A Sunday School Trip to... the Pub at Easenhall?

Not quite, but it was a late ’50s trip to the Golden Lion… bus stop.

When I was around ten years old we went on a Sunday school trip to Easenhall via Brinklow. This was a big event for about six of us (I never went in that direction usually, only to town on the Coventry Corporation buses) and our Sunday school teacher. We took an old Midland Red bus from the outskirts of Coventry and got off in Brinklow. I remember that it was a lovely sunny day so off we went past the castle mound in Brinklow, we were told it was a Roman burial mound.

Across the fields on a footpath, as we neared Easenhall we came across three or four geese who flapped at us and made such a din – they’re quite large and angry when you’re a small child. It was hard work to get past them and ended up a bit of a battle. Our Sunday school teacher waved her handbag at them, with her ever present Bible inside, and that was enough to see them off.

No buses

After all that, we made it into the village and got to the bus stop by the Golden Lion pub… only to find no more buses back for about five hours. She hadn’t thought to check before setting off, and had just assumed the buses were as regular as in Coventry – she wasn’t used to a country timetable!

So we had a choice of waiting, or walking back. We set off back on foot along the footpath and luckily were able to get on a bus back in Brinklow so got back home eventually. This was such an exciting day for those of us who really never ventured far from home, a real adventure. It wasn’t usual for me or my friends at that time to go anywhere different other than for holidays, and to visit family.