I was born in Beaconsfield and was brought up in Chalfont St Giles, and although I now live in Hampshire I'm very fond of 'going back home' to Bucks where many happy memories come flooding back. Memories that you have growing up never leave you, at least that's what I find.

If not proud of you place of birth, trust you a proud of country of birth, if not get out & go to a place you will be happy & proud off.

Yeading has got a football team!

I fully agree with you there Rich Kid. I'm well into that stage of life where I have to renew my driving license every three years. Memories of years gone by, especially childhood memories, are all the more pleasant these days. Not only do those childhood memories never leave – they become clearer, sharper, more profound. One of my earliest memories as a child is lying awake in bed at night listening the endless rhythmic beating drone of the engines of hundreds of propeller driven aircraft heading for Germany.

Life seemed simpler in those days; and far less threatening - even though we lived through the effects, aftermath, and shortages brought about by WWII.

Sadly, children of today will never see, experience, and enjoy some of the same freedoms and innocences we took for granted; such as the friendly copper who was also ready to give a timely word of advice, or even a firm reprimand, without the need for full body armour and an array of radio links and cameras. I never saw police constables carrying automatic weapons in those days, dressed as if ready for battle on the front-line of WWIII. A coper used to present a friendly face of stability – today's copper is a threatening paramilitary looking for armed confrontation, one that is more likely to force you to the ground, clamp you with handcuffs, than he/she is tell you the time.

I can't claim any pride for having been born in Amersham. My mother had been evacuated from her home in the London Docklands in the last weeks of her pregnancy because of the nightly blitzkrieg bombing from Germany. So I was born in Amersham; two weeks later my mother returned home to Docklands with me.

Most of Docklands where we lived became an enormous bomb-site of wide-spread destruction, which meant we were constantly being rehoused as properties became available.

During WWII there was an anti-aircraft battery installed in Gunnersbury Park, for which a large number of accommodation huts had been erected for the military. At the end of WWII, and after the military had vacated Gunnersbury Park, those accommodation huts were made available for 'housing' needy families. My parents and family lived in one of those wooden huts for 4 years; which was the longest period we lived in any one 'home' until my parents moved to Hayes in 1954/5.

In those early days Hayes seemed like another world; it even had "Urban" in the name of the local council, there were wide open spaces of fields and woods to explore, country lanes without footpaths or street lighting, drainage ditches lining unpaved roads. But slowly, change was inflicted on Hayes and its residents, the rate of change eventually became a torrent that led to a flood, that finally led me and my family to run for the hills.

I eventually left Hayes and moved to Somerset. We do have floods down here, but at least they are somewhat more natural and predictable floods.

Am I proud of having been born in Amersham – not al all.

Am I proud of Docklands, my first home? The Docklands I knew is no longer there, it has become a rich man's playground.

Am I proud of Gunnersbury Park? No, not proud; but I do have a lot of good childhood memories from living there. An ex-military camp makes a great playground for kids with imaginations.

Do I have any pride for Hayes, the place I lived for a very large proportion of my life? I left Hayes in a state of despair, even fear for what I saw developing. A murder by stabbing in a public place, in broad daylight about 100 yards from my home finally decided that we had to leave Hayes. I have no pride for Hayes, but I do have a lot of grief for what has been done to Hayes and the surrounding area against the wishes of the people who used to live and work there.

The same applies to my country. I have no pride for my country any more, because my Britain and England no longer exist; they have been deliberately destroyed and given away to foreign powers by treasonous UK politicians who have no sense of duty or responsibility towards we ordinary and indigenous Brits.

Yes, I value my childhood memories – all the more so because they provide a constant reminder of what the political class have stolen from us.

''One of my earliest memories as a child is lying awake in bed at night listening the endless rhythmic beating drone of the engines of hundreds of propeller driven aircraft heading for Germany.''

You forgot to mention lying curled up under the bed when hearing the planes coming from Germany !

Joking aside a very good post that touches upon the national decline as well, there'd be a big diaspora of people like yourself that found this place uninhabitable, hope I'm one of you in years to come,not from here originally but have witnessed the rot that set in from Thatcher onwards accelerated by Blair the Millionaire and his cohorts.

Co-Incidence Westonman

My father was born in Acton Colville Road off Bollo Lane in 1932, brought up by his Uncles and Aunt as his mother died of TB in 1936 and his father (my grandfather) was away with the Army in India for the duration... Uncle was in protected employment on the Railways as an engineer in works I am sure you can recall being in that part of Acton.

He often used to regale stories of the AA guns in Gunnersbury park alluding to the fact these guns were responsible for bringing down at least one Heinkel bomber. I can recalls seeing pictures of it crash landed in West London with local police guarding the injured crew. He told me he and a few friends turned up with a view to blagging the bomb sights but I think that was more wishfull thinking than truth.

My Grandfather lived in Gunnersbury Lane just beyond the junction with Bollo lane a little bit down the hill from the Mill Hill pub (another pub recently lost). Some of my earliest memories are of his house and sitting on the pavement outside the Mill Hill with a bottle of lemonade and packet of crisps (Parents would probably be arrested for child abuse these days). This would have been in the early - mid 1960's. Whenever we were back in the UK (father was in the RN so we were away a lot in those years) we would always visit on a Sunday and make a trip to the park to go on the boating lake and walk around the neatly kept gardens. That park will always have a special place in my heart...

Acton back then was solidly working class, a place of light engineering, laundry's for the big West end hotels and Ice Cream factory's. Today it is something entirely different. Due to mismanagement of the economy by successive Governments working class people cannot afford to live there anymore.

The Mill Hill pub in Acton as the Golden Cross in Hayes and many many others like The Blue Anchor, The Standard, The Star, The Royal Standard, The Industry this list could go on and on are closing simply because the land value they stand on is worth to the pub Company's to be sold as housing than it can ever make as a pub.

I cannot see this trend being halted.... The population is ever increasing 80 Million and counting and these people need ever more places to live. Stated policy of any party likely to govern the UK going forward and none of them are prepared to do a thing about it.

Sure getting out of Europe might help but it would be a toe in the water with plenty more to do and that's if we are ever allowed the democratic rights to take that step.

Fingers crossed Tspiras of Greece sticks it up them, they force Greece out of the Eurozone as that will be the trigger which starts 'the great Euro experiment' on it's downfall.

Geezer, I remember those places you mention.

The entrance to The Close in Gunnersbury Park was from Popes Lane. We used to regularly walk from the park, turn right into Popes Lane – follow Gunnersbury Lane to Acton Town Station, and on to Acton High Street.

And yes, we kids used to have a lot of fun on the boating lake; living in the park meant we kids had access at all hours - night and day.

I can remember being lefts outside the Red Lion at the junction of Gunnersbury Lane and Acton High Street. Like yourself, we kids would be given a packet of crisps and a glass of lemonade while our parents were having a quiet drink inside. Child abuse? At the time we kids thoroughly enjoyed it.

I think we left Gunnersbury Park about 1952, it was just after King George VI died; we then lived in a top floor flat in West Acton for two years. Those were two very difficult years after having the free-run of the large open space of Gunnersbury Park for 4 years. The flats in West Acton are still there, overlooking the A40.

I agree with you, I can't see there ever being any improvement in the state of Britain now; things have gone too far to be reversed. Added to which, there is no sign of any political will to improve the situation - on the contrary, there is a determined political will to accelerate the destruction of Britain.

I'm not. I feel proud to have known the happy, bustling atmosphere of Hayes with the factories providing work for the communities. From these stemmed the community spirit and activities for people of all ages. Education was well-regarded with well thought-of schools, churches for everyone and a town which catered well for Hayes people.
I did not think of Hayes as a dump 50 years ago. That was 1965 and at that time, I was happy getting married and starting a family there, buying a house in a nice area and proud of it. There was no reason for it to be described as a 'dump', not even in the early 70's.
I am not embarrassed to have been 'Hayes born and bred' and am proud to have known it as it was.
It is a shame that other places, not just Hayes, are deteriorating for several reasons because of the enormous changes in life, especially regarding industry and shops, and open-spaces disappearing for more and more building.

I woke up one morning and realised i was living in a 3rd world country,surounded by people i didnk know and who didnt want to know me so,like westoman i packed my belongings and headed to somerset.
i knew some people that had moved here so i wasnt quite "Billy no mates",the difference in house prices meant i dont have to work again,the people are friendlier,the air fresher and the whole pace of life a lot slower.
i have had friends pop down to have a look see,2 couples are planing on moving here.
i have no intention of going back to the smoke,i like it here which is more than i could say about hayes for the last 5 or so years i lived there .
BTW Westoman,where in this great county you live ?.

Hi Vlad
It is good news that moving has worked out well for you and you are happy where you are now.It sounds good.
Marian