‘One of the best do’s Ilkeston ever had’ is the way Syd Meehan described a Donkey Race Day at Gallows Inn playing fields about 50 years ago. It was organised by Ilkeston Round Table.
Can anyone remember it? The photograph shows group chairman Mr Meehan (suited) standing next to the Mayor (wearing chain of office) and all the helpers on the day.
“I don’t know how we got away with it,” he commented. “The donkeys arrived on a lorry and we ended up with huts on the ground which became betting shops. The event was opened by a well-known comedian of the time – I can’t remember his name – and the donkeys were ridden by local children, who loved it. Hundreds, maybe thousands, came and made it one of the biggest events the town had seen.”
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