Life In A Changing World

My father celebrated his 94th birthday this month which made me think of the number of changes he must have seen in his lifetime. Not just technological, but cultural, idealistic and many others in the natural world. I was born in the middle of the 20th century, in the middle of the year, on the longest day and it also occurs to me that I too have lived through a great number of transformations. We have seen such advancements in the Space Industry and I’m sure few people would have believed that man would ever walk on the moon. Not only were computers invented but the spin off and development in the world of communications is quite astonishing and still ongoing.

Transport, weaponry (including the Atomic bomb) nuclear energy, chemotherapy, and a host of other medical advancements. Lasers, microwaves, radar, jet aeroplanes, the list is endless. But the changes that are mostly taken for granted happen every day, in our work in our life and in our attitudes; even our language and the way we address each other has changed.

In 1950, the United Kingdom was finally pulling away from the devastation that was World War Two; although there was still some evidence in cities like London, Birmingham, Coventry and Southampton which had large scale bomb damaged areas, and food was still on ration until 1954. But people had experienced enough of hardship and there was a great desire to look to the future and build something new and shiny.

There was a demand for housing and new homes were built up and down the land, not just for private ownership but huge council estates grew up for social housing and many slum areas were cleared and families re-housed. The Victorians believed that cleanliness was next to Godliness but the toilet was usually situated in the back yard and the tin bath came out on a Saturday night for the whole family to bathe, one after the other. I once remember hearing a very excited child tell her friend that they were moving to a new house and the toilet was indoors, and they had a bathroom! Talk about one upmanship. Some homes now have two or more bathrooms, and the weekly bath has made way for the daily shower, and more commonly in a Wet Room.

Britain was the largest manufacturing nation in the world in the early fifties and as people began to get more disposable income, so there was an increased demand for home improvements and gadgets with labour saving devices top of the list. We all love a slice of toast, and the invention of the toaster must have been quite something. No more looking under the grill every few seconds and then just missing the moment that the toast burns; here was a device that was made to save time when everyone was hurrying to get breakfast and go to work. But the early designs were not hugely successful, and it was not until the seventies that a temperature regulator was invented that meant more evenly toasted bread. We have gone from toasting one slice of bread on a toasting fork in front of the fire, to four slice toasters in a few decades; so simple but now it is taken for granted.

Kettles always boiled on a hob when I was little, with or without a whistle, but developments were in progress. The first electric kettles were available in 1891, but they took twelve minutes to boil, and I’m sure the hob must have been faster. But someone, somewhere is always looking to improve and in 1956 Russell Hobbs developed the automatic kettle. We bought our first one in 1973 and I loved it. No more accidentally letting the kettle boil dry. It has long since been replaced by a Jug or Cordless kettle which is an essential kitchen item for most of us, although the whistling kettle with its warning shrill is surprisingly still very popular.

A washing machine was first patented in 1691, but it never got off the drawing board and it was around 1920 before they became electrified. The early ones were tubs with mangles attached and far from being labour saving; in fact they were almost as much work as the old Dolly tubs and possers. Once our Dolly tub became redundant we would put it in the back yard on hot days in summer and fill it with cold water. Then we would happily climb in and out and splash around to keep cool. It was great fun, especially before the advent of plastic play pools.

Twin tubs made their debut in the 1950s with one side for washing and the other for spinning the clothes which was slightly better. Automatic machines were also around at this time, but their biggest problem was that they had to be anchored to the floor to stop them from ‘walking’ during the spin cycle. That issue was resolved by integrating a heavy concrete block so that now we can put the washing in and forget about it until the cycle is completed.

The Tumble Dryer also has a history which dates back two hundred years. They were commercially available in the early twentieth century at a price, but it was the 1980s before their usage really took off. I remember an overhead rack in the kitchen that was operated by a pulley where the washing hung to dry in the warm air on wet days, after first having been put through the mangle to squeeze out the water. Now both automatic washing machines and tumble dryers, with special computerised programmes are accepted as a norm and are often installed in newly built properties as part of the deal.

I wonder how many people remember waking up to finding Jack Frost etched all over the bedroom windows? It was a regular feature in our house in winter, and nipping out of bed across the cold linoleum floor to go to the bathroom on a morning was quite a shock. We did actually have a form of central heating, but it was not on everyday. We had a large coke fired Potterton boiler in the kitchen and I loved sitting on the stairs with the warmth of the boiler and a book; that was the best place to be. Otherwise the heating was provided by a coal fire that had to be raked out every day and once lit, fed with coal to keep the fire going and the room warm. Gradually heating systems were installed in houses, and fitted carpets made homes cosier. I remember the visits to Auntie Margaret in Bradford. The first thing that hit you as you opened the front door was the wonderful smell of pure wool carpet.

Sweeping brushes, mops and carpet sweepers were the main floor cleaning items, but fitted carpets needed something a bit better. According to Wikipedia, the first vacuum-cleaning device to be portable and sold for the domestic market was built in 1905 by Walter Griffiths, a manufacturer in Birmingham. But the name we all know is Hoover which was an American firm. They were so popular that the name stuck, even though there are many different manufacturers. You could have an upright or a cylinder and most of the early machines came with a dust bag to empty and were big and heavy. But how times change. Now you can buy something similar to a stick that ejects a pod and doesn’t require two yards of flex trailing behind. With Double Glazing, insulation and underground heating there’s no longer need for wall to wall carpeting and many houses have gone back to wood, tiles, or vinyl sheeting on the floor.

Radios were still very basic when Dad was born, but by the start of my life had become much more sophisticated and most countries had a radio service. Transistor radios were first introduced in 1954 and digital transmissions began in the 1990s. Now it is quite normal to receive a Radio programme on an analogue phone. Television has a similar story. Although developments had been ongoing during the late 19th and early 20th century, it was John Logie Baird who is credited with realising the potential of this invention during the twenties and thirties. By the time I was born, Televisions were available commercially although limited as they were very expensive. The BBC was responsible for programme output in the UK and for a long time was the only channel to watch. The Coronation of Princess Elizabeth saw purchases soar, and people crowded into neighbours homes up and down the land to watch the event in black and white on tiny screens. When we got our first television in 1959, it had a lockable door so that we could only view when Mum said so. BBC2 didn't air until 1964, and then with a remit to broadcast programmes of a more serious and intellectual nature. Now televisions are in full colour, with a vast number of stations showing programmes 24 hours a day and children have them in their own bedrooms.

In the meantime, home Video cassette players/recorders became commercially available in 1963, and now, despite being hugely popular, nearly sixty years on are almost obsolete, having been replaced by the latest technology.

Despite the best efforts of the Suffragette movement which began in 1903, attitudes towards women have changed quite slowly. Women were expected to stay at home and be a housewife once they had married, and certainly if they had children. The worst affected places were the Civil Service and some of the State sectors who had a ban on the employment of married women, which was only lifted in 1973. The man was the head of the household and generally looked after the finances. Credit was not something that happened lightly, and Banks tended to keep a firm eye on their customer’s accounts. You had to save with a Building Society before you could get a mortgage, and then it would be in the husband’s name. The only way a woman would get a mortgage was if a man sponsored her.

Whilst the Suffragettes achieved the right for women in the UK to vote, it was the Women’s Liberation Movement in the 1960s who took up the banner to further the cause of women’s emancipation. Their aim was Equality for Women and General Human Rights for all People. It was a very radical movement, not afraid of protest and antagonist actions and the media latched on to the theme of women burning their bras. They were loved and hated in equal measure, but ultimately they affected revolutionary changes on society, mainly for the better.

The other body of people fighting for rights were the Trade Unions who had fought long and hard for the common working man, demanding better working conditions and rates of pay. Their roots go back to the eighteenth century as Britain became more industrialised. They saw a great rise in power during the twentieth century, especially from the sixties right through to the nineties, their achievements preventing many a worker from exploitation. Hopefully they will continue to hold guardianship of the workplace.

The Health and Safety Commission was founded in 1974, but like the Trade Unions its foundation lies in the Industrial Revolution. Its remit is the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare, and for research into occupational risks. There are times when Health and Safety is misquoted which has led to the loss of fun in places, but as common sense isn’t so common anymore, I suppose it’s necessary.

To paraphrase Harold Wilson ‘the pound in your pocket’ was not devalued, but it’s not the same. Not only is it a coin now, but it would have bought you far more in the 1950s. Plastic notes have replaced paper money, which has gone along with the ten bob note, the half-crown, florin, bob, tanner, threepenny bit, halfpenny, and the farthing. Decimal currency came in to effect in February 1971 to bring us into line with our trading partners in Europe.

It is a lot easier to shop and spend money nowadays, but I will admit to feeling quite nostalgic about some of the older shopping experiences. The first supermarket in Britain opened in 1948, and the concept spread, very slowly across the country. There is no doubt that supermarkets are convenient, but they lack the atmosphere and community spirit of local shops where the assistants knew your name. I loved the quirky half moon shape of Field’s bread shop on the corner of Falsgrave Road. All of the crusty loaves were displayed in the window, to be wrapped in soft white tissue paper; none of your plastic bags that makes bread sweat and soften the crust. Bakers also sold lovely cakes, even though we did our own home baking and I mourn the loss of a nice big fresh cake to take home.

Then across the road to Edwards the Grocer. The bell on the door announced your arrival and the smell of freshly ground coffee pulled you in. Sugar, flour, rice etc was all weighed on red shop scales with huge stainless steel pans and brass weights before being bagged in blue sugar paper bags. All the fitments were dark mahogany and the assistants wore long white aprons, or occasionally white coats.

The Butcher's windows displayed an array of fresh meat and pies with a ceramic model of a very fine looking bull in the middle. The butchers themselves wore striped aprons and straw boaters and always seem to be sharpening their knives. They were knowledgeable too about the meat and happy to advise which would be the best cut for whatever purpose. You could tell when there was a fresh delivery of meat as the carcass would be hung in the doorway from two huge hooks whilst the meat was cut down to size.

Round to the Greengrocer where the smell always reminded me of a Harvest Festival with the fresh fruit in baskets. You would queue to be served as these were not self service stores, but it was an opportunity to talk to friends and neighbours and I suppose where the latest gossip was also spread. Potatoes were King Edwards and garlic was foreign muck.

Living in a seaside town didn’t mean that we ate more fish, but it’s to be hoped that it was the freshest. Like the Greengrocers the door was always open and the air quite cool. The Fishmonger wore a long pvc apron, wellies and like the butcher was also happy to advise on the produce and the best way to cook it.

We’re not finished yet. The Pharmacy was wonderful with its huge red coloured bottles in the window and the rows of smaller pharmacy bottles on the shelves in brown, blue or clear glass. Each with its label and a purpose. At a lower level was a whole bank of little drawers in dark brown mahogany, each with the names of mysterious ingredients marked on the front. There was a general medicinal smell about the shop, mixed with the scent of soap and shaving creams. It may surprise you to know that olive oil was not widely used for cooking in the Britain of the fifties, but was recommended for massage and could only be bought in small bottles from the Pharmacy.

I always think that the word Ironmonger sounds much nicer than the generic superstores we have now. You could buy nails and screws by weight and most items individually, whereas now you are committed to a packet and a quantity you may never use. They smelt of wooden floors and Paraffin and the assistants wore brown cotton twill warehouse coats summer and winter alike.

The other arena was the market, some covered, some open air but always full of bustle and life. I fear that they are slowly dying on their feet along with the depopulation of town centres.

The increase in packaging goods for sale is one of those surprising things that has really changed, and for the worst. Paper bags were used for most items and women generally carried a shopping bag. Carrier bags and paper bags would sometimes have the name of the retailer, especially posh stores, as a subtle form of promotion. If you were shopping at the greengrocers, you may not always use a bag but simply place the loose veg in your basket. But a ground swell of public debate changed all of that. We were cutting down too many trees simply to get paper as the end product, and deforestation was an issue even then. In 1965 a Swedish company called Celloplast came up with a strong, reliable carrier bag. Being cheaper to produce than paper, its use became part of the debate and gradually took over. Other factors then came in to play, supermarkets were becoming the norm for the weekly grocery shopping and many items were multi-wrapped as a marketing ploy. Advertising and the presentation of luxury goods meant more layers. Gradually we were coerced, re-educated and manipulated into acceptance despite the rumblings of discontent at how much packaging was used. Unfortunately, nobody could have predicted the impact that the use of so much plastic would have on world ecology and we are now left with the problem of clearing up the damage whilst the retailers piously make reductions as if public demand was solely responsible for the whole sorry mess in the first place.

The trend now is to have some smart shopping bag or a jute bag bearing a company logo, But whatever you carry your shopping in, I am all for it. There is no hardship in going prepared and taking your shopping home in a bag that can be re-used time after time. I once saw a town on the bank of the river Nile that was littered with blue plastic carriers and my heart wept.

Milk was delivered on the doorstep and the bottles washed and put out for collection, lemonade and beer bottles were taken back to the shop where you would be given up to threepence (old money) for their return and a penny on jam jars. That really was recycling. But a heavier duty plastic became available in the fifties which the manufacturers preferred. It was easier to handle, lighter to move around in bulk and the problem of storage, breakages and of waiting for new or recycled glass bottles was obviated.

It isn’t just housing and shopping that has changed. Where once men worked in traditional jobs of engineering, mining, steelwork and manufacturing cars etc, now those industries are very depleted having been replaced by computer sciences, care work and hospitality. So much of what is done has been mechanised and I can’t help but wonder about the thinking behind it. I’m not a Luddite, but if a robot is created to do the work that a person can do, where does that person find employment? How does he/she earn a living and the means to eat, clothe and live; and where do all the skills go? Surely it is as short sighted as the plastic carrier debacle. But those that have the wealth and the power will have their way, and the future of our planet is actually in their hands, not ours.

Education is not wot it were, with a three class system dominating for many years. Primary school pupils sat the 11 plus examination to determine whether they would go to Secondary Modern School or a Grammar School. The minority being educated privately at Public Schools. However, the Comprehensive School system which started in 1946 in London as an experiment was finally rolled out in 1965 by the Labour Government of the time. The idea was for a more inclusive establishment where a pupil was not accepted for learning on an academic level alone, and recognised that children learn at different rates. There was a distinct move away from teaching practical skills that would lead to apprenticeships and ultimately employment. The focus became more academic, O-levels were replaced by GCSEs and pupils stayed on at school longer. Technical Colleges, which was where most people studied for practical qualifications, converted to minor Universities. The knock-on effect fifty years down the line is that more twenty-somethings have degrees, a lot of debt and are fighting for humdrum jobs whilst the country is desperate for skilled Artisans.

With more disposable income people wanted to be involved in the Arts. The Beatnik movement of the fifties and sixties was a social rebellion of an artistic nature which slowly faded and then returned as Hippies. Flower power and all that, man. Gradually the stiff upper lip of the British disappeared in new and exciting ways. People took holidays abroad and came back with a taste for something different, garlic and olive oil in our food and healthy glowing tans. Music exploded into a whole new industry and pop groups, discos and entertainment changed completely. Gone were the crooners and the waltzes, in came the guitars, mods, rockers the jive and the twist. But even they have been overtaken as the years have gone by.

In 1950 the population of this country was 50.6 million people; the official figure today it is 66 million and increasing year on year with refugees and coming from war torn countries, seeking peace and stability and to live their lives without fear of being bombed and killed or maimed. It has produced a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic society. My mother was quite a curiosity when she came to this country in 1950 from Egypt, even in Southampton where foreign workers came in from the docks; and I was seven before I saw an Asian, and that was in Bradford, not Scarborough. Proportionately, we simply had very few people in the country who had originally come from anywhere beyond the Mediterranean Sea. Attitudes to Gay and Disabled people have also improved over the years. It’s dreadful to think that until 1967 you could have been arrested for having a Homo-sexual relationship and men often married simply to hide the fact that they were Gay. There must have been so much unhappiness around, but with the Sexual Offences Act that all changed and in the early 70s the Gay Liberation movement began to gain momentum and the first Gay Pride parade was held in London in 1972.

It has to be said that it takes time for any culture to adapt to such changes and resistance and resentments have led to accusations of racial hatred, homophobia and inequality over the years. But these subjects are so complex that time, patience, understanding and acceptance on all sides is what it needs to make it work better.

Fast means of communication has made our society seem quite brash at times. A telephone was something that sat on a table in the front room when I was little, and not every home had one. In rural or remote areas households would share a Party Line with up to twenty other users. If your neighbour was on the phone when you wanted to use it, then tough, you just had to wait. Now you can take a phone call in the street or even on the toilet. Use an app to order a meal, show your train or bus ticket and a host of other things. The spin off from this is that people are quicker to react to any item of news, personal or otherwise, which can whizz round the world in seconds. WhatsApp, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter and Instagram etc reach audiences far faster than a newspaper can with all sorts of trivia and insults, whereas a long distance call or a Telegram was the only means of sending a swift message across the world.

I would argue that the world is not as safe a place as when I was young. Despite the advances in science and the discovery of Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) which can help our Police Forces provide better evidence for some really awful crimes. This has been countered by the technological revolution. Now criminals can steal your identity, defraud you by means of computerized systems, without leaving a trace of evidence or monitor your movements and spy on your homes by means of a drone. Weapons seem to be more readily available and knife crimes and shootings a common occurrence. Cars are faster, bigger and more prevalent on our roads and there is an expectancy that most families will own at least one or more. Yet it really is not that many years ago when we either walked, cycled, rode a motor bike and caught the bus or train if we wanted to go anywhere. If this last summer is anything to go by, the incidence of Road Traffic Accidents are definitely on the rise along with obesity and a lack of general fitness.

Until 1961 the main means of contraception was via a sheath, but ‘The Pill’ made a huge difference to women’s lives and their choice as to when or if they would start a family. With the family nucleus getting smaller, mums found that they could return to work and contribute to the family income. Or sadly in so many cases they would be the sole breadwinner following divorce, separation or the death of a partner. As usual there is an upside and a downside. It is to be celebrated that women can now choose to have a career, but often there is nobody to support the family making the term ‘latch-key kids’ quite common, especially in the sixties and seventies. I hope that we will find a balance one day soon but I think it will require a further shift in attitudes first.

I was amazed to see a flock of gulls following the plough the other day. It used to be quite a common sight as the birds fed on the grubs and beetles turned up in the soil and the lack of them shows how impoverished the land has become. I can only conclude that the sight I saw must have been on an organic farm. It reminds me that we have lost so much from nature what with the use of chemicals and the spread of housing into rural areas. There was a time when flocks of Lapwings were quite a common sight; but I can’t remember having seen one single bird for years. No journey on a train was complete without having seen rabbits and foxes in the fields, but now they remain sterile. Swifts and Swallows swooped through the summer skies and in autumn the telegraph wires would be full of them, perched and ready to fly back to warmer climes for winter. I only saw a handful this year, and they left without saying goodbye. They have fewer flies to catch and if the birds and beasts are having problems catching flies, bugs and grubs then we humans stand very little chance of adding them to our diet (thankfully). Our skies are polluted by light, and our rivers and seas are polluted with our waste, which the fish eat after it has been ground down like the pebbles on a beach. We probably have more plastic inside us than we could ever imagine.

The world of photography is really symbolic of the changes and developments of the last century. From huge cameras with plates and formal sepia photographs, to the Box Brownie with black and white film. Then came colour, happy snappies and cinematography, picking up videos along the way. Now you can take a photo anywhere, sans film and developing. Store the pictures on your phone or computer. Photoshop them or delete them as you wish. Instant memories.

Hip and knee replacement has become the norm, as has, plastic surgery, IVF treatment and the use of the ‘F’ word. Babies nappies are disposable. A Library was a place with books to read and study, where any normal speaking voice would once be met with a glower or a ‘shush', now there are lots of computers, few books and very often a café with people talking as loudly as they please. With better education, less people smoke, but more people take drugs, destroying lives and all the criminal activity that goes with it. Biros, automatic doors, tea bags, the list of changes is endless and too many to document and every time I stop I think of five more.

So life evolves and we are programmed as a species not to stand still but move forward with the surge of life, trying to make sense of it as we will and live our lives accordingly. There are already signs that future generations will make more changes in all walks of life to suit their needs. It would be interesting to know what those changes look like in another hundred years; but none of us will be around to see them.