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The Common Room / Re: Completed with Thanks - LINGS Turkish Delight
« on: Tuesday 26 December 17 04:21 GMT (UK) »
The Lings factory was in Kemble Road, Forest Hill, SE23 back in the '60's which was a cul-de-sac back then I think. I visited it as a GPO Telecoms apprentice around 1966/67. One of the phones was dead and me being the dogsbody had to trace the cable tottering on a rather dodgy ladder all the way through the factory. The cable was buried under layers and layers of fine white powder which was used to dust the Turkish delight, and it was everywhere. I remember from my high position seeing a number of large copper vat mixing bowls (six I think) of which some had the sticky rose coloured turkish delight in them. The bowls were about my height. At that time Lings TD was sold in FW Woolworth's in small round wooden wicker boxes, not sure if that was all year round but definitely at Christmas. The publication "Sydenham and Forest Hill Through Time" says that Lings were previously located at 125 Sydenham Road which was later taken over by Criterion Ices owned by Jame Valenti an Italian by birth who oddly also ran the local Fish Mongers.