WE asked our readers for phrases you would only understand if you'd lived in Colchester.
From meeting places to common gripes, here are ten of the most popular from the responses we received.
‘St Botolph’s Station – I still call it that!’
The station was opened in 1866 by the Tendring Hundred Railway, a subsidiary of the Great Eastern Railway, with the name St. Botolph's.
It was renamed Colchester Town in 1991. It is currently operated by Greater Anglia, which also runs all trains serving the station.
William Jolliffe, of Mersea Road, had been asking for Colchester Town Station to revert to the St Botolph's name it had between 1866 and 1991.
In 2018 Greater Anglia chiefs have adapted the sign outside the station to include a reference to its history.
‘Meet you on Hilly Fields’
A popular dog walking spot, Hilly Fields is a 37.5 hectare Nature Reserve manged by Colchester Council.
The site has diverse habitats of grassland, woods, hedges, scrub, ponds, and marsh.
‘I'll get it in Jacks’
Jacks Famous Supplies was opened in 1960 and was been a popular shop for many years. It sold a combination on household goods, camping supplies, hardware, tools, clothes and shoes, plus work wear.
In August 2019 the remains of what would have been a large Roman bath house were unearthed under the store.
‘Hythe is flooded again!’
Haven Road, in the Hythe, Colchester, has long suffered with flooding issues.
A taskforce meets regularly as a permanent solution is sought.
‘Meet you in Culver’
It is hard to imagine a time Colchester’s retail centre was not dominated by Culver Square.
In the early days and for many years C & A and the Lighthouse Restaurant were among the major names to occupy the square Work began on the Culver centre in the mid 1980s and was completed in around 1988.
‘Turn the lights back on!’
In 2014, Essex County Council decided to turn off 70 per cent of its street lights between midnight and 5am in a move which saved £1.3million a year.
Since then, repeated requests have been made to reverse the move – particularly in our comments section!
‘Just across the Magic Roundabout to Tesco’
Located between the Hythe and Greenstead, anyone who knows Colchester knows its famous roundabout.
It is a ring junction comprising five mini roundabouts, with two lanes in each direction joining each to its neighbour.
It is known for its complexity, and the resulting confusion it causes for some motorists.
The nickname comes from the television programme, The Magic Roundabout, which was popular in the 1970s, when this novel layout was devised.
‘Ipswich Road roundabout roadworks’
The controversial £6.5 million roadworks scheme, which saw the double roundabouts in Ipswich Road and Harwich Road converted into larger single roundabouts, was originally set to be completed in December 2019.
But the project faced a myriad of delays due to the complexity of the works and the impact of the Covid pandemic.
It was finally concluded last year… 15 months behind schedule!
‘Boudica was here!’
Colchester is synonymous with Iceni Queen Boudica.
Colchester was the capital of Roman Britain, and the site of the first battle of the Iceni rebellion.
‘Check with Peter over at the Anti Loo Roll Brigade, he'll know how to sort it’
The Colchester Anti-Loo Roll Brigade was set up in response to the selfish clamour for loo rolls during Covid-19 lockdowns and with the simple aim of helping those in need.
The Facebook group saw kind-hearted residents join forces to help and support the vulnerable and elderly, delivering food and supplies to those in need.
In the year that followed, the project snowballed, growing beyond all recognition and now boasting thousands of followers.
Peter Dutch was the man who got the ball rolling and says the group has become a “magical, incredible force of kindness” - a social experiment that shattered all expectations.
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