I was born in April 1931, daughter to Jessie and Norman Boyce. Much of my early childhood was spent at Sprey Point along the sea wall at Teignmouth where my parents ran the tea garden and cafe, having taken over from the uncle of Mr G Lewis Cook, a Shaldon artist.
Sprey Point was a very special place – an exciting playground for me and my brother Kenneth, eight years my senior.
We enjoyed a great deal of freedom which today could be frowned upon in this age of Health & Safety regulations. We loved exploring the rocks at low tide and knew the crevices occupied by crabs and lobsters – but we left them alone.
The little site, created from the levelling off of a rock fall, had a cafe and marquee and a shop selling confectionery, fruit, snacks, ice cream and cigarettes.
My father had a large stereoscopic viewfinder, probably a naval relic of the Great War, which he mounted on a raised wooden platform. To look out to sea viewers had to stand facing the railway line and peer through an eye piece. It was very popular and my father spent many hours on the platform with the customers.
READ THE FULL ARTICLE IN THE TEIGNMOUTH POST – EDITION OF FEBRUARY 9, 2018