Characters I used to know. You don’t see folk like this anymore
-Steve Clifford
Characters I used to know
Doll, Dolly, Sam the dog man, Billy the Burglar, The knife man and the Tin man
In the sixties there were many characters wandering about Hulme and Moss Side.
Doll was probably the oldest ever prostitute.
She was about five foot four and about 65 years old, she was always very scruffy and always wore a pinkish dirty coat with a matching head scarf.
She seemed to scurry along and always had a fag hanging out of the corner of her mouth, whenever she came across an Officer she always said, ‘Hiya Doll’ to which the officer always would reply, ‘you ok Doll’ she always nodded and scurried off.
Now Dolly was Dolls mother, she was smaller then Doll but a lot scruffier, she too wore a dirty coat and always walked about three yards behind Doll wherever she went.
Dolly never spoke, even when spoken to, we think she was in her nineties so in Moss side could well have still been on the game.
Its only when you haven’t seen someone for ages that you realize you haven’t seen them, and this was the case with Doll and Dolly they just suddenly disappeared and were never seen again.
Sam the dog man was a small man who wore a cream coloured mac and he always had a black beret square on his head. His mac was held closed with a string belt tied with a bow at the front.
Around his feet were about ten to twelve dogs of all shapes and sizes all kept in check with leads of string which Sam held in each hand, he used to wander the streets of Hulme and Moss Side picking up stry dogs and caring for them.
Sam never spoke, but did nod an acknowledgment as he walked past.
Again like Doll and Dolly he just vanished, as did his dogs.
Billy the burglar was probably the most unsuccessful burglar of all time. He had been convicted of burglary a dozen or more times, and was sent to prison for each time, his sentence increasing with each appearance.
He’s only been out of prison a day when he was planning his next burglary, he was eyeing up a local betting shop. He was planning to break in in the early hours of the following morning,
Now Billy was non too bright, and he called in to a pub which he hadn’t been in before, now this ale house was the one frequented by the local CID, and they were in when Billy came in.
Billy bought a pint and stood next to a man who he had never seen before, ‘Not been in here bore’ he said to the man, who ignored him. This man did not look like a police officer, in fact he was an under cover Detective Sergeant., Billy continued , ‘I’m ganna do that bookies at the end of the street’
The man sipped his pint and just said, ‘when’
‘Oh tonight’
The man nodded and continued to sip his pint, ‘Good luck with that then’
He smiled, downed his pint, beckoned two other colleagues and left.
Billy sat down, and finished his pint.
That night, about 2am Billy was at the back of the bookies he saw a window wide open, he just couldnt believe his luck, and climbed in and began looking around, unaware of the dozen eyes watching him.
Billy the burglar didn’t do any more burgling for some time.
The knife man might initially send a shiver down your spine, but he was nothing so sinister I never knew his name he was always known as the knife man,
He used to ride a bike around which he had cleverly adapted to have a grindstone at the front attached with a chain to the pedal mechanism and he would ride the streets ringing a big bell and folk would come out to have their knives sharpened.
The Tin Man was one of those people who you never really knew, he seemed to disappear into the ether, I couldnt describe him he lived on the edge of the law, wheeling and dealing dodging and diving, he was called the tin man because he carried a silver coloured tin under his arm which hinged open, presumably all his deals were in that tin.
He walked everywhere or occasionally used a bus.
He continually looked behind him as though expecting to be ambushed at any moment.
He leant money and did deals for anyone at a price.
You don’t see folk like this any more
