Photo-a-Day  (Friday, 12th April, 2013)

Very familiar sign, should that be "keep" or "keep's". Good photo, thanks for the memories.

I don't believe it !!!!!!!!! I was sucking on one of Uncle Joe's mint balls when I logged on to this site.
My daughter gave me a tin on my birthday last week. We don't see them all that often here in western Canada. But what a coincidence !!!!!

Uncles Joe's Mint Balls keep you all aglow.

Uncles Joe's Mint Balls keep you all aglow.

Uncles Joe's Mint Balls keep you all aglow.

Got a tin of those.....good one Chris.....bright and cheery....cheers!!!

I've almost forgotten how good they are! Keep meaning to order some on line, but somehow never have! Thanks for reminding me again!

To Ernest; Regarding your comment on April 10th,at 08.36h, it was about my "tongue in cheek" remark, and carried no malice at all. I took your "lol" as agreement!

I took a packet of Uncle Joes on holiday to Singapore once and we had a lovely time seeing the sights.

Uncle Joes The Video

http://youtu.be/v9dCGxxY7B8

Bought a couple of bags yesterday for my American friend, who I am meeting up with at Wembley, as he he is a BIG Latics fan. Got to say though I think they are expensive 79p for a 100g bag and that was from B&M Bargains store..Compared to a 250g bag of EVERTON mints for less.

I remember we used to buy them loose at the sweet stall in the market hall, they were covered in a white powder, icing sugar I would think. The wrapped ones in the tins are tasty enough but not quite the same as in my memory...they were hotter I'm sure !

I don't dislike them, but then I don't go mad for them either, like a lot of other people who have moved away my son often wants a tin
when he comes to visit, nostalgia? the tin does come in handy though.

P.S. Ken R. balls keep, ball keeps.

Yes Ellen, your comment at 06.25, I agree.
The present Uncle Joe`s mint balls are much smaller now than years ago. Would be interesting to know the actual dimensions and weights together with prices.

Bought some Dandelion And Burdock flavoured ones for a change . They were from Tesco at 89p for 100g.

i remember them on santus' stall in the old market. they were all piled up in a heap and stuck together. lovely.

Helen, i agree with you. They used to be a lot bigger as well ! Everything seems to be getting smaller these days, apart from my waistline !!!

They used to have a lovely sugary coating when they were loose. Still love them but I agree, don't think they are quite as good as they used to be.
Nice pic, Chris.

uncle joes mint balls keep you all aglow ,give em to your grannie and watch the old girl go !!!!

Once my favorite sweet of all time but the last ones I bought were a huge disappointment.. flavourless by comparison and much, much too sweet.

Another good memory Gareth.....You mentioned Dandelion and Burdock We lived "round the corner" from Coburns (think that was the name!)Pop works and that is all we could smell all day...Ernest ,as you used to live in Queensway....do you remember "coburns "??

Ken R, it's definitely "keep you all aglow"
The mint balls (plural) (they) keep (not keeps) you all aglow.

When did they drop the 'Santus' from above Uncle Joe's?

Kevan, it wasn't there in 2009. There is an interesting slide show about Santus/Mint Balls at:-

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/audioslideshow/2009/sep/25/1

When we were childern .. we would get them from Westheads sweet shop at Beech hill .. along with curly toffee that was cracked with a little toffe hamer ! yum .

Uncle Joe Lyrics:

Now there’s a place in Wigan a place you all should know
A busy little factory where things are all the go
They don’t make Jakes or Eccles Cakes or things to stick on walls
But night and day they work away at Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls

Chorus (to be sung after each verse)

Uncle Joe’s Mint Malls keep you all aglow
Give ‘em to your grannie and watch the beggar go
Away with coughs and sniffles, take a few in hand
Suck ‘em and see, you’ll agree
They’re the best in all the land

Me dad has always wanted curly hair on his bald head
Suck an Uncle Joe’s Mint Ball that’s what the doctor said
So he got an Uncle Joe’s Mint Ball and sucked it all night long
When he got up next morning, he’d hairs all over his tongue

Me uncle Albert passed away from ale upon the brain
The doctors said that he were dead and would never walk again
So they gave the corpse an Uncle Joe’s and then stood back aghast
Cos the corpse jumped up and ran to the pub and spent the insurance brass

Me granny said me granddad ‘e were gettin’ old and slow
And fire in grandad’s boiler ‘ad gone out long ago
So ‘e got an Uncle Joe’s Mint Ball, sucked it all the night
But his hot breath singed her vest and set the bed alight

We ‘ad a pigeon it were bald and couldn’t fly too fast
Never won places in the races, always come in last
Though it were bald, no feathers at all it won a race one day
We give it an Uncle Joe’s Mint Ball and it ran al’t bloody way

I had a girl her name was May in passion she were lackin’
Fed ‘er with whisky to make ‘er frisky, still she wouldn’t get crackin’
So I gave her an Uncle Joe’s Mint Ball to get ‘er all aglow
Now she combs the streets of Wigan, looking for Uncle Joe!

We gave some to the coalman’s ‘orse as it stood in the road
It gave a cough then beggared off with it’s cart an’ load
It ran onto the racecourse going like a bird
Covered the track with nutty slack and came first, second and third

The RSPCA have bought six tons of Uncle Joe’s
To give to all the animules to keep ‘em all aglow
Our budgie now is six foot tall, the cat is eight foot three
And all the poor brass monkeys are as happy as can be

Jean F (Wales), you mean Cowburns mineral water Manufacurers. My father was the motor mechanic there for several years and I had the run of it in non working hours and helped myself to all the different varieties of `pop`!

Jean F (Wales), further to my last comment see Album, People, Pyke Family, Four Generations.

ART....I musn`t have "posted" my message!
You deserve a medal for the "poem" Or an uncle joe`s.! You made my day !!

Thankyou Ernest......lot of pyke
families in Wigan !
Fancy your dad working there!,and you being able to taste all the "pops" Is the factory still "going" I wonder?

Jean F (Wales), Cowburns had there main works in Burnley. Using Google, extract from Burnley Express:-
We also had a number of mineral water manufacturers, five as recently as 1953. They comprised Cowburns' in Abinger Street; V. Martin Ltd, Parliament Street; Moorhouses (now the famous brewers of beers.....
Don`t know when the Wigan branch closed.

Thankyou Ernest..............

Art you cannot take the credit for writing this poem it was written and recorded by Mike Harding look him up on the net