Fish and Chips from the Chippy. Shanks’ Birthday’s were a very normal affair!

Posted on 02.09.2014

On Grandy’s 101st Birthday I thought it would be nice to bring you all a small snippet. The third installment from an interview with my mum Jeanette and daughter of Bill Shankly.

And there is no better occasion than to bring you a birthday related story. I simply asked the question;

“So what would a normal birthday occasion be like with Grandy?” to be told, “It depends if Liverpool were playing!”

That gives you some idea of what life must have been like with Shanks as your dad. His commitment to Liverpool football club unwavering as ever; but I did manage to glean some extra info from mum via persistence. “So what if Liverpool weren’t playing and he was at home with the family?”

The response was that it was all rather a normal affair. “We’d just sit with him and take him his presents and cards.” And what do you get the man who has everything (her phrase not mine). “The last present we ever got him for a birthday was a special posh case that contained high end items for cleaning and polishing your shoes. He was obsessed with his shoes being clean and polished and wouldn’t accept anything less, so naturally he was pleased with the gift.”

Following the giving of presents, would the family go out for a posh meal to some swanky restaurant?

Hardly. Mum advises that either Nan would cook or even more so, they would go to the much loved local Chippy on Eaton Road. “He loved our local chippy so we usually just went there and got Fish and Chips. He wasn’t a fussy eater so would get a variety of things whenever we went there. He’d usually send one of the son in law’s down to get it; but more often than not would head down himself; in the car! (see previous blogs to qualify my use of the exclamation mark).”

“Every now and then we would go out to eat but there were only a few places he would go when eating out with one in particular his favourite.”

You’ll have to wait for future blogs and the tour to find out that well known Liverpool location!

Happy Birthday Grandy.

XXX