Funky Downtown

The postcard was sent by someone called Heather to a Mr and Mrs Sedgwick at 27 Broadgate Crescent.

The postmark shows it was posted in June or July, 1969, in Shakespeare’s birthplace of Stratford on Avon.

Heather talks about enjoying the sunshine, watching plays and seeing a match at Wimbledon’s Centre Court.

Heather comments on having seats behind US tennis player Charlie Pasarell – who that summer famously defeated Pancho Gonzalez in the longest match in Wimbledon history at 5hrs 14mins.

The Wimbledon men’s singles title was eventually won by Australian Rod Laver while Britain’s Ann Jones took the women’s title.

The postcard, featuring a colour picture of Anna Hathaway’s Cottage, also bears a stamp marking the Garrick Theatre Jubilee 1769-1969. Famous Shakespearean actor David Garrick built the first theatre in Stratford in 1769.

Other events from the summer of 1969 include:

June 1 – John Lennon and Yoko Ono protest against war by staging a “bed-in” in Montreal, Canada

June -20 Georges Pompidou is elected President of France

June 24 – The UK and Rhodesia sever diplomatic ties

July 8 – The US maks its first troop withdrawals from Vietnam

July 20 – Neil Armstrong becomes the first man to walk on the Moon ends