MORE than 50 former employees of the Ipswich Corporation Electricity Supply and Transport department lit up a reunion held on Thursday.The workers used to work at the original Russell House building before the electricity industry was nationalised in 1948.

MORE than 50 former employees of the Ipswich Corporation Electricity Supply and Transport department lit up a reunion held on Thursday.

The workers used to work at the original Russell House building before the electricity industry was nationalised in 1948.

So there was bound to be real charge in their en-fuse-iastic get-together held at St John's Conservative Club in Kirby Street as the pensioners reminisced about times gone by.

One of the event organisers Terry Blake, 75, said: "I have thought about getting us all together five years ago but it was a hell of a job to talk to everybody."

A common theme from the pensioners was how close they became when working together.

Mr Blake said: "The best part was working for a growing industry. When we started electricity was new and many people had no electricity. There is not the personal touch anymore but that is progress and life must go on."

Nina Seaman started working at the company in 1938. She said. "We were extremely close and that's what was great about it."

Mrs Seaman, 81, added: "During the war women were allowed to work when they weren't before. We did not change our job every five months like happens now so we all got to know each other very well."

Gill Haxell, 80, played for the company's football and cricket teams and fondly remembers their leisure activities. He said: "We had a cricket pavilion at Lindbergh Road but is has all gone to pot now. We also had three hard tennis courts, football pitches, a cricket square and a bowling green. It was one of the biggest sports grounds in the town."