Wine Co-operative Store

Does anyone on here remember the Wine Co-operative Store on Mill Road? It was in the building occupied by the Mace MiniMarket (better known as "Raj's Fags, Girly Mags and Special Brew Shop") - Raj owned the Mace from 1991 until recently, so the wine shop closed at least 24 years ago.

The well-preserved shop sign has been revealed underneath the old Mace signage now the place is being turned into a Sainsbury.

And here's a photo of the sign, taken this afternoon.

Can't remember that shop.
I can remember Andys Records and the International supermarket in eighties....
It's difficult to imagine a wine store from 25 years ago, all that Hock and Blur Nun..... Shudders!

If I imagine a "wine shop" or "wine bar" from 25 years ago, then in my head it looks just like a mid 80's sitcom. Formica bar, BBC canteen tables, some extras in sharp grey suits with pink shirts and possibly an inflatable parrot at the back.

I never experienced the reality because I was only about 10 years old.

They would also play various versions of 'Smooth Operator'

Unexcitingly, I'd say 25 years ago wine shops were something like Thresher / Bacchanalia but without the real ale/craft beer/foreign beer and probably without most of the vodka range.

Another Cambridge wine-shop ghost sign from the same era: after Heffers Music moved out of their separate shop on Trinity St last year a green and white 'Victoria Wine' sign was revealed.

By complete coincidence this week I finally watched the three 'Chocky' series made by ITV in the mid 80s. The third of these is set and filmed in Cambridge and shows that part of Trinity St in 1986 including Victoria Wine next to Heffers:

https://youtu.be/wxJhEkpijbY?t=3m53s

Couldn't add the image to the previous post ... [edit] or this one.

This one? No -- not even fully WAN-ised at 299 pixels ... anyway.

No pic I can see.

I'd never heard of Chocky, but just ended up watching that episode! I remember reading Day of the Triffids as a kid and being terrified and put off sci-fi altogether.

Victoria Wine used to be everywhere, but not even sure if they still exist now.

Thanks for that BT, massive JW fan. I'd heard that there was a TV series of Chocky, but never got round to seeing it. I'll definitely check it out now I know it was filmed in Cambridge. :)

SR -- they're a fairly easy watch. Maybe inevitably series 1, based on Wyndham's book, is the best, while series 3 'Chocky's Challenge', the one set in Cambridge, isn't that great.

I'd forgotten Chocky. I wasn't allowed to watch it because it was too scary.

More scary shit from 70s/80s childhoods...

the three 'Chocky' series made by ITV in the mid 80s

Wow. I remember that. Written by John Wyndham, as I recall. I'll have to go and watch an episode or two now, just to amaze myself with how crap it undoubtedly looks these days.

This one? No -- not even fully WAN-ised at 299 pixels

Arse. I just had a look at the logs, and it seems we've got yet another unexplained problem with image uploading. (The image made it to the server fine, for what it's worth, but it didn't get recorded in the database, doubtless for some really dumb reason.) I've added some more logging; if it happens again maybe I'll be able to figure it out.

More scary shit from 70s/80s childhoods...

One of my favourites: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CHwYWDIp1Y

Now as you all know I am not one to complain but

I watched the episode of Chalky thinking the sign from the shop which the feckin thread is about would be in it. Is it no, it's a prog about spoilt brats in Cambridge and yet again program makers make out Cambridge to be full of quiant back streets and collages only.
What a load of piffel.

looked like there was a post office on Trinity St back then too. I only really used it when my two nearest home (Victoria Rd, and Chesterton Rd) were closed around 2010.

i might have been in Heffers in 1987 for some course books though most of the time Galloway & Porter was cheaper, if a bit pot luck at finding something useful

Are we still supposed to edit out all the vowels from a certain person's name whenever we mention her on here?

Either way round, don't you reckon the bird on the right looks a lot like a younger version of her?

is it the vowels or the first consonant that's the problem?

......have you got the new Joy Div 7"?

I just love the fact that their three unlocked bikes are still there when they come out again.
And a child crying about receiving the next phase of a research grant? This truly was a series written about Cambridge!

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