I did buy cheeses from there and maybe other things – which were excellent. That sort of food was not to my taste but that did not alter my respect for Barry or his customers. Many fascinating conversations would be held in there. The most memorable things for me were the vacuum formed picture of a girl on a beach where here body was sculpted in the plastic with all the right bits sticking out – which used to hang on the wall behind the counter near the door to his back room. The strongest memory of all was Rogg and his dog – a bull dog of some age who waddled along around the shop. It had had a stroke so used to sit mainly. It was so addled that when it wanted to pee it didn’t lift its leg and pee on the street side wall in Burslem Street – it used to lean against the wall to prop itself up and pee on the pavement.

The dog and Barry were a real sight together. They stand side by side – the dog sitting of course – and they both had bulging white bellies – the dogs white belly covered in freckles and Barry’s white T-shirt covering his belly covered in marks from serving behind the counter. They went together like a horse and carriage.