A call to Grantham’s old ‘Jukebox Boys’ by family of The Rainbow’s Mary Bland
Mary Bland.
A FAMILY is appealing to the old Jukebox Boys to attend the funeral of the woman who owned The Rainbow in Grantham.
The American diner-style cafe was a regular meeting point for the music-loving Jukebox Boys, as they called themsleves, and they had a lot of respect for its owner, Mary Bland (pictured).
Mrs Bland passed away on September 24 following a short illness. She leaves three children, Ruth, Carol and Elizabeth, three grandchildren Mark, Thomas and Amy, and three great-grandchildren Daniel, Toby and Oliver.
The family is keen to share fond memories of days gone by with all those who enjoyed visiting The Rainbow, which was in St Peter’s Hill in the ‘50s and ‘60s where Savers is now.
Daughter Elizabeth Bland said: “When I came into town shopping with my mum you couldn’t get very far without someone saying ‘Mrs Bland, those days at The Rainbow’. They all really respected her and to them she was always Mrs Bland.”
The jukebox in The Rainbow was always kept up to date with the latest chart music, and Elizabeth remembers looking forward to the delivery of the the large brown box holding all the records. She said: “All the boys would come down because they knew they could hear all the latest hits.”
Mr and Mrs Bland, who were living in Bottesford, retired in 1964. The couple had owned The Long Bar in London Road for a few years previously, and before that a Grantham taxi firm.
l A thanksgiving service will take place at St Mary’s Church in Bottesford on Friday, October 12, from noon. A committal will follow at the Grantham Crematorium Chapel at 2pm. All are welcome to attend both services. A gathering will be held afterwards at the Angel and Royal Hotel in Watergate, Grantham.
Elizabeth said: “We would be really pleased to see all the Jukebox Boys so we can all reminisce about the good old days.”
Donations are to Barkestone-le-Vale Church and the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance.
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Thursday 23 May 2013
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