Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

I`m doing a project with some youngsters about daily life in the 1950s. Can you help please by telling me what you remember of that time? -
we`re doing a performance with scenes based on typical 50s stuff - the Coronation, a Coffee Bar, the Weekly dance, what books children read etc. and are looking for more ideas on what to cover.
Memories and suggestions gratefully received!

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

Losing my virginity to my mates Mother.

Further details on request

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

Being stunned when Rock and Roll music arrived. First experience for me was around 1953/4 with Bill Haley and the Comets then along came Elvis Presley, Little Richard and the Americans then the Brits with Tommy Steele and so on.
Before that it had been the crooners like Sinatra, Crosby and some big band music with the likes of Duke ellington and Count Basie.
Rock and Roll was so different, it blew us away...............
and yes Galty, we boys were rather proccupied with dating girls and trying to do what comes naturally at the same time.

I, and I am sure most of my contemporaries, did not succeed in this endevour until much later. There was no "Pill" in those days and aquiring condoms was a daunting task!

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

You mucky boy ...............






With a great deal of self control you could always " jump off at Waverley before you reach Haymarket " !

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

Not too much as I was only born in 1953. Outside lavs(the lavatory man came once a week?) Walking to school,and it must have been 1959/60 that my elder brother was the talk of the village. He got an 11+ to the public school.

I too escaped from a small vilage thanks to the 11+-but that was the 60`s

Radios-tickle the cat`s whisker?-remember that,no fridges just a meat safe.

Mangles and dolly tubs?

I guess some of us `baby boomers` would find it tricky to explain-little changed from the 20s/30s until the 60s. And never forget the `pre fabs`

But remind the kids of today that jobs were a plenty-we still had a manufacturing base,iron works and just near where I was dragged up the biggest brick yard in the world?

I`m too young to rememember the end of rationing so cannot comment

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

I remember in 1959 going to the local 'Hop', dancing to records selected by a sort of forerunner to a DJ. It was a great way to meet Girls and it only cost a tanner in.
In the local cinema, at the interval, the Teddy Boys and Girls would strut up and down the aisles showing off to each other and anyone else who looked.

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

On the domestic front I can remember mother doing the laundry using water boiled in a copper, scrubbing the clothes in a dolly tub and using a scrubbing board, we used to help by turning the huge wheel on the side of the wringer, which stood in the back yard and was shared by several houses.

Saturday was bath night, with the tin bath placed in front of the fire and filled from the copper with buckets, then all the five of us would take turns to be bathed, all using the same water with eldest first, I was the youngest but shared the bath with my brother...

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

I can remember going to the radio shop to get the accumulator charged. Then listening to Journey into space and Dick Barton.

We were still milking the cows out in the fields by hand in the summer. Harvest was done with a binder and the sheivs (Sp?)were stooked by hand

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

This brings back many memories Plantman-there were five of us as well-only difference was bath night was Sunday then we were ready for school on Monday.

Re: Help! What do you remember about the 1950s?

In the 50's so my memories are mainly of how we spent leisure time. We used to play marbles in the gutter at side of road, skipping games, hopscotch, cricket and football on the recreation ground with all the boys...sometimes there could be 10-20 in one team.

Didn't have TV, but remember my Dad coming home with a reconditioned one....pushed it home on his bike. There used to be 2 elderly Sisters lived next door to us, and they used to come in to watch TV after tea on a Saturday, then they used to go home at about 8pm then the TV was switched off and we all had to get ready for bed. They always brought us a little bag of sweets each-they would go down to Woolworths Saturday morning for 'pick & mix' then share them out.

Sundays were spent going for long family walks-we all had to go, wasn't given a choice!

As for books, we used to have a weekly trip to the library...Enid Blyton books were my favourite.

We all had our own 'jobs' to do.....one had to wash up while another dried, help out with cleaning, had to fill boiler so we had hot water, and my job was doing the ironing-(maybe that's why I enjoy ironing so much now, after doing it for 7 of us!!!)

We didn't have money for any trips out etc. but we did have happy times as a family......