Late 60's biker wars

[Heritage Angle]

A mate of mine recently showed me some pic's on her pc of her aged 15 with a crowd of biker mates in some caf in Lower Sydenham around '69. Some featured her first husband to be at the time and others included their 'president'. Some may have included some of the formative members of the newly charterd South London Angels of the time. Apparently some other guys in the pics were from a Biggin Hill greaser club and these two always used to fight each other when they met.

There was a very interesting set of articles from local press about these young guys and their antics like bashing skin'eds. One featured my mate's mate who now lives in Nottingham.

I wonder, does anyone out there remember these guys? Maybe some of you hung out with or were among them. Maybe you recall that young scene in the late 60's / early 70's? Did you know Dave, formerly of Roses in Woolwich and his mates. Did you go there? (I'm not some copper on investigation - honest gov!

[budweiser]

A mate of mine recently showed me some pic's on her pc of her aged 15 with a crowd of biker mates in some caf in Lower Sydenham around '69. Some featured her first husband to be at the time and others included their 'president'. Some may have included some of the formative members of the newly charterd South London Angels of the time. Apparently some other guys in the pics were from a Biggin Hill greaser club and these two always used to fight each other when they met.

There was a very interesting set of articles from local press about these young guys and their antics like bashing skin'eds. One featured my mate's mate who now lives in Nottingham.

I wonder, does anyone out there remember these guys? Maybe some of you hung out with or were among them. Maybe you recall that young scene in the late 60's / early 70's? Did you know Dave, formerly of Roses in Woolwich and his mates. Did you go there? (I'm not some copper on investigation - honest gov!

Was That The Criterion by any chance mate?

[Wolfie]

I seem to remember that the local Angels used to hang out at the upstairs coffee bar at the St Michaels Church Hall/Youth Centre down at Bell Green. They used to regularly 'rumble' with the rival chapter whose haunt was the Salt Box cafe at Biggin Hill.

[Trawlerman]

AAhhh...The good old days.

We used to play 'mods and rockers' at infants' school.
Talk about role models!!

[Heritage Angle]

Sorry for late reply Buweiser. No don't think so. Wolfie (trying to remember these names, in a different screen now) was right, in that it was the Bell Green youth club. I was googling something last week and chanced upon some site for one of the three Biggin Hill cafe's at that time, the Nightingale, which along with the aformentioned, seemed to have quite a rep at the time. Loads of B&W pic's of the greasers and the teds. My mates lot were the Sydenham mob.

Theres a pic on a museum website (exploring 20th centry London) of a Nightingales guy's cut-off, a really crude early Angels logo with pink wing. Shame not many people joined in that one. Never mind.