Handleys of Southsea was originally a Southsea and Portsmouth shopping institution located on the corner of Palmerston Road and Osborne Road. George Handley opened his store in 1869 and stocked pretty much everything but it was completely destroyed in bombing during World War II. After the war Handley’s was rebuilt on the same site and then in the 1970s finally disappeared from the street’s of Portsmouth when it became part of Debenhams, which it still is to this day. ‘Handleys Corner’ is still used by some locals for the bus stop area outside Debenhams.

You don’t often see many objects or items from Handleys these days but recently Dave Wiseman discovered an original Handleys paper bag in a drawer which is a real flashback to a different time in the city’s history. The bag also has ‘Southsea, The Hub of Hampshire’ as part of the artwork too, a great motto for the city at that time. A huge thank you to Dave for sending in the photos of the bag and allowing us to share them.