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Picture source: Les Burlington

The Windsor Castle was situated at 93-95 Cator Street. This pub has now been demolished.

I lived at 103 Cator Street from 1946 (the year I was born) until 1964, we were moved to the Acorn Estate (Pinedene) due to slum clearance of many of the old houses to make way for the North Peckham Estate to be built. It used to be a real community spirit in the days I lived in Cator Street, sadly all gone in to the realms of history. My stepfather was a regular drinker in the 'Windsor Castle' pub, also the 'Apple Tree' & the burnt down 'Golden Lion' pub both in Sumner Road. The 'Apple Tree' is still in place. One of the licencees of the 'Windsor Castle' pub became a widow & eventually moved to Canada to live near to her sister. Sadly she fell and broke her hip in icy conditions, she may have died because of the fall, but I can't be certain. I do know that she hadn't been in Canada very long when the accident happened. She was a very kind lady, especially to me when I was lad. I do remember all the Beano outings that the local pubs used to put on. It was either all men, or all females, never a mixture! Us children used to line up with our backs to the pub wall, hold out our open hands & pennies would be put in to our palms. One of the adults would distribute all the cash that the other Beano Outing adults had provided along the line of children, one at a time then until all the cash had been handed out. Some of the children would have got a few pennies more depending on how much cash had been collected and how many children were present. When we waved the coach (Charabanc) off, some of us would take off to the local confectionery shop to by sweets with the free cash we had been given, naughty really, but we enjoyed all those days. Children were not allowed in pubs when I was growing up, there has been many times spent outside the pubs with a glass of orange juice and a large biscuit, or packet of plain crisps with a little blue wrapper of salt, usually damp, to sprinkle over the crisps. We didn't have all the different flavours of crisps that we have now. It was very rare in my younger days for pubs to have a family room where the adults could have their children with them, and keep their eyes on them. If it was rainy or cold whilst standing outside the pubs whilst the adults were inside free form the elements we just had to endure it. Did it make us children a rare breed in those days, compared to the children of today?

Les Burlington (December 2014)

My Dad and Mum John and Lily Doyle were tenants here from 1956 to 1960 it was their first pub having spent a year learning the trade with Alf and Cathy Talbot at the Empress of India Rotherhithe new road. My younger brother Robert was born here they built up a good trade with mum on the Mike accompanied on the piano by Fred Henson the local Tizer delivery driver at the weekends. They moved on to the Duke of Cambridge Islington for 10 years and then out to Harlow Essex to the Phoenix for 22years before retiring after 36 years as Courage brewery tenants

John Doyle (February 2016)

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Name	Dates	Comments
Bill Mason	1949-1963	I lived at 116 Cator Street as a kid my family all used the pub. My old grandad ted frost was regular and me dad Bill Mason mum Ivy proper days mate.

Other Photos
Publican Dinah Maydew, c1950s	Picture source: Ryan Lapidus