Yes steve, I remember Wakefield well, my mate ■■■■ Smith used to head for there all the time for ruddy bingo, I went , but I had more fun, and I did not play bingo, but by god, I saw a beutiful a pair of stunning legs eleven?, but poor old ■■■■ past away three years ago age 61. Sandman Norman
The Candlelight Club, Oldham town centre, the lorry park near the market circa 1973. Always one Vitafoam or Blue Dart van parked there every Friday night and the depot was only two miles away 
. There were the usual three or four married drivers sleeping in the back of the van, phoning their wives from across the road and saying, yes love I am in Birmingham and should be home by tomorrow lunch time. After getting mopped and stoned it was out on the Razz to The Candelight and Baileys but being single at the time I would meet up with them all later. I never did find out how I woke up the next morning, on the sand dunes at Lytham St Anne’s 
. I am sure that this kind of thing never happened anywhere else 
Another place that I liked to stay the night when I was on my way to The North East was at Yarm on the A19, the people seemed to be lorry friendly and there was always a bit of after time in I.I.R.C. The British Legion. How many old fellers were members of the C.I.U. I think that it was called or Clubs Affiliated which for a small membership fee allowed you membership and access to loads of working mens clubs up and down the country 
.
Regards Steve.
Hullo All,
Was it somewhere about 1976 if I can remember correctly, Geof Bell opened his Yard up as a Truckstop, a very new cocept in those days. Good parking, good food, excellent ale and wall to wall ■■■■■. I was subbing for MAT in those days and we used to fight to get up to our Glasgow Yard when we were in the UK just to stop at Geof Bells. Happy days.
Cherers, Archie.
Hi Mushroomman
The candlelight club in Oldham is still open but you dont get the wagon drivers in there like you did in the 70/80s anymore.It was actually closed on boxing day 2008 and then reopened as a pub/restraurant by the owners son.There was a piece in the local paper not to long back all about the club in its heyday quite interesting that was.Yarm as you say was a place to be more so on a friday night,most places were packed out. 
Im sure the Orange Tree will be remembered and for slightly different reasons, the Juniper Berry 
The Sherwood Rooms in Nottingham always turned out to be a good night and was it The Top Rank Suite in Bristol after parking at Cannons Marsh or was it The Top Rank in Cardiff 
I bet The Bubbleman knows 
. Those were the days when there was no in cab entertainments, not even a radio in most lorries so going for a pint with a couple of other drivers was one of the perks of the job .
Another particular favourite was the Hole I’ the Wa’ and stagger across the road back to my truck at 2am
Those were the days when you could park a truck on Dumfries “seafront”
Anyone remember stopping at griffs in mythur tydfil and going down the working mens club on grab a granny night,oh the good old days.
Lads you are doing me proud, yes steve I remember Oldham in the 70’s, the night club and " Dave Berry" in his tight leathers, making love to the microphone, I went there several times, but Bolton at the dance hall, then later into the nightclub with Farnworth nightclub, they alway sent me free tickets on my birthday, they had top liners, Three Degree’s , Show waddywaddy, Helen Shapiro, Tony Christy, Jack Jones, Another club was Bernard Manning on the Oldham road out of Manchester, we was delivering to Wilson’s brewery, and used to park up there, and walk across the road. Working mens clubs, British Legion, would hold dances, Annan in Scotland was good, also I have been to the pub in Dumfries, Larne in northern Ireland was a drivers goodnight out, keep them comming, I will tell you, if I have been to it, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, I have done, used to park up near to the prison, and walk into the night life, M/T I park on the car park near to the road out A465, not far from the pub on the bend, the best was Barry island where Butlins were, if you had one eye, one arm, and one leg, and looked like the back of a bus, you could still click there. Sandman Norman
Hi Norman, the night club in Farnworth would probably have been Blightys, certainly had some top turns on there.
Bernard mannings (world famous Embassy club) is on Rochdale road at Harpurhey. It’s a fair walk from Wilsons. Did you come out of Wilsons with a cab full of Party Fours? No matter what firm I worked for we allways came out with something. All legit as well.
In the late 70s early 80s used to stop in …don’t laugh…Cleethorpes, every Monday night, cracking digs.Then we used to go to Bingo. You might laugh but it was the best pint in Lincolnshire. It was rumoured that there was about 500 plus drivers members of this club . Then when we came out of there we went to best Chip Shop as well. All Chip Shops were the best after a night on the beer were’nt they Me and another driver Ricky (from Fergusons tvs) went in the chippie one night and came out with fish and chips, pickled onions,pickled eggs and so on. Ricky said, I hope that Tommy (who owned the digs) doesn’t see us coz he won’t like it. Anyway a little later when we went back to the digs, Tommy was sat in the kitchen, he shouted out, had a good night lads, so we said yes thanks were going up to bed now, so he said ohhhhh not yet I’ve made you some sandwiches. You know he said some drivers who come here waste there money on buying Chips, at this point he brought out a plate of sandwiches about a mile high and sat there while we ate them. Come on he said eat up there’s plenty more where they came from 
Having our evening meal one night and a driver came in a bit late. No problem for Tommy, he just asked the driver was he hungry, to which he replied I’m so hungry I could eat a horse, so the rest of us, after choking on our tea, said, for gods sake don’t say that because he’ll get you one. So he said all right then I’ll have, steak, chips, egg , mushrooms, three veg and bread and butter and apple pie for afters. Which he duly got, and ate. Tommy said was that all right, so he replied that was brilliant I could eat it all again. Five minutes later it all appeared on the table again. At this point the rest of us all decided to go out. Don’t think he ate it all, but apparently he gave it a good go. Like I said cracking place to stop.
This is just one instance in one digs, there must be thousands of others.
What do they do today. Park in a lay-by, shut the curtains, watch the TV and go to sleep. Know which one I prefer.
Great thread this Norman
Ray
If you were on locals around Bridlington, the South Shore Holiday Village offered night time entertainment too. In fact there could be a relative or too on this forum
Ray, I did not mean it was his club, but he always seemed to be on it, when we was up there , it was near a great big mill Sand man Norman
Steve from Queenland was right about Nottingham, it was a excellent place to enjoy yourself, one friday night I was doing thr Fred Astaire with the Maid Marian’s of this fair city, then taxi early in the morning to my lorry, which was parked near to the football grounds, I slept like a log, and I woke up with a market all around me, my rear end was queaking, I had a hell of a job getting out of there!, was it worth it■■?, on reflection yessssss. Sandman Norman
Can anybody remember the the name of a pub in Radcliffe M/C ?
Used to backload from the East Lancs paper mill ,Church St, a fair bit in the 80s and the pub was a couple of minutes drive from there, next to a car park but you could park the lorry overnight foc. Ithink an Asda was being built nearby last time i was up there but as i say, would have been about 25 years ago
Norman Ingram:
Ray, I did not mean it was his club, but he always seemed to be on it, when we was up there , it was near a great big mill Sand man Norman
Hi Norman, a club Bernard Manning appeared a fair few times was The Broadway Club at Failsworth, which was just past a large Mill, but again this was a couple of miles or so from the Brewery. Wilsons had there own social club which was on the corner of Oldham road just opposite the brewery. Don’t know what turns they had on there though.
Ray
Thats it ray, the broadway, whats two miles to young lads with a couple of pints of Carlsberg in you, its just across the road, we used to have some fish & chips on the way, when they was about eight of us walk in, old Bernard used to say watch out here comes the heavy mob from Carlsberg, sandman Terry Taylor was a big blonde hair chap from london, Dave Bruley a ex- drayman, was built like a barn door, me at 5.9 was one of the small ones in highth, alas Terry died at 52, six of the sandmen went on to Carlsberg. Sandman Norman
Wheel Nut:
Im sure the Orange Tree will be remembered and for slightly different reasons, the Juniper Berry
Happy days
Was the latter down in Southampton?
Tranent, just before get to Edingburgh, was a place the truckers used to go to dances at the working mens club, the mecca at Hull, and Darlington on a friday night, Gretna Green, you would always see lorries parked up. Sandman Norman
I can remember the truck stop at paisley always a good nite there,its gone now i think not to sure and at the forth road bridge (queensferry)only a pound to park up!! i used to leave my drag there when empty, the hotel was ok for a beer but a short walk down under the bridges to the pubs and take a ways had some good nites out there.Also the council offices down in Swansea always a good un plenty of totty not to far to walk to the town and free to park back in the ninties!!!