Tesco bought Hillards and immediately set about closing the stores that didn't have the capacity to be converted to Tesco stores. I was part of the team that wound down the Wakefield Hillards, which was a strangely emotional experience, since I remember going there on the bus from Lupset with my Mum, for the Friday big shop.

tescos used to be in where wilkos is now didn't they. there's no way on earth that sainsbury's would have moved from ings road to their new home if tescos were going to take it. it would make no business sense whatsoever for them.

personally i think that wakefield already has enough supermarkets and is very well served by them and has a good variety too. not sure what tesco has to offer above what is already there.

O/T I worked at that Tesco and did you know when it was built in 1972ish it was the biggest Supermarket in Britain for a while.

Hillards far too posh for me.......I preferred Mad Harry's.............

I think he means Hillards

Pretty sizeable Tesco's in Hemsworth, it's not too bad when the local chavs are still in bed. Bloody Asda in Durkar could do with another exit.

Seeing as though we're having a stroll down memory lane, anyone remember Hitchins? seem to remember it was on the springs somewhere on about 3 levels, everything sold out of boxes.
Every visit to Wakey, involved being dragged around there!!!!

even trinity walk looks like a ghost town

Have you been on the top floor of the ridings? there are more empty units than let ones!! If fact I bet there are only about 12 shops!!

I agree. Been there a couple of times and it is only around 60% occupied.

I have also heard that despite it being a much better shop, the Sainsburys is not doing as well as it did on Ings Road.

Its funny you should say that because me and my mum used to go with my Grandma on a thursday to Hillards after walking round the market then we went home with her to Lupset on the bus, I vaguely remember one of those buses where we driver was seperate to the main bus and it had a conducter to collect the fares, the bus went along horbury road then up Broadway, she lived on Aysgarth Drive before it became a drug den...ah memories..

I'm not surprised, it will be the car park charge and the fact you cant just pop in to buy things like the old one. Sainsburys was also handy for a cash machine you could just get of the car and walk to...

The car park is free if you shop at the Sainsburys. You have to get your ticket validated when you pay for your shopping.

I thought you had to spend £10?

You do.

That bus was, I think, the 103.

We used to live at the bottom of Broadway right next to the fields that eventually got swallowed up by the Dr's surgery then Aysgarth Estate; no offence to your Nan, but Aysgarth ruined that part of Lupset.

I've been to Trinity Walk and Sainsbury's a number of times and not paid to park once. Even then its 80p an hour.

Yeah but it was alright when my grandma lived there it was only after she died it went downhill...

Used to catch the Ossett 20 (120) with my mum and about 16 Hillards shopping bags, it was amazing to see all the mums who'd mastered the art of carrying so many bags full of shopping without breaking sweat.

your mum had a collection of lazy sons by the sounds of it.

She should have ordered on line and got free delivery.

I have the same memory - my Mum, tiny woman that she is, carrying a weekly shop for a family of 5 in multiple carrier bags. No veggies though - we got them from Geoff's mobile shop.

Friday big shop, home on t'bus, then tea off the chippy van. Good times!

We were never in, 24-7 playing sport either at Eastmoor, for school, out on the street, down at Empire Stores playing fields or in the garden where we re-enacted so many Test matches that the ground looked like a post apocalyptic nuclear wast zone, totally bereft of any vegetation. Even at night time as soon as the parents were out of the way we turned the living room into Wembley Stadium and wrought havoc on anything that wasn't sturdy enough to withstand a pair of teenagers crashing into or through it.

Anyway, we had two sisters for that!

Closest thing to online was the aforementioned Geofs mobile shop!

There was also Peter Caseli's the butchers shop at the end of the Rd, Renshaws and Haley's grocery shops on Townley Rd.