Leeds retro: Rare photos that show the changing face of Holbeck in the 1970s

This is Beatrice Butt. She and her husband Arthur had been dispensing wit, wisdom and buttered teacakes to Holbeck residents for more than 25 years when this photo was taken at the back end of the 1970s. Triple had launched the couple on their family business but Leeds City Council aided by a demolition squad had plans in October 1979 to sink it. The pair would take down their Christmas decorations a few months later at their corner shop on Domestic Street, bolt the small double doors and move out. Their regulars would have to look elsewhere for haslet sandwiches, brawn and drip cakes as well as the other goods which had made the shop a focal point of the community. The rows of back to back houses which the shop was built to serve stood gaunt and empty and it looked as if the corner shop would disappear forever. “I still think there’s a place for the corner shop,“ said Beatrice at the time. ”They are building other houses round here but they are not building shops like this. I have loved working here and it was lovely when people lived round here but it has been depressing seeing them move away.” The photo of Beatrice is one of nine showcasing life around the inner city suburb during the 1970s. Many of the photos featured have never been seen before as they have been digitised from the Yorkshire Evening Post archive. READ MORE: Memories of lost Leeds pubs in Beeston, Holbeck and Cottingley LOVE LEEDS? LOVE NOSTALGIA? Join Leeds Retro on facebook YEP RETRO NEWSLETTER: Sign up for our free monthly email digest of Leeds nostalgia