Can anyone tell me about the Grand Hotel?

[Jim Hardie]

Just for those who don’t remember him, he was zxylophonist and topped the bill at the Empire Theatre during the war. He was a regular on radio so I went to see him. Boy! Was he obese! But he could certainly move around on the zylophone and sweat poured off him. Went in the Fauteils (0r is it fautiels?) Went with my mother. Dad would have been am embarrassment because when he would book tickets he always asked for “two (or three) in the fart oiles”!

 

He was a

alright!

[Texas]

If it was raining and we didn't want to get the suits wet, we'd run across Leopold St, up the Grand's steps and go into that bar on the right hand side of the corridor. Well, once in there you had to have a drink, so it was a couple of Double Century's and then walk up the corridor and out thro' the back into the Lion. I always used to think of that woman who slapped me upside the head with the mop when we were kids.

[sheilawragg1]

I have very fond memories of The Grand, which I have written about at some length (I used to keep a diary lol!) I worked there 1956/7. I originally applied for the vacancy of 'trainee telephonist', but found that my main duties were operating the lift and general dogsbody. I did get to learn how to operate the switchboard tho' and would take over at weekends, holidays and sickness.

Mind you, working on the lift brought me in close contact with the folk who stayed there, including many big names of the day - Johnnie Ray, Frankie Laine, Guy Mitchell, Larry Parkes & Betty Garrett - and so many more.

 

Email me for anything else I might be able to help you with.

 

I would also love to hear from anyone else who worked at The Grand during the fifities. The only 'memorabilia' that I have is a letter heading and a 'This is your morning paper' sticker. Although I have found some pics of The Grand from the Leopold St. angle, on the web - they are not very clear :-(

 

I was a telephonist at the Grand in the middle 60s. It had started to go doen hill a bit then as we had to have guards on the door when we worked nights to protect us from the residents. The Fountain Bar is now The Bessemer.

[Jason210]

My mother worked there as a waitress in mid-to-late 1950s. She knew Johnny Spitzer who was a resident at the hotel and who used to be the manager for the Empire Theatre that was just on the other side of square where the hotel was.

 

She also met Laurel and Hardy, Petula Clark and loads of other cebs of the era.

 

There are some good quality photographs of the hotel in central library, plus a few newspaper / journal articles. Also, if you find the book "Images of Sheffield" published by The Star in 1993, there is a good picture of it there also.

[Jim Hardie]

My mother worked there as a waitress in mid-to-late 1950s. She knew Johnny Spitzer who was a resident at the hotel and who used to be the manager for the Empire Theatre that was just on the other side of square where the hotel was.

 

She also met Laurel and Hardy, Petula Clark and loads of other cebs of the era.

 

There are some good quality photographs of the hotel in central library, plus a few newspaper / journal articles. Also, if you find the book "Images of Sheffield" published by The Star in 1993, there is a good picture of it there also.

 

The Empire was on Charles St, the Grand was between Leopold St and Balm Green.

[Jason210]

Thanks Jim. The Empire was before my time. I thought it was near Barker's Pool, on Cambridge St, near the corner of Division Street, opposite where John Lewis is now. So it was Charles Street.

 

I imagined it was there because according to my mother it was just "across the road". The rear entrance to the Hotel was Barkers Pool side, which my mother used. Sometimes, when she had finished work at the Grand, she'd walk to the Town Hall ladies conveniences to get changed and put some make up on, then go straight to the Empire with the free tickets she'd gotten of Johnny Spitzer.

Edited August 25, 2012 by Jason210

[Jason210]

I remember the wine waiter, Armando Nunes Da Silva who lived in Wakefield and had a Messersmidt bubble car. I had to replace his silencer but he made me drill holes in it to make a loud noise. This was 1955, I was 15 at the time, he stopped at the filling station on Barnsley Road which was called Taylor and Wife.

 

My mother who was a waitress there 51-57ish also remembers this guy. He was Portuguese I think. She used to have a lift to work with him in that bubble car sometimes.

[down under]

I used to work at the Grand Hotel in the early sixties on the switchboard with Carol and Bunty. The manager was Farquah Macleod and John Spitzer was a live in resident, through his work John new all the stars and once took me to the Gaumont theatre across from the hotel to meet Shirley Bassey who was doing a show with The John Barry Seven. We worked shifts 7am to 3pm and 3pm to 11pm and an elderly man did the night shift. Met a lot of stars who stayed there when doing shows at the City Hall across the road.

I now live in Australia

[Bellashaw93]

My nanan Margaret Rich worked there in the 60's as a page girl then went on to work on the switch board at around 15 years old ish. She's sat with me now and would like to know if anyone knows what happened to others who worked there, now

[Bellashaw93]

By 15 years old I mean she started there at 15 in 1960's for about 3 years