Obituary: Remembering Swanage butcher Stan James

On February 25, a butcher service at a Costcutter on Swanage High Street was closed to customers.

This was not because of a supply issue, technical fault, or staff shortage. It was out of respect to Mr Stan James who served as a butcher at the site for 44 years, becoming a familiar and much-loved face in the community.

Stanley Marcus James was born to Clarence and Ruby James on June 11, 1940, in Swanage – exactly nine-months into the Second World War.

As a baby, Stan joined an already large family as the new brother for Edward, Coral, Mollie, Robert, Billy, Derek and Christine, later becoming a big brother to Linda.

He was named Stanley after his uncle who had died at the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

Stan was eight years old when the family moved to 451 High Street, a tight three-bedroom property for the young family of 11.

As a youngster he attended the old Mount Scar School and was also a keen member of the Boy Scouts – until being unceremoniously banished. As the story goes, Stan’s Scout Master was due to get married at St Mary’s Church and his troop, including Stan, were to form a guard of honour.

Smartly dressed in his Scout uniform waiting for the ceremony to start, Stan’s young eyes wandered over to a stream outside the church and decided to play in it. A short while later he arrived at the church both muddy and late, causing him to be banished from the Scouts.

He also loved football and played for Swanage and Herston FC until a knee injury stopped him playing. However, he remained active for many years by playing golf at the Isle of Purbeck Club where he started by earning money as a caddy. He would also play in a local carnival putting competition, with many a proud win for Stan who beat holidaymakers and locals alike.

After leaving school at 15, like many his age Stan went to the Labour Exchange to look for an opening to become a builder like his brothers. One day, a phone call was taken from a Mr Vye who was in need of a butcher’s boy. Stan was told “that’s where you are needed, so off you go”.

And so began a lifetime career in butchery, with Stan’s earliest introductions to the business being as a delivery boy on his bicycle to various hotels and homes in Dorset.

Although being a butcher’s trainee would give even the most skilled person plenty of cuts, Stan almost didn’t make it through after catching his arm on a meat hook and ending up seriously ill in hospital for six weeks with blood poisoning.

A positive attitude however meant that just a couple of weeks after his release he got back to his routine of enjoying some pints with his mates and brothers in the Swanage pubs and having a dance with the local girls.

However, it was around this time that 25-year-old Stan’s carefree courting days came to an end in the White Horse Inn when he met 19-year-old Swiss girl named Pierrette Duivillard.

Stan and Pierrette started seeing each other she even curtailed plans of going to Canada to be with Stan and remain in Swanage. They were married on November 16, 1968, in St Mary’s Church and would remain so for 53 years.

The pair lived above the Steven’s Butchers shop where Stan worked and learnt his trade from friend and mentor Billy Hunt.

They soon welcomed their first daughter, Sarita, in March 1969. Stan was a loving and modern father, helping with nappy changes, bath times and story reading at bedtime which was seen as quite unusual for a father in those times.

The family of three moved to Hanbury Road where they ran a Bed and Breakfast and became four when Maxine was born in March 1971.

He moved on again in the early 1970s to Tomes Stores & Family Butcher in Swanage High Street where he would remain for the rest of his career. Badged as the VG from 1958, then Select & Save, before making the switch to Costcutter in 2003, Stan was a mainstay of the high street store and was a figure of continuity and comfort for the residents of Swanage.

Stan finally hung up his apron in 2015 after 44 years of hard work, truly earning the moniker of Swanage’s longest serving butcher.

Stanley James died on January 21, 2022. He was 81 years old.

His funeral was held on February 25 at the Swanage Conservative Club.

At his funeral, a friend said: “Stan, wherever you are, we hope you know some of how much you meant to so many, and with our love and thanks for more than we can say, cheers to you.”

Stan is survived by his wife Pierrette, his daughter’s Sarita and Maxine, as well as six grandchildren.