Conservative Club formal dinner

More memories of Biggleswade Conservative Club are brought to you this week with a photograph of a formal men’s dinner that took place there, probably during the 1950s. It was kindly brought in by Melvyn Bryant who has named many of the gentlemen present at the time.
By The Newsroom
Published 17th Apr 2015, 12:40 BST

On the right hand end of the main table is Jimmy Wood, while on the left hand side (with their backs to the camera) and moving along from the right are: Cliff Page, who looked after the cemetery; Owen Watkin, the well-known Vauxhall dealer; a friend of Owen’s; Dick Bennett, butcher; Ray Marshall, a flight lieutenant who flew Lancasters and was a nurseryman; ?; ?; ?; Percy Moffat, nurseryman; ?; ?; ?; Walter Cooper, secretary to the Conservative Club; Raley Newman, owner of the garage at Dunton Corner; Bob Course, market gardener; Ely Haddow; Reg Barcock; ?; and Bert Chambers who was an expert in tomato growing on a grand scale and the last billiards/snooker player ever to grace the club. Melvyn recalls that Bert played Joe Davis at the club in a game of billiards. Bert scored over 100 in one of his breaks then Davis followed this with over 500.

On the middle table are Eric Smith, farmer; Stan Hills, a horse farmer; and opposite him, George Maudlin, farmer.

“Dick Bennett is the only one in the photograph who is still alive” says Melvyn.