Sunday deliveries the norm for postie Gerald

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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With a boom in internet shopping seeing a sharp rise in home parcel deliveries, Royal Mail recently revealed that it will trial a Sunday parcel delivery this summer.

Around 100 of Britain’s busiest delivery offices will open on Sunday afternoons during the trial and, if the pilot scheme is a success. it could become the norm to see ‘posties’ on our doorstep all week round.

While some may feel that this could add pressure to the Royal Mail work force, retired Tiverton postman Gerald Pratt, who began his 50 year career at the Tiverton depot as a telegram boy, said that Sunday deliveries were once just part of the job description.

“We delivered on Sundays from 8am to 11am and then you would cover Cullompton and all around the area. But people would jump to do it because it was pensionable, so there was a benefit to it,” Gerald said.

“Every three weeks there was a collection taking in Dulverton and across the top of Exmoor and you’d leave Tiverton at 2pm and get back about 6pm. All that mail would be sorted and taken on by road to Exeter St David’s.”

Gerald joined the Post Office in 1950 as a telegram boy, later becoming a postman and a union representative.

He said: “I left school on December 14, 1950, and to have the job as telegram boy I had to start the next day. I wouldn’t say I was looking forward to it as I was only getting the equivalent of about £2.50 today.”

As a telegram boy Gerald had a responsibility to look after his uniform. On one occasion, when his shoes were not up to scratch, he was sent home to give them a thorough clean.

Gerald, 78, said: “The telegram boys used to be inspected; you had to be tidy and have your tie on. One of our messenger boys was immaculate and he used to sew creases into his trousers and he wore chains in the bottom of them to keep them right – you’d be dazzled by the brass of his buttons.”

For five years of his career, Gerald worked on Christmas Day to ensure that people received season’s greetings on December 25.

He said: “Some of us would work nights on Christmas Eve. When it got to 3.30am they would go home and we would come in to do our rounds.

“You never saw your kids get up on Christmas Day and you would get home, have your dinner and fall asleep. They ended Christmas morning deliveries, but they carried on with telegrams on Sundays until the 60s.

“I wouldn’t have changed anything. I would tell people to be a postman but the jobs aren’t secure now. When I joined it was a job for life and it was a good life.”

[Lounge Lizard]

"you would get home, have your dinner and fall asleep" - that hasn't changed.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Except its more likely to be around 4pm instead of 12pm.