YOUTH clubs played a big part in young people’s lives half-a-century and more ago.

In Burnley, Sandygate was a strong club, boasting hundreds of young members, many proficient at sports, so there was always a full trophy cabinet.

All the lads on this photograph, taken in the late fifties, were members, and the idea to go to Butlins, at Pwllheli for the ‘Burnley Fair’ holiday originated in the club.

It’s been sent to us by author Mervyn Hadfield, who was born in the Brickhouses, just off Westgate, and also frequented Alice Beattie’s in his youth.

Mervyn, who’s kneeling at the front and two of his mates – Howard Bastable, also captain of the football team for a long spell, second left, and Tony Routh, a top table tennis player for the club, third left, all took part in a relay race to Blackpool in 1958, which gained much publicity for the youth club at the time.

Tony was one of the actual runners, while Mervyn and Howard, who was always known as Sam, were given a free ride as part of the back-up team tracking the runners in a van carrying first aid, food and other requisites.

He laughed: “I certainly had my leg pulled for months after by the valiant runners doing the real leg work.”

Arrangements for the run were made by club leader A Billington and youth organiser N Powell, and nine runners completed the run to the coast in four-and-a-half hours, taking a letter of greeting from the Mayor of Burnley, Coun Miss E Uttley.

The lads were met at Blackpool Town Hall by council officials and then entertained to tea, before visiting the Army Game show, where they were introduced to the cast.

Said Mervyn: “We were all ‘star struck’ after the relay was completed. It’s difficult to imagine now how comedy shows in those early TV days were regarded, commanding national audiences in the tens of millions.

“The ‘Army Game’ was about as popular as any show could be and there we were, trooping back stage to meet our idols, Bernard Bresslaw (Popeye), Alfie Bass (Bootsie), Ronald Fraser (Snudge), Michael Medwin and others.

“But the real favourite of us all I think was Ted Lune, a Lancashire comedian and music hall legend, who played Private Bone.

“I remember being astonished by the posh accents of the cast, quite different from their ‘show’ voices, but Ted was even more ‘Lancashire’ off stage than on!

“And he really endeared himself to us when he said, ‘Tha comes from Burnley does ta?’ Well, I remember t’Vic. Ah played theer a few times, not allus booed off, tha knows!’”