A Derann Story

My strict father and the lessons I’d had at university about always cleaning up as you work in a kitchen have meant that I’m more than a little house proud. The curtains have to hand straight, sofa cushions must be neat and the Gtech cordless carpet sweeper is constantly in use. This also meant that…

I’m hoping that this post will get the Talbot Hotel out of my system, so without further ado let’s get on with the show. The two KP’s (Kitchen Porters), had started work at the Talbot when they were young boys, both coming from the same children’s home, they had already been working there around 16…

The Talbot cat has switched on my memory and much more than that deceased puss has came flooding back, here are few more morsels. Commis-Chef Dave and I decided to explore the Talbot attic and found evidence that part of this vast area, had at some time been a living space, complete with old decorated…

Before I started work at Derann, Derek invited me along to watch one of the film shows Derann Film Services regularly put on at various local workingmen’s clubs, and this is where I met John(ny) Thompson. John worked as a TV engineer for one of the big TV rental companies, a first rate electrician and…

As you may recall, I had two stints at the Talbot, one lasting 8-9 months and the second around 6 years. There was a large friendly cat at the Talbot during my first period there, in truth it wasn’t exactly the Talbots’ cat, it belonged to a long serving member of staff in her 90’s,…

The Talbot was a just a minutes walk from the Town Hall, so it wasn’t surprising that I should have my first taste of live theatre there. I saw the Stourbridge Amateur Operatic Societies annual productions for a number of years including, Oliver!, Showboat and Half A Sixpence, as well as several Gilbert and Sullivan…

I didn’t have long to wait for a new position as Les, a former student pal, quickly got me a job at Birminghams’ New Street Station, working as one of four second chefs in their very busy Taurus Restaurant & Bar. Hours were of the shift type, 7am-2.30pm and 2.30pm-10pm, and during that winter, the…

It was 1967, I was 19 and my days at University had come to an end, so with my City & Guilds qualifications in hand, I found a temporary position as second chef, while ‘Mad Jimmy’ took a months leave to tour Northern Europe. The Talbot Hotel, was a 17th century coaching inn, complete with…

With my days at Secondary Modern School at an end, I decided on a career in  catering, which meant three years training; one year on a pre-catering course at the Wulfrun  College, followed by two years at Wolverhampton Polytechnic, now niftily renamed the Wolverhampton University. The final two years were filled with lessons on housekeeping,…