Web Page No 2702
11th July 2020
First of all welcome to a new member
Laurence Ogden.
I came across this article recently which I thought you would find
interesting!!!
1st Picture. Bakelite light switch
2nd Picture. Cliff with Quiff
3rd Picture. Jimmy Edwards prepares to hand out a wacking
4th Picture. 1950’s hypodermic
Are you living in the past
Memories of childhood
have a tendency to become dappled. Across the years, the coldest of washing
arrangements are mingled with the warm tickle of nostalgia. We were a children
of the Forties and Fifties, an era renowned for quiffs, bakelite, and the nuclear
family. Then, one in 20 babies were born out of wedlock, compared with some
four in 10 today. There was a single BBC TV channel, and sugar was still
rationed, while only one in six households had regular use of a car.
In 1952, a report found
that 89% of teachers agreed that corporal punishment should be retained. our
generation was the first to experience the beginnings of comprehensive
education and schools retained a tradition of localism, setting their own
agenda and own curriculum. Now the national curriculum and testing are laid
down centrally. What is taught is far more tightly prescribed."
Although the number of
teachers has doubled over the years, reducing class sizes, teacher morale has
plummeted. Some changes have been more welcome, however. An increased awareness
of equal opportunities has ceased girls' exclusion from sciences and boys' from
cookery. Educational technology in the 50s extended to a radio broadcast, while
now we aspire to have to a computer on every desk. The proportion of children
staying on in full-time education has also doubled. In the 50s, the majority
left at 15; now they stay until 18.
Nutrition
Modern children are
taller but also fatter than their 50s counterparts, despite the fact that they
eat 20% less. Children used to be fed by their mothers, the spending power of
children has increased dramatically; and tastes have changed substantially. In
short, goodbye to bread and butter, meat and two veg, tinned fruit and custard.
Hello snacks and fizzy pop. As children become increasingly aware of consumer
choice, they choose to eat more fat and sugar. Consumption of bread, fruit and
vegetables has decreased dramatically. At least half of all children fail to
achieve the recommended one hour's exercise a day, 40% of children go to school
by car, while games and team sports are slipping off the curriculum in many
schools. Add to this a substantial chunk of television watching after school -
it is proven that reducing children's television access leads to a direct
increase in their physical activity.
Infant mortality has
fallen by a remarkable 79% in the past 50 years. In the 50s it would have been
exceptionally rare for a premature baby to survive - neonatal intensive care
had simply not been invented - while nowadays 7% of babies are born premature,
the majority of whom flourish. But by far the greatest advance in reducing
deaths and serious illnesses in children has been the development of
vaccination. Polio was a terror every summer for parents, now they have hardly
heard of it. Measles and whooping cough, too, have been practically wiped out.
In the 50s, inpatient
care for children was at the bare minimum. It was normal practice for children
to be nursed on adult wards, parents were allowed to visit once a week, and
patients were expected to remain in bed for a long period of convalescence.
Nowadays, children benefit from play and educational facilities, and the
average length of stay for a child patient is two days.
Safety
The number of children
killed by strangers is very small indeed - unless that stranger happens to be
behind the wheel of a car. The threat to children from traffic has grown
considerably traffic levels have doubled in the past 20 years, and generally
cars can be driven faster and accelerate more quickly. There has been a huge
extension in restrictions on children's behaviour since the 50s, resulting, of
course, in fewer children being killed on the roads but with serious
consequences for their social and physical development. Lack of exercise is
one. But children are no longer allowed the opportunity to learn from their own
experiences. They can't meet up with their friends, and engage in what is a
very important part of childhood - getting into mischief and making mistakes.
Entertainment
With minimal access to
television, no computers and no mobile phones, children of the 50s were reduced
to actually talking to one another and using their imaginations. The decade
itself was one of great contrasts. In 1951 people were still reeling from the
war. Parents were older because they had deferred marriage or children during
the war. They were less affluent and even if they had money there weren't the
products to spend it on." But by 1959, the mood had changed, as more
investment was made in industry and manufacturers began to target children
specifically, making cheap, mass market plastic toys. There was a huge emphasis
on reassurance during the 50s, as adults attempted to convince children - and
themselves - that war wouldn't come again.
It's often very difficult
for adults to understand what amuses children. They like having a language that
adults don't understand words such as spiffing and topping from the 50s no
longer exist. Enid Blyton had magic sweets in the Faraway Tree books, but they
weren't turned into a confectionery range.
Stay in touch
Peter
grseditor@gmail.com
You Write:
News and Views:
On this day 11th July 1960-1965
On 11/07/1960 the number one single was Good Timin' - Jimmy Jones and the
number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top
rated TV show was Rawhide (ITV)
and the box office smash was Psycho. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley
were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 11/07/1961 the number one single was Runaway - Del Shannon and
the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was Labour Party Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office
smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £13.25 and Tottenham Hotspur were on the way to becoming the Season's
Division 1 champions.
On 11/07/1962 the number one single was I Can't Stop Loving You - Ray Charles and the number one album was West Side Story Soundtrack. The top
rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A
pound of today's money was worth £12.89
and Ipswich Town were on the way
to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 11/07/1963 the number one single was I Like It - Gerry & the Pacemakers and the number one album was Please Please Me - The Beatles. The
top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's
money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming
the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 11/07/1964 the number one single was House of the Rising Sun - Animals and the number one album was Rolling Stones - The Rolling Stones.
The top rated TV show was Labour Party
Political Broadcast (all channels) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A
pound of today's money was worth £12.24
and Liverpool were on the way to
becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.
On 11/07/1965 the number one single was Crying in the Chapel - Elvis Presley and the number one album was The Sound of Music Soundtrack. The top
rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's
money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to
becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was First Mariner 4 photos of Mars received.
