My life on Canvey 1948 to 1970 by Eddie Terry
CANVEY AS I REMEMBER IT - EPISODE Eleven

"Having babies on Canvey in the fifties and sixties You might ask 'What would a mere male know about having babies?' well I will tell you. Nearly everyone had their babies at home during this era and it was the expectant dads job, when the wife said she was due, to jump on his bike and cycle around to the mid-wife's house and let her know the situation ,and you were always asked the same questions 'has the water burst? how long between each contraction? Etc'. Now if the mid-wife was out on another call she left the name and address of her backup nurse so off you cycled (no matter what time of the day or night it was or the weather conditions were) to find the other one and hoped and prayed that she was in. The midwives I can recall that worked on Canvey were a Nurse Robson and a Nurse Consella, one rode a bike and the other drove a Morris minor car When our first one was due Nurse Robson came and that's when she took over, she came in the door and the first words she said in a very draconian voice to the poor nervous father to be was 'Make yourself useful and get me some clean towels and plenty of boiling water' when you had done all of that and sat down she found you another task, but the midwives were very efficient and very good. I wonder just how many Canveyites can say 'I had my bare bottom smacked by Nurse Consella or Nurse Robson', thousands I would guess.
Now the in thing is all hospital deliveries to eliminate any complications but I would back the success rate of those old midwives against any hospital of today. being less clinical and more comforting."

Golden Age: By the Cresta Run at Canvey Casino

"This period you could call the cream of my youth, I was single, had a car (a black 1952 ford V8 Pilot with a lovely comfortable back seat), had one of the best driving jobs in the transport industry, plenty of money in my pocket and only my dick to keep, On top of this it was during (what I consider) to be the greatest decade of the twentieth century, the fifties; there was very little unemployment, not much violence in the pubs or streets, no racial problems and the rise of some of the greatest legends in the pop world.
There was Elvis Priestly, The Big Bopper, Paul Anka, Bill Haley and the Comets, Johnny Ray, Frankie Lane, Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Gene Vincent, Ricky Valence and more.
I can remember standing for hours around the juke box feeding it money and listening to all of these stars; it was sixpence a record or five for two bob. It is impossible to describe the feeling of enjoyment and euphoria standing around the juke box while this fantastic new music was belting out and when songs like "shake rattle and roll" “rock around the clock" “Heartbreak Hotel” and “Dianna” were released and they were played none stop for days.
When we came back onto the Island after a nights drinking binge we would drive to the Unic cafe, (which was next to Taylors garage down the village) drive up onto the pavement and skid to a halt about six inches from the plate glass window, (just to scare the birds sifting by the window, as you will have guessed we were show offs and lairs) swagger into the cafe' and throw a couple of bob to the girls standing around the juke box for them to play some music and then go into the back room where we would have a game of cards (the owner did not mind this providing we would keep buying food and teas and he also liked a game of cards) we played pontoon or nine card brag at sixpence a hand and he would keep the cafe' open until we all went, sometimes this was as late as early morning.
Now I will say this that during all of my teenage years I never once heard any talk of drugs or knew of anyone who took them, in fact, we did not even know they existed, and I cannot recall anybody even mentioning the word suicide (in fact life was too good to even contemplate it)."