A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE

Remember the 50’s?

Jane Manning

Time to rock back the clock and head for the era of Elvis, the decade of dreams when Butlins became Britain’s favourite holiday destination and it was still possible to play football and cricket in your street without worrying about cars.   Do you remember the fun-filled 50’s?

The Second World War had come to a dramatic end 5 years earlier and as the 40’s melted into the 50’s, Britain was still having a knees-up amid the scars of the city bombsites.   Cinemas, theatres and football grounds were filled to capacity week after week and night after night, pub steps were thronged with kids clutching a lemonade and waiting for their mums and dads.

Horses were still a familiar sight on the streets of Britain, pulling carts for rag and bone men, milkmen, bakers and Corona soft drinks carts.   If you were a gardener then the greatest prize was a good steamy dollop of horse manure!

It was a different world.   There was no such thing as double-glazing and few people had central heating.   I remember getting up in the morning with ice inside the windows.   I would grab my clothes (remember liberty vests?) jump back in bed until they were warm enough to put on.   Few families had a fridge or a telephone, often not even the luxury of an indoor bathroom.   In our road, only one family had television and I remember the whole street crowded into their front room to watch the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth!

The radio was the main source of home entertainment.   We listened to The Ovaltinies Dan Dare. Pc 49, Housewives Choice, Mrs Dale’s Diary, The Goon Show, Workers Playtime, Life with the Lions, Family Favourites and my favourite, Educating Archie which amazingly starred a ventriloquist’s dummy-on radio!

On Saturday at five o’clock, a hush fell on the house as dad checked his football coupon hoping that he might win the incredible jackpot of £75,000.

Some people thought that emigration was the answer to their dreams and thousands left Britain for Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Africa.   Strangely enough many more thousands of migrants from the Caribbean and Asia thought that Britain was the country with streets paved with gold.

In 1950 the England football team lost 0-1 to the USA in a World Cup shock.   Three years later Hungary visited Wembley and slaughtered us 6-3!  There were many tears shed when Manchester United’s plane crashed at Munich in 1958.

There was better news on the athletics track in May 1954 when Roger Bannister became the first man on earth to run a mile in less than four minutes.

In 1952 King George V! died and a few months late Eva Peron died in Argentina aged 33.

December 18, 1952 was a special day for television when Bill and Ben made their debut.   The BBC offered us Crackerjack from 1955, Watch Wit Mother, Muffin The Mule, Andy Pandy and The Grove Family. 1955 commercial TV arrived with Hughie Green inviting us to Double Your Money, Michael Miles telling us to Take Your Pick, Richard Green as Robin Hood, Ward Bond and Robert Horton in Wagon Train and Saturday Night At The London Palladium.

The cinemas were still booming throughout the 1950’s.   Cecil B De Mille thrilled us with epics like The Greatest Show On Earth and Ben Hur.   Marilyn Monroe stole the hearts of men all over the world, James Dean became the first angry young man and Norman Wisdom made us laugh.

Fashions changed too.   Hairstyles changed from bouffant to page boy and sweaters and skirts became tighter and tighter.   Men grew their hair longer and used Brylcreem to create the famous “DA”.   They discovered drainpipes, winkle- picker shoes and jackets with velvet on the collar.   The Teddy Boys had arrived and it was time to rock and roll! Who started it?   Certainly Bill Haley was among the pioneers.   By the time that Rock Around The Clock had been both a major film and a huge hit record, rock’n’roll was here to stay.   Elvis Presley was the sensation of the age and Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry and Big Bopper were a few of the other major names.   Britain was not to be left out of this musical tidal wave.   Alma Cogan sang Never Do A Tango With An Eskimo, Winifred Atwell was making notes on the piano and Jimmy Young was charting with songs like The Man From Laramie which was at no 1 for five weeks until Rock Around The Clock took over in November 1955.   Cliff Richard, Tommy Steele, Adam Faith and Lonnie Donegan were now making themselves part of the British music scene.

Ford, Austin, Morris and Vauxhall were the most popular cars but even the Ford prefect was too expensive for most people.   Bread cost 3d a loaf but cars were still a luxury.   Holidays were more affordable and people flocked to Butlins where the Redcoats made sure you enjoyed your week with Knobbly Knees contest and talent competitions-the forerunner of Karaoke nights now.

The 50’s began with the Festival of Britain in 1951 and ended with two monkeys in space in 1959.  Air travel was increasing and people were beginning to visit Spain on the first package holidays. The last No 1 record in the 50’s was Adam Faith’s What Do You Want?   The answer was to come in the 1960’s so Click here for what followed!