Kingsbury Swimming Pool

A Memory of Kingsbury.

I remember queuing outside the pool for what felt like hours on a hot summer's day. The price to get in went as low as 1d -  or am I mistaken? We used to climb up a drainpipe at the back of the pool to get in, not to save money but to beat the queue. I remember the wet slimy discarded paper tickets that were on the floor in the mens' changing area, also the safety pin with a small piece of material with a faded number on for your clothes basket, and getting a hot Oxo drink from that window. I also badly cut my leg on the big concrete steps. We lived in St Paul's Avenue and went to the Glebe Infants School. We were taken to Kingsbury Pool for swimming lessons. It had to be 62 F degrees (16c) or above, many times it was 62 and we were made to get into what felt like ice water - then the long walk back.
We came to Kingsbury in 1952. I remember the Express dairy when it still had the horses stabled at the rear of the shop down the side road next to it. We moved to Wiltshire in 1963. I came back in the 1980s and was saddened to see the pool being demolished.
Happy memories.