schooling for his children and a quieter place. He describes choosing their home in MK ...
Wesley Brown was born in Jamaica. In the 1970s he moved to Milton Keynes from Crewe, to a house in Fullers Slade, later moving to Netherfield and finally Great Linford. He describes his wife and children’s reaction to the move; he was lonely initially, until he began to make friends through neighbours, playing cricket, and ...
Ted Barnard moved to London from the island of Dominica in the Caribbean to find better employment; moving to a new town also offered accommodation, so they chose Milton Keynes, arriving in the early 1970s when little building had been completed. He worked at Newton Longville brickworks and. Living on the Lakes Estate since ...
Eileen Bowen was born in Barbados; she came to the UK with her husband to train as a nurse, and has lived in Milton Keynes since the mid-1970s. They chose Milton Keynes because of the availability of housing at cheaper prices than London, and the environment for bringing up children. She recalls the ...
Isaac Fiscian Blay was born in Ghana. He has been in Milton Keynes for about 27 years now. He talks of his college and University studies, early jobs, and meeting his wife when he worked at London Transport. They chose MK in order to get better housing; he remembers being shown round the ...
Bill Billings first heard about MK when living in Luton in 1972; it offered a new chance, so he applied for a council house and, as a qualified engineer, obtained a job at Willen Sewage Works. He recalls his first impressions of MK and of Milton Keynes Development Corporation offices at Wavendon. He comments ...
Derek Newland came to Milton Keynes from Hackney, London in 1974, looking for better accommodation. Working for the Post Office, he was an active unionist. Southern Gas offered him a job as a sales rep, and he was given a council house in Greenleys, after some delays. He comments on the housing layout ...
George Cartwright moved to Milton Keynes in the early 1970s from South London with staff of the family firm, who took a factory unit. He recalls process of arranging housing for the staff move. They all moved to Galley Hill; he recalls an item in the local press: ‘the Gazette I ...
Ethel Cartwright was born and raised in London. She describes her married life in London, and her work. She recalls hearing about Milton Keynes when her husband’s firm took the decision to move there. Galley Hill was: ‘my dream house’; she looked forward to having a house of her own. Several of the family moved ...
Marilyn Price first heard about Milton Keynes in 1972/3. She describes their reasons for wanting to leave London, and their choice of a house on Fullers Slade. She recalls their families had mixed feelings about the move, but she thought ‘it would have a better environment’ for her daughter. She comments that the Fullers Slade ...
No Comments
Add a comment about this page