Conisbrough View: “Rock” Is Charleston All Over Again

February 1957

South Yorkshire Times, February 23, 1957

 “Rock” Is Charleston All Over Again: Conisbrough View.

Rock, ‘N’ Roll is simply a repetition of the Charleston, according to 54 years’ old Mrs. Ann Rowley, of Conisbrough, and in the same way as she “Charlestoned up and down Star Terrace in the 20s”, she now joins in the rock ‘n’ roll parties of her children and their friends at her charming bungalow “Quarry View” on Drakehead lane.”

Every week and, particularly on Sunday afternoons, Mrs Railways 16 year old daughter Ann and nephew, Geoffrey Johnson hold rock ‘n’ roll parties in the bungalow lounge. In winter the house is used for the parties, but in the summer the youngsters “rock” round the spacious garden.

“I encourage it”. Said Mrs Rowling on Tuesday. “The youngsters let themselves go, and if they are asked if they want to go out they can’t think of any reason why they should. It keeps them indoors or right”

“Do I join in? I should think I do. The only way in which these dances really differ from there Charleston is the back-bending which the youngsters do.”

Ann and Geoffrey are exponents of the art, when they were spotted by the Denaby baths superintendent, Mr. C. Rich at the Thursday dances recently they were asked if they would do an exhibition of rock ‘n’ roll. “We haven’t decided yet”, said Ann on Tuesday. Geoffrey (24), is the expert on the theory. He knows the Bill Haley routine, has an inexhaustible supply of his records, and knows just how and when Hayley got his breaks.

Last Thursday Geoffrey queued all night outside the Gaumont cinema, Doncaster, to get tickets for the Hayley show there in March.

As he waited Geoffrey enthralled the other fans in the queue with the information he had on rock ‘n’ roll music.

The house party started last summer, and will go on “until the youngsters are 90”. In the summer passers-by join in the dancing to the Radiogram, and people from Edlington, according to Mrs Rowley, take care particular fancy to joining in on Sunday afternoons.