[lit-ideas] The Road to Buenos Ayres (Was: Splott
- From: Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 18 Oct 2007 21:14:03 EDT
Oh, my -- as Judy Garland says in "Wizard"
Thanks, Judy for the BBC link to multicultar south-east Wales. Magnificent.
I was browsing the exchange of site-visitors regarding the polemic that
Shiley Bassey is 'promoted' as "the lady of Tiger Bay", when someone else
comes
and says she's from "Splott". Fascinating details into urban history!
Judy:
>Not, I'd say, as interesting as...
Oh please. Both possibly interesting _in different ways_ (:0). In terms of
'district' geography -- I should check how far the docks of Tiger Bay (and
Temperance Town, also mentioned) are from actual Splott --, I cannot think of
an
equivalent of Buenos Aires.
However, there is this beautiful book by Psiche Hughes (love the name) and
Evelyn Fishburn
"A Dictionary of Borges" (London, Duckworth)
A bit outdated, but still useful, especially with regard to some of the
districts that Borges made literary spots of. He was particularly fond of the
docks at a time where you would have quite a multi-cultural exchange (For some
reason, he was attracted to Scandinavians, as his short story "Emma Zunz", his
only story with a female protagonist) testifies (She gets _raped_ by this
Scandinavian seaman while the story unfolds a rather different 'construal' --
pretty difficult).
Another book I was browsing, and never ceases to delight me when I do is
Donna Guy,
"The Road to Buenos Ayres"
Actually the book is called:
"Sex and danger in Buenos Aires: prostitution, family, and nation in
Argentina"
-- Don't read more between the lines that you need! I'm only suggesting that
_docks_ *are* dangerous, regardless of your race or the multiculturalism.
In any case, it's all about a city centred around an international harbour
like Cardiff is. Today the harbour is pretty much isolated from the downtown
area, and big ships arrive at the _northern_ docks, never downtown. I suppose
it must be the same way in Cardiff with Tiger Bay becoming now more like a
'tourist' destination.
Cheers,
JL
-- Blue placques are for deceased people only? If not, somebody should
MARK the actual birthplace of Dame Shirley and end the polemic below.
From the BBC website mentioned by Judy:
"Shirley Bassey has the cheek to say "I don't feel Welsh". What a load of
old rubbish - she moved to Splott when she was only 2 years old as my family
knew her. Shirley should be proud of the place she came from, which was
Splott,
not Tiger Bay. One person asked her why she was not proud of where she came
from and her answer was, "what, Splott?" She went to Moorland primary and
then Splott secondary because she is the same age as my aunty Sidonia. If I
was
as famous as her I would shout from the rooftops that I am."
"So come on all of you from Cardiff that claim you knew her and are quoting
negative things. She is from Cardiff, be it Tiger Bay or Splott, what does it
matter?"
"I remember Temperence Town, Tiger Bay and Splott, my husband was a Splott
boy and knew Shirley well in the old days."
"I think Shirley spent more time in the bay than Splott."
"I was born and raised on Maria Street 1944-1963. Old Bute Street police
station was on the corner of Bute & Maria street. There was no printers
opposite. If you want to find people who remember Tiger Bay - go to a funeral
at St
Mary church when an old docks person dies and you will see a least 100 people
who remember Tiger Bay, many of whom still live there. My cousins and sisters
for instance live in Loudon Square - still hanging on to what is left. I
think you should read Neil Sinclair's book on the area because afterall you
lived in Victoria Park which seemed a world away to us living in the bay. The
Echo usually has pictures of the funerals because they are big and escorted
down
Bute Street to St Mary's by all those people who remember Tiger Bay."
"Although Dame Bassey was brought up in Splott you have to remember that
she´s a Docks girl all the way. She was born there. And to answer your
question
if anyone remembers the Tiger Bay well I can surely asure you that YES!!!
many of us who were born in the DOCKS our roots are from the TIGER BAY because
that is where my parents emigrated to."
"Dame Shirley Bassey grew up in Splott, Cardiff not Tiger Bay. My
Grandmother's house backed onto the street where her family lived. When living
with my
grandmother in Splott my brother and I would play football in the street with
Shirley and her siblings."
"I don't know about her move to Splott, but I remember she used to spend
quite some time with relatives or friends in a street diagonally across Loudon
Square backing on to the canal and that we used to pole rafts made of timber
deck cargo up and down the canal togethewr."
"I used to live in Cardiff in the Victoria Park area. My late father used to
work in a printers opposite the old Bute Street police station. Why am I
telling you this? Ask any older (say 55+) resident of the docks and they will
tell you Shirley Bassey is not a Tiger bay girl. Also they would doubt if
there
is anyone living that can remember Tiger Bay. Can any one remember
temperance Town?"
"Claire's right! Shirley was only two when her family moved to Portmanmoor
Road in Splott. She attended Moorland and Splott Secondary. She was in my
older sister's classes and also worked with my mother in Currans Enamels. She
used to sing in the 'Bomb & Dagger social club' and the 'Lord Wimbourne' which
was opposite her house. I doubt if she even remembers living in Tiger Bay!"
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