Leadfingers and Dave: do you know any more of that song ? It sounds good !

Showing my age again, but I remember these. We lived outside the London phone area but I remember phoning my dad at his office on HOL(born) 8454. You're right,Bert - that system made it so much easier to memorize the numbers. Total thread-creep now, (we old nerds are entitled to a bit of thread-creep) but that has also reminded me of going to Holborn, at this exact time of year, to GAMAGES department store - Now.. who remembers that? And Mr. Holly in (I think) Selfridges ?

I can also remember the terrific excitement (!) when we could phone our relatives in Wales by dialling direct, without going through the operator. This was the biggest breakthrough ever.

And what about Button A and Button B? Amazing how things have changed. I wonder if any one else used to *long*, as I did, to have a phone in my shoe, like Maxwell Smart? Now I suppose if we so wished, we could stuff our mobiles down our boots.

Looking on that list of exchanges, I wonder how they came up with the rather North Country name of "Grimsdyke" as the exchange for Stanmore ? (It could have been ISIah or ISIdor - possibly more suitably kosher for Stanmore residents).

Thanks for posting this, Shambles !

- jeanie