We all have those sights, sounds and smells that remind us of growing up.
They are often unimportant things but for whatever reason stick in our minds for decades to come.
Whether it’s the smell of a nearby factory that’s now demolished or the sound of those noisy old bus engines, our senses tend to pick up things that remind us of a certain time in our lives.
As you’d expect, the youth of today growing up in Peterborough have a very different experience to that of their parents or grandparents.
For example, someone born in 1970 could have spent an afternoon browsing the record section in Woolworths before taking in a punk performance at the Wirrina Stadium.
Sadly, a teenager today could not experience either of those things.
We recently asked readers on our Facebook page to suggest the sights, sounds and smells that remind them of growing up in Peterborough in the 1970s.
After receiving nearly 200 suggestions, it’s fair to say that this brought the memories flooding back for those of a certain age.
We’ve picked out X of the most popular responses and included them below:
1. The smell of the British Sugar Factory
By far and away the most popular suggestion was the smell of the British Sugar factory in Oundle Road. In the first season – known in the trade as a campaign – the new Peterborough factory processed 63,384 tonnes of beet, an average of 659 tonnes a day. After opening in 1926, the site closed in 1991. Photo: Midlands
2. Visiting Woolworths for pick and mix sweets
Several readers remembered visiting pick and mix section at Woolworths, as well as the man standing nearby selling the Peterborough Evening Telegraph Photo: PT
3. The smell of candy floss and fried hot dogs when the fun fair came to town
Many readers shared happy memories of visiting the fun fair at the East of England Showground in the 1970s, particularly the smell of candy floss and fried hot dogs! Photo: PT
4. Popping into Timothy Whites
Plenty of readers recalled popping into Timothy Whites during the 1970s. The chemists were eventually phased out by 1985 after being acquired by Boots Photo: PT