Knife And Scissors Man
Southampton In Song
The Songs
Knife And Scissors Man
In Victorian times, there were many traders and artisans earning their living on the streets of cities - maybe not as many as the "Who Will Buy" sequence in Oliver would have us believe, but they were still a common sight. Many tradesmen used horse and carts - the milkman, the greengrocer - but knife grinders used contraptions which they could either wheel around or carry on their backs. Charges varied from a penny to three halfpennies, depending on the size of the blade and the amount of polishing required. Graham Penny's song takes us back to before the advent of "stay sharp" knives, when the knife and scissors man was a welcome visitor to the neighbourhood with his street cry "Knives to grind".
Many of the houses and streets he would have frequented in the lower part of town, such as "The Ditches" or Blue Anchor Lane, have disappeared, either as a result of slum clearance, Hitler's bombs or recent rebuilding programmes. However, the Duke of Wellington pub is still there (it's been serving ale since 1490), as is Bugle Street with its Tudor House. Our suggestion is to take a seat in the 'Duke' with a suitable local brew, and ponder on ways of life before the micro-chip.
Brian Hooper
Jeff Henry