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Welcome!

The early 1960s saw a revolutionary social change in post-war Britain. No longer were the youth of this country prepared to blindly follow the beliefs and teachings of their forefathers. Rather, with a new sense of purpose, they were there to tear up the "do as I do and you won't go far wrong..." culture that had dominated earlier generations.

They began questioning what had gone on before and, perhaps more importantly, wanted a say in their own future.

Cambridge was somewhat different to similar-sized cities - with its eclectic mix of university, surburban, and rural communities - and this made it all the more diverse and interesting. It seemed like an intense melting pot of free ideas, free speech and free movement to do and go wherever you wanted.

Roger Barrett was no different to other young people in those days. Yes, he had his own ideas of what new and exciting influences he wanted to explore, but then so did the rest of us. The choices were endless.

This site has been put together by those who knew him during that period. And the purpose?

To invite you to discover some of Roger 'Syd' Barrett's 1960s Cambridge through these pages, or better still, by joining us on a unique guided tour. We won't be visiting any colleges or talking about the University. That is something that you can do on your own, or through the excellent local tourist information centre.

We will take you around the city centre with stories and anecdotes that our memories will allow. It will be unscripted, and largely unrehearsed. Your guides may even disagree over some things.

Who knows?

*** Update - March 2011 ***

The incredibly talented Alexandros Papathanasiou has put together a short film entitled
'Reflections: Sixties Counterculture in Cambridge'.

This film was entered into the 2011 Peace On Earth Film Festival in Chicago where it was critically acclaimed by the festival organisers:

"Reflections: Sixties Counterculture in Cambridge - we just loved it. You took the vintage footage and photos and made them real for us, bringing those courageous young adults back to us after their maturity. Their reflection back into a most vibrant time added the wisdom expected from retrospection and a touch more. And, your choice to use animation thoroughly enhanced the audio and kept us on enlivened as we followed revolutionary heroes through a most trying time."

Once again, our sincerest thanks to Alexandros Papathanasiou for allowing us to feature this excellent piece of work on our website.