I remember them. Wembley and Twickenham conventions in particular. Camping, as well. My poor mum, how did she cope with us kids? I remember washing my hair in a cold bowl of water outside my tent. The brothers had set up a campsite with names for the rows (think that might have been the Wembley convention) Our tent was on 'Salvation Road' The chemical toilets on the camp site overflowed and we couldn't use them. The conventions were so long but as a teenager I loved them. it was our only form of a social life, the only way we got to meet other teenagers and swap addresses, so we loved the long conventions. We'd plan our convention outfits months in advance. We all made our own clothes in those days, so we'd spend hours sewing our convention dresses.
Assemblies were three days - Friday night - Sunday.
When you are starved of contact with other children, the conventions were something you looked forward to. But they must have been a nightmare for mums and dads and the elderly.