| Description | An interview with Paul Bridges, a single man with one daughter, who is a Senior manager, born in Stourbridge and now living in Birmingham. Paul Bridges’s father was a Factory worker, born in England and his mother a Administrator born in England. In the interview, he talks about …
'BRIDGES, Paul MS2255/2/136 Logged by Simon Cotterill
01
Born 17/9/68 in Wordsley Hospital, Stourbridge. Parents wanted to call him Wordsley. Went to Cresswood School, which was a comprehensive but had been a grammar school. Very working class parents. Had one younger brother.
1.26 'As a kid it was a pretty settled way of life, pretty routine'.
Family holidays were crucial. Only once went abroad, to Jersey. Was a young mod.
Often went to Dunster Beach where there were a lot of Birmingham families.
02
Reacting against teachers. Not liking the area he grew up in. Mainly living near white families who had moved out of the centre of Birmingham to avoid black people. Remembering country life. Local Nazi organisations had foothold. Lots of boys belonged to the Young Bulldogs Organisation - the youth wing of the National Front.
2.38 'It was just like joining the Dandy or the Beano club really, you'd join the Young Bulldogs. You'd get a badge … and a magazine'.
Dad supported Enoch Powell, a Wolverhampton MP. Being a bully at school. Always having a girlfriend. Lost virginity at age 12 or 13.
03
Sex Education at school.
5" 'They seemed to focus more on smoking than on sex'
Being very clever at school. Got eight O levels without revising. Found schoolwork very unchallenging.
04
1984 - Found an engineering course at Sandwell College, Smethwick. Got gripped by politics. Spoke to woman called Clare Short, a Birmingham MP at a Billy Bragg Concert. Met a guy called John Wilkes on holiday who was involved in the anarchist movement in the Midlands. Got very consumed with what he was talking about.
1.20 Met with a group of anarchists in Lichfield - 'That was it really, that was the rest of my life up until 25'. Politics.
Met mother of daughter at college. She had just come over from India. Her name was Vivenne. Moved into an anarchist squat together. Then later rented a place together. All friends at college were Asian Sikhs, most from the same village in the Punjab.
3.05 'I got on so well with them it challenged every idea I had'.
Was punk, had Mohican. Regularly getting arrested.
05
Visiting Stonehenge. Working with the Peace Convoy. Ordeals with the police.
1.23 1989 - In court for nine weeks - Charged with organising the riot of Stonehenge.
Police brutality.
2.12 Everybody who pleaded not guilty got off with a not guilty verdict. A success for the anarchist movement.
Getting involved in youth and community work.
2.33 'I had this set of ideals, and I thought how can I legitimately get this across'.
Feeling about party politics and class politics. Anti-Fascist action. Shooting off to university to do a degree.
06
Work done at Youth club. Helping young people to interact. Main concerns of young people worked with.
44" 'For young people that I spoke to the main concern they had was being cool really… you could use that being coolness in a very positive way'. Almost losing job for taking children on anti-racist march.
1989 - Had baby Ayesha. Taking major role in raising her. Vivenne was very good at child raising.
2.35 'In 1989 I was doing part-time youth work, Ayesha was relatively new-born, and I was also studying for my degree'.
Did degree in Sociology and Philosophy at Wolverhampton University. Got 2.1, missed a 1st by one point. Relationship broke down before final exams.
07
Not wanting to be an engineer. Doing an access course at Walsall College to allow him to go to university. Lied about age to get on access course. Was actually too young but felt had a lot life experience. Did postgraduate course at Birmingham University -
1.53 'a piece of piss. Really easy'.
All courses were funded by local authorities.
Smethwick being predominately Sikh and Winson Green being predominately Muslim. Responses to mixed race relationship from Asian community and white fascists.
08
22" 'Had to move house a few times because of either fascists finding out where we lived and smashing our windows and terrorising us or the police harassing us'. Having about twelve addresses in three years.
Being a parent.
1.09 'Its really hard being a parent when there's two parents because there's always a battle of power'.
Breaking up with Vivenne. Moving to London and being an absent father. Preparations made to gain custody of Ayesha.
09
Working with homeless in London. Moving back to Birmingham to work with St. Basils. The work of St. Basils.
10
Experiences at Keele University while doing PhD. Wanting to be an academic
24" 'I thought the academic world was about the exploration of knowledge and the creation of new knowledge …'
Teaching at Wolverhampton University only two or three years after being a student there. Being at odds with teachers at Keele University and leaving.
11
Opinions of academics.
12
Being a single male parent.
29" 'I am very often the only male at those school gates'.
Being excluded from the female network at school gates - babysitting circles, cheap clothes shops etc. Ayesha going to Lordswood Girl's School.
1.50 Vivenne moving to Manchester. 'Great for me, bad for Ayesha'.
Making a 'period box' with Ayesha. Pastimes with Ayesha.
13
Playing up to shop assistants in girls’ clothes shops. Rave generation. Promotion work. Moving from club to bar culture. Birmingham becoming more stratified.
14
Places like Dome that were aimed at people with less money closing. Bars more and more being aimed at people with disposable income.
1.19 'that’s what happens with all cosmopolitan, progressive cities'.
Organising cheap, stylish parties. Current role as Senior manager at St. Basils.
3.00 'I'm just a suit!'.
ENDS |