General Chat

Thanks Rollo. Can't say that I remember that big fog, it probably wasn't very much of a problem to us but I do remember the snow because that was made for playing in.

I do remember there being a very wet winter about that time too, the only time we had water come indoors.

As I was born a couple of years after LG, starting school in 1958, I can’t remember a great deal of it.

My parents had a small TV – 15 minute of children’s programmes after lunch with the set having to be turned on early to ‘warm up’.
The front room was for visitors and Christmas and out of bounds at all other time.
Bacon on ration – there must have been other things, but having dropped the packet out of the pram, the repercussions were one thing I remember. I suspect I used to be put into the pram so that Mum could use it to carry the shopping home.
Orange juice in a medicine bottle; Mum meeting my Dad at the door very excited about it. I was given a teaspoonful – it was horrible!
Washing was boiled up in a big pan in the kitchen – I think they had an electric washing machine kept under cover outside. Water was squeezed out with a hand operated mangle.
Heating was the coal fire in the back/living/dining room – we still have the fireguard which was put into use again when our children came along.

Roughly aged 4, I used to be sent to the shop at the end of the road with money to buy a block of ice cream or peas which were wrapped in newspaper for the return journey. A child of that age wouldn’t be allowed out alone now!
Once I started this FH research, OH realised that his grandparents lived next door to the shop. Who knows, we might have stood next to each other in the queue!

We moved to a new-build bungalow on a development in the country in the summer of 1958.

Although I can’t recall the smogs, a neighbour in the early 60’s did say that she thought we were being effected. Mum poo-hooed it!

Yes, Jax is right Summer Holiday was 1963.

Let's all get up and dance to a song
That was a hit before your mother was born.
Though she was born a long, long time ago
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (...know.)
Sing it again.
Let's all get up and dance to a song
That was a hit before your mother was born.
Though she was born a long, long time ago
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (...know.)
Lift up your hearts and sing me a song
That was a hit before your mother was born.
Though she was born a long, long time ago
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (Aaaah.)
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (Aaaah.)
Sing it again.
Da-da-da-da...
Though she was born a long, long time ago
Your mother should know (Your mother should...)
Your mother should know (Know-)

I can relate to all of these memories (in our minds we can be forever young :-D )

Here in north east of England, although there was heavy industries, we didn't experience smog. When anyone we knew went to London to work, it was said they were going down to the smoke, and I couldn't think then what they meant :-S

In the 1950s our generation became the first 'teenagers'. Dressing differently from our parents/older folk and having our own style. I saw lots of bands & singers, usually at the City hall (GP will know that venue) met the Everly brothers and also saw Bill Hayley and his Comets at Newcastle Odeon.
First ever trip to London my sister and I went to see Sunday night at the London Palladium. It was televised live and hosted by Brucie :-D...main act as I remember was Frankie Vaughan.

Family got very first tv set year after the coronation, when Newcastle United were in the cup final.....and won!! (wish we had the same team ;-) )
Lots of happy memories (though some sad).
........ and my boyfriend went to Hong Kong for his National Service Ann, when I played Ricky Nelson rather a lot on the wireless :-)...or should I say the gramophone and Buddy Holly, Elvis, Fats Domino oh loads of fab favs.:-D

I could write a book....and have done :-D

I love South Pacific, one of the classic musicals and a sure fire antidote to the blues and the Black & White Minstrel show. Inspired lyrics.

I rather prefer Mizi Gaynor to Mary Martin as Nellie Forbush but it depends on my mood.

My sisters grew up in the 50s (I'm younger :-D). Yes, they enjoyed the freedom and joys of lots of outdoor play with few restrictions (so did I in the 60s), but other memories are of no central heating, chilblains, very dodgy haircuts, hand-me-downs, clumpy shoes, barbaric dentists and Dad trying to move on from the 'lost years' of the war which had jeopardised his Oxbridge and career hopes.

A pound of loose currants in a purple bag, bacon off the slicer that went ching at the end of every rasher and that big lump of salt that everybody's mother had and nobody ever knew what they did with it.

What was it for anyway? I have never felt that I was missing out by not having one.

I remember the dentist coming to the house to take six of my teeth out on the dinning room table, mum was airing my sisters nappies in front of the aga ( my sister is six younger then me) mum came to see if I was alright and when she went back into the kitchen the nappies were on fire :-D :-D :-D

what a lovely thread and memeries

I remember the smog no buses having to walk a couple of miles to get the tube into work meeting my friend to walk to the tube as we were frightend to be alone as people suddenly appeared from the smog

tommy steele I still have a 78 of his singing the blues

and a lot of the memeries aready spoken of

thankyou

sally w <3

Some great memories on here folks thanks :-D

A couple of you have mentioned the dentist, and I've always thought the dentist back then, filled teeth for the sake of it, whenever I went for a check up, I had a filling or 3.

My kids have hardly any fillings, Grandchildren none at all.

The big lump of salt was used for =======


salting runner beans,

wash ,slice and put in a big old glass sweet jars,

layer of salt,layer of beans,etc,,,keep in a cool dark place,,,,,,

in winter these was great at chrismas,,,,,,my mum did them every year,,,,,,,mind you had to grate the salt,,,,,,licking your lips after was like sea water.

mind they are frozen now,,,,,,,,

every pantry had old glass sweet jars full of pickled shallots.

2 pennies back on a bleach bottle,and beer bottles.

stamps on a packet of tea,stick 50 or 100? on a card and get 5 shillings back.I remember Hornimans doing this,was in a yellow packet,

Not sure when next yr local multiplex will have South Pacific ( it is available in digital format ) but here is the next best thing

http://www.amazon.co.uk/South-Pacific-Blu-ray-Mitzi-Gaynor/dp/B00428MXMO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1378048950&sr=8-2&keywords=south+pacific+bluray

Under a tenner!

Bali Hai

She never salted beans but she got through the big lump at a rate of knots.

Dread to think what she used it for!

My OH has a big jar of sea salt in the kitchen. She says it is essential for all sorts of things and that ordinary saxo salt is nbg. Apparently her mother used to buy it in Paris as a big lump. Now it is already granulated. She also has a metal hammer from her mum used both for the salt and sugar loaves.

In the house I was born in, there wasn't a bathroom, toilet was outside, so we had a bath in a tin bath, in front of a roaring fire, lovely and warm when you got out. Mum did hand washing at home, but bigger items went to the bagwash, the washing was brought home wet, in some sort of big sheet, and Mum would hang it out in the garden to dry, it was taken and brought back in an old pram, in fact I think there were more bagwashes in prams than babies :-D

and everyone hung a jam jar smeared with a little jam and filled with water hung outside the backdoor to catch the wasps,

and most houses hung a flypaper from the lightshade.

everyone had a mop and tin bucket outside.

grandma never went out without her 'at on....

:-D

We moved in 1964 to a council house, yes, a council house was something we aspired to, which had a cold tap in the kitchen and the outside lavatory had a flush.

The family home, where my grandfather and I were born, had a bucket lavvy outside and there was a well across the road where a bucket was lowered on a stick.

I think the rent went up considerably from the 6/- it had been to something more than 10/-.

We were already the proud owners of a Baby Belling, but, to celebrate the move, we became the prouder possessors of a Rolls Rapide twin tub.

We did miss the kitchen range when we moved, although my mother never bothered to black lead it like Nan had. That was a Friday morning job and I still have at least one of her black leading brushes. The fender used to get a good going over with emery paper too.

We did bring two paraffin stoves to the council house with us. Aladdin they were, and most of the neighbours used them as well as electric cookers. The paraffin was delivered on a Friday by the man with the big grey van who also brought groceries, including the blocks of salt.

"Quatermass" which was apparently riveting.................is having a re run........on freeview..........
end of 1950, I was 13......left school 52-3...
ex WD motorbikes in abundance, REAL fairgrounds.......Saturday morning films cliffhanger serials, good cowboys in white hats, baddies always wore black......

met my wife to be, National service 1959-61

the advent of VHF radio, Saturday morning pop music programs.
later came FFSR Lps and then 45's

Paul Temple is currently on BBC radio 4 :-D :-D :-D :-D

Good morning Von, are you Errol in disguise :-D :-D :-D :-D