A GROUP of friends who grew up in the same area have set up an online group to reminisce about their childhoods.
The St Ann's friends share memories about living in the area before its redevelopment in the 1970's on a Facebook group.
The Facebook page has quickly amassed more than 170 members.
And the group are inviting other people to join in the reminiscing as they meet on Wednesday, July 3, at Stonebridge City Farm in Stonebridge Road from noon to 4pm.
Tony Miller, who now lives in Shelt Hill, Woodborough, founded the group.
He said: "I was born in St Ann's in 1941 and lived there until 1971 - when I moved out and life carried on and the area was redeveloped.
"I noticed continually the bad news about St Ann's - violence, drugs and murder. It was a forgotten area and there was nothing positive. I thought there must be a lot of people with the same very happy memories as I had.
"It was a vibrant area with lots of shops."
"My son said the best thing to do was set up a Facebook site to expose it to the world. Since then it's gradually grown over the 18 months and we have members scattered throughout the world - Australia, America, Canada and Italy.
"You'll be amazed how many people.
"It's about nostalgia and remembering your childhood. The stories you get are great. People share their happy memories."
"The whole area was knocked down - it was a crime."
He added: "We had a bingo hall and a dance hall - it was thriving - we grew up with rock and roll there and jiving. I remember listening to Bill Haley and Elvis."
Mavis Baker grew up in St Ann's well road and now lives in Western Australia, Perth.
She said: "What people don't appreciate today is the sense of community that there was."
Mrs Baker, who migrated in 1969 added: "The demolition hadn't really started, I had no concept of what was about to happen. I went back ten years later and everything had changed, everything had gone. The only thing that was left was the layout of the road."
Beryl Morris, 69, who now lives in Clifton is another member of the group and is helping to organise the meet up.
She said: "My husband grew up in St Ann's and I was there from 1959 to 1970. I'm on the committee for the reunion - it should be great, it's exciting.
"It's a very good idea to remember the past. It was a great place to live, it was very friendly and had good neighbours. It was a community, everybody was there for everybody. If you wanted anything you could ask a neighbour."
