Category: Missed a ThameNews story?

GWEN Bambrook, the founder of Bambrooks’ Taxis, and the widow of John Bambrook who later started the family motor repair business in Chinnor Road, Thame, died last Thursday, April 21, at Stone House Nursing Home.
Gwen was born at Potrobello near Watlington on August 11, 1914 and Christened Gwendoline May Lloyd. She left school at 14 and started work in the dairy at Lower Dean Farm were she lived and worked as the dairy maid making butter and cream.
Gwen’s eldest son, Roy, explained how she would get up early to collect the milk from the cows to cool it and then to separate it and use the cream. The butter and cream would then be sent up to Watlington Park to be used in the big house.
One night in 1932 she was persuaded to go to Henley Regatta Fair where she met up with a very nice young man called John Bambrook. Their friendship grew and after six years of courtship they were married on November 5, 1938 and went to live in Chinnor for a short time.
They later moved to Park Street, Thame, in November, 1939 where there first son, Roy was born. In February, 1942, Gwen’s second son, Kenneth, was born.
Gwen and John and the two boys went to live in Towersey for four years. In 1952 the moved back to Thame to Chinnor Road where she started a Taxi Business and the rest is history, as they say, as was recently reported when the family business was sold recently.
(See ‘End Of An Era For Thame Family Business’, Main News section, April 05.)
Gwen’s funeral will be held on Friday,April 29, at St Catherine’s Church, Thame, at 2.30pm

HALF a century of caring for the cars of local people came to an end on Friday for a Thame family business.
Bambrooks Garage, which began when Mrs Gwen Bambrook started the family taxi business in 1952, was officially closed and handed over to the new owner, Karl White, proprietor of the Thame Service Station on the opposite side of Chinnor Road.
Roy Bambrook, who with his brother Ken ran the garage and taxi business after the death of their father, Jack (John) Bambrook in 1992, related the history of the family firm to ThameNews.Net:
?Early in 1952, mum and dad bought the property from a Mrs Hanse. They moved in and mum started her taxi business while dad worked at the Service Garage (where HSBC bank is now), run by Arthur Blanchard. Mother started to get very busy with the taxi work, what with weddings almost every Saturday and driving the likes of Vivien Leigh who lived at Knottley Abbey, and Larry Grayson among her clientele. Dad came to help mum out but, because he was such a good engineer, a lot of his customers followed him here. So dad built a workshop and got really busy mending cars.
?Dad was at that time also a member of Thame Fire Brigade but because he was so busy with the garage, in 1957, after 20 years of service, decided he would have to finish. I was 18 years-old by then and was working at the Service Garage myself. Because dad had left, there was a vacancy at the fire station and they persuaded me to join to replace him and shortly afterwards, the Service Garage was sold on and it was decided that I would come and work for dad ? that was in June 1958. Although the siren at the fire station used to go off to summon the brigade, as was common practice then, a bell was put in the workshop. We got so busy that by 1965, we needed to build bigger premises. Around that time, my brother Ken, who had been working at Haynes? Garage (where Barclays bank is now), joined the family business. Dad continued to work until his health failed and he died 1992, since when, Ken and I continued until the present day.?
Roy retired from the fire service himself on News Year?s Eve, 1994, after 37 years.
Gwen Bambrook, though frail, is still alive and being cared for in a nursing home in Stone, near Thame.
It is an emotional time for most people coming to the end of their working life, but Roy said that although he felt sad at what is after all, the end of an era, he was looking forward to working on his retirement projects.
?It?s exciting in a sort of frightening way,? he admitted.
Roy is a keen Radio Ham and photographer and enjoys computing.
But it is Roy?s enthusiasm for his work that was always apparent to his customers, many of whom became his firm friends and will now have the difficult task of finding a reliable and resourceful engineer like Roy or indeed Ken, to look after their vehicles. But, as Roy admitted himself, he will still be tinkering around with cars one way or another for as long as he can hold a spanner.

But what of the future of the site on which Bambrooks? has stood for so long?
Karl White, the new owner explained:
?For many years we have sold cars, carried out MOTs and services, as well as valeting and repairing cars. The business is growing and we are running out of space. By acquiring Bambrooks?, we will be able to carry on doing all of that in a way that will be much more convenient for our customers.?

Photo: Roy Bambrook hands over the keys of Bambrook’s garage to new owner, Karl White. Also pictured, Ken Bambrook and the two Mrs Bambrooks.

A 27 year-old New Zealander who has lived and worked in Thame for over five years, has asked MP Boris Johnson to help him fight for permanent residency in England.
Vaughan Humphries, who is a popular figure behind the bar of the Bird Cage in Thame, and works during the day for a local Design company, recently had an application for ‘Indefinite Leave to Remain’ in the country turned down by the Home Office. He has set up an on-line petition to which he hopes all his friends and those who know him in Thame, will add their names to support his claim.
Vaughan told ThameNews: “I have been in Thame for over five years now, and recently applied for Indefinite Leave to Remain – i.e. Permanent Residency. I have been doing absolutely everything legitimately along the way when it has come to seeking citizenship. Red tape seems to have blocked every avenue I have tied. The Home Office rejected my application on the grounds that there was no evidence to support my claim that I have been here in the UK for the duration I stated, even though I have a whole town who can vouch for me being here, I have a National Health Number and have been paying tax. Before I could even think about appealing, I read on and discovered to cover themselves, the Home Office refuse to appeal any cases.
“I was livid when I read that, so contacted Boris Johnson’s Office, who have said they will champion my cause. I do not have to leave the UK, as I am on a five year work permit that expires in October 2007. However, because of this I am effectively a second-class citizen, unable to further my career or be in the position to buy a house.
“Coming in at airports and travelling through Europe is a nightmare. Returning home to Thame after a long flight is depressing, as I face the ‘Spanish Inquisition’ each time I approach the immigration desk, whilst I watch three plane loads of EU nationals waltz through.”
Vaughan, who has several Degrees and plays the saxaphone in the Thame Town Band, concluded: “Thame has become my home and all I want to do is to settle here as a permanent citizen and not be chained to a work permit.”
To sign Vaughan’s petition, visit click here

THERE are many fields of work that require a great deal of courage. Some are more recognised than others such as the police and firemen, but have you ever stopped and thought what being a bomb disposal expert entails?

Here in Thame we have among us a bomb disposal expert, Ian Jones. After being an army apprentice for three years Ian became a corporal in the ammunitions branch of the army, disarming a variety of explosives. He was involved in Northern Ireland where he said: “Under car booby trap bombs were the worst kind of device. Once the driver had set off, the bomb was activated and exploded killing the occupants.”
He now works for the Metropolitan Police, dealing with incidents involving explosives in London; which you would think of as being a demanding lifestyle but according to our interviewee, thankfully there are not many bombs in London at the moment.

His fascination with weapons and ammunition dated back to when he was a young lad, making bombs and setting them off for fun. One day things didn’t go according to plan though: “When I was 14 a bomb I had made exploded in my pocket, I had to go to Stoke Mandeville Hospital and have skin graft on my leg.”
His dad suggested that he should join the army after that incident, and he has never looked back.

For a hobby Ian travels around the world investigating battlefields from both world wars and was involved in the aftermath of the Kosovo conflict. He told Thame News that the most difficult thing he had to do was helping to uncover mass graves and meet the families who had been affected by the devastation of that war. He says of the experience: “It was difficult and moving.”

It was suggested that he must have experienced some close shaves due to the danger he is exposed to, Ian disagreed and said: “There are so many rules and procedures to protect us which as long as we follow them they keep us safe. The police are in more danger because they are the first on the scene to investigate a bomb threat.”

When asked of the risks of the job Ian immediately talked about the destruction and injured people rather than risks towards himself and others in his profession. He said that he doesn’t see what he does as risky, he has done it all his life and he and his colleagues are supplied with protective flak jackets, helmets and robotic devices to deactivate threatening objects. He said the biggest risks are devices made by amateurs, and post blast scenes where there is the danger from buildings collapsing, gas leakage’s and exposed electricity cables.

When asked how he coped with the difficulties of the job he admitted that the team would sometimes drink and have a laugh in the evenings as a way of relieving the stress and tension. Training wise they endure a series of courses where they are assessed on how they deal with practice bombs. Ian spoke of a couple of personal tragedies within the job such as losing a friend whilst in France examining a World War One mine: “He was buried alive, I tried to dig him out,” Ian recalled.

Regarding the future, Ian said that he is quite happy doing what he is doing right now and felt he was very lucky to be able to look forward to going to work and to do a job that he loves. He has recently published a book called ‘Malice Aforethought’ about the history of booby traps and is currently writing another book: “I like writing, I discovered it later on in life,” He concluded.

Photo: Typical robotic vehicle used for disabling devices.