I came across this photo recently, and it took me right back to my childhood. This is exactly what England looked like when I was a wee whipper-snapper.
There were no E-bikes on the pavements, no-one carried phones in front of them, no-one wore rucksacks (unless they were off on a hiking holiday), no-one wore earphones all day long, and mass immigration had yet to commence. Most families were yet to own a TV; my own family certainly didn't.
Men wore shirts and ties and took pride in looking smart, Woolworths, Timothy Whites, and Mac Fisheries were still on every High Street, small children wore Chilprufe coats, and pukka 'Prams' were still common. No-one ate or drank in the street, and no-one dropped litter. Burger-joints were still unknown, and Supermarkets were still a rarity.
There was no Graffiti.
People aimed high. They wanted to be the best dressed, the highest paid, and the most successful and respected person in their community. Dumbing down had yet to be invented.
'Grooming Gangs' had also yet to be invented, as had 'Yardie' gangs. Hoodies didn't exist, nor did all-over body tattoos. Those with 'Mental Health' were looked after in special homes.
No-one outside of a Football stadium would have been seen dead wearing training shoes or a sports track suit. And women didn't walk around half-naked.
Nor did people openly take drugs in the street, or walk around with open beer cans in their hands.
WW2 was not long over, and people wanted a better life. Everything was simpler. You went to school, got a job, married, bought a house, and lived happily ever after.
Sadly all that has changed over the ensuing years. I wonder why? Whether it's better or worse these days is another question!
29 comments:
I think we all know why.
Of course, but certain people may like to reflect on it!
Sadly the horse has bolted and we can never go back to those more civilized times. But for many in the last third of their lives, I'm sure that looking back on those times gives us all a warm glow inside.
Abbie Hoffman from the Beat Generation once said that 'Nostalgia is a mild form of depression. Although not sure I can go along with that.
Well, it's difficult to look back to those better times without some depression about what has replaced it.
I also remember living in a freezing cold house with single glazed metal frame windows, no heating and a shilling in the meter for hot water!
I was at school in The Fens, where it was COLD in Winter. At night my bedside glass of water would often freeze solid. We had no heating whatsoever.
Rose tinted glasses Cro.
Yes. It has changed - just as the world at large has changed. I guess that it is called evolution but some of what has been lost was precious as your blogpost indicates. Even sentimentality isn't what it used to be.
Not at all. Today we have 'shit tinted glasses'.
It wasn't all perfect by any means. We no longer have Polio for example. But in general, times were simpler and there was less anger about.
unusual to see a man pushing a pram. I guess the main thing thing that has been lost is respect and good manners. They cost nothing, as my mum would say.
I suppose it depends what was in the Pram. A case of Guinness, or a Baby.
I remember that if a Hearse went by, everyone would stop, and men would remove their hats. They wouldn't do that today.
The world we grew up in has completely changed.
NZ was similar back in the olden days. We roamed freely as children, outside most of the day. We got our first TV when I was 13.
That photo brings back warm memories.
Bland food, racism, homosexuality illegal, smoking and smog, no blacks, Irish or dogs, many homes without hot water or indoor toilet, women expected to stay at home and look after the household, a baby “outside wedlock”, dismissal from work when pregnant, women couldn’t get a mortgage without a male guarantor.
The good old days
It does with me too. I do remember my first bicycle. I would go everywhere on it; miles away. No-one worried about me, we all felt perfectly safe.
I'm amazed you managed to survive. For most of us it was a lovely era, with very few worries; even if we didn't have much.
I was fine Cro but many were not. If you were white, straight, male and came from a “comfortable” background, and were privately educated you were quids in.
I was lucky, my parents sacrificed a lot to pay for my education. I was lucky they were able to do so….many were not in that position.
And then along came Wilson and banned Grammar Schools. What a shame!
I agree. I was in favour of grammar schools - though it wouldn’t have helped me. I hadn’t really woken up academically - would have ended up at a secondary modern had I not gone to public (US private) school. Had I gone to a secondary modern, I hate to think where I would have ended up…looks like I am now arguing against grammar schools.
People do well from all walks of life. It is more about the person than what school they went to. We should have different schools for different people.
yes I remember that.Also if someone in your street died, you closed your curtains on the day of their funeral. Respect.
And there I will disagree. A private education gives people a significant advantage.
To pass the entrance exams usually means the children have some educational advantage anyway.
Life was simpler. The complexities today are troubling for many and great for few. What used to unite us is no longer there.
A new world is in the making, and what that will be is vague and filled with speculation.
International news is certainly worrying. I have managed to live for nearly 80 years without being involved in warfare. I really wonder if I'll be able to say that for much longer?
Life was better if you were a straight male. Gays often lived in fear as it was illegal, a percentage of women often lived with domestic violence as there were no other options.
I knew nothing of the gay scene when I was young, but in the mid-60's (when I lived in London) I do remember them speaking 'polari', even though they didn't hide their orientation.
So why try to ban it. They should be making State Education meet the same high standards as Private.
Sadly I don't think so !
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