10 ways you knew you grew up in Gravesend in the 90s

Growing up in Gravesend was a mixed bag, below we have listed the top 10 things you remember if you came of age in our unique riverside heritage town.

1. Life before Bluewater

It is hard to imagine a time before Bluewater, but we lived it, man. For us a trip to a shopping mall meant going to...Essex. Yes, living so close to the Dartford crossing, meant Lakeside was the best we had.

But obviously as soon our very own shoppers’ paradise was built in 1999 - the world was never the same again. Suddenly if you went out of town and people did not know where you lived, you could say: “Gravesend, you know, near Bluewater”. What a time to be alive.

2. Gravesend had a ‘proper’ cinema

Ah the old Majestic Cinema in King Street, that regal golden handrail on sweeping stairs leading to a whole new world of cinematic possibility and the rich red carpet, not to mention a proper concessions booth.It had it all.

Even now, 13 years after it screened its last film, people will look back now and say “Yeah, wish it was still open. I used to sneak in the back, we hardly ever paid”. Strange to think why it finally closed?

3. Going out as a teenager meant Massive, Bluewater and Amadeus

Going out as a teenager under 18 meant only a few things - doing a ‘circuit’ around Bluewater in an awkward group-hang situation, on a Friday night (until your parents picked you up no later than 9pm), going to a 'Massive' night at The Woodville or an under 18s night at Amadeus. (If you liked rock music, you could hang outside the Red Lion pub in Northfleet)

Massive was pretty rough, there were lots of fights and it was quite grim, but if you liked garage music and snogging it was the place to be. You could also fraternise with people from other schools. Oh, the exotica.

‘Amo’ (as it was affectionately called) was when you were a bit older, more worldly wise, the tunes were the same, but the club was more sophisticated - there were less fights but more snogging.

4.‘The Prom’ was amazing - fact

Childhood memories were not complete without hours of merriment spent at ‘The Prom’.

It was just great, there was a beach (kind of), pedalos on a little lake, a cafe where you could get over-cooked, let’s call them ‘beef burgers’ and obviously loads of ice cream.

Don’t even get me started on the real working cannons that were used for shooting down German planes in the Second World War (this is not actually true, they were just for show).

5. Everyone’s dad "went to school" with Pete Tong

This was generally a rule growing up, there was always someone who knew the Radio One DJ.

As a youngster you were not quite sure who he was, but it was known that he was a famous person from Gravesend and we did not really have many of those. The thing is, he actually was my dad’s best man, no really...

6. Having to explain Pocahontas was real after the Disney film came out

Let's face it, that Disney animation from 1995 is not bad - but it made your life as a Gravesend 90s child very exhausting at times.

Whenever you met people who were not from the area there was always a tedious moment where you had to explain that she was in fact real.

“Yes of course she’s not made up, we’ve got a statue, it’s in town. Well, no I’m not sure if she and John Smith got back together.”

7. We had a Woolworths

Good old Woolworths, it was such a shame when it closed. I miss it every day. Well, I don’t really, but the Pick ‘n’ Mix selection was brilliant. Those little cans of Coke and Fanta were great for sneaking into the cinema.

8. Ebbsfleet Utd was called Gravesend and Northfleet

They were still playing in the lower leagues, they still wore red and white and you still knew someone who “could have had trials once if it wasn’t for their dodgy knee.”

9. There were no high speed trains - and it was awful

If you wanted to head to London, it meant at least a 50 minute, mind-numbing, bone-shaking trip.

Now, if the journey meant going through picturesque villages and enjoying quaint rural scenes it would be fine. But there is nothing quaint about Abbey Wood and Lewisham.

10. Everyone had at least one family meal at Caesars

A Gravesend gastronomic landmark, the Italian restaurant in King Street is still going strong.

But your childhood was not complete without a trip there for a birthday, anniversary or just a bit of dinner on a weekend. It certainly was not nouveau cuisine but no one in Gravesend really knew what that meant anyway.