The 30s was the era of comprehensive transport for the first time. There was everything from roller skates to the tube trains. Public transport was cheap, the railways ran on time, were comfortable and well organised. After all, there was no alternative as only the wealthy could afford to run cars. .The main mode of… Continue reading Transport In The 30s
Month: May 2007
Random Thoughts No. 2
I am not an accountant, so I am totally confused. I read and hear that our internal debt is the greatest in Europe, caused through overspend, and the escalating cost of house purchase. I gather that the government is worried about this debt, but if that is the case why at every opportunity does it… Continue reading Random Thoughts No. 2
Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, The 30s, I write, You Compare, Part 1
Through the 30’s habits started to change at a snail’s pace, but it was so smooth one wasn’t aware of it. In the bigger shops they had those lovely wooden balls containing money or receipts, rising the full height of the shop at a twitch of a string, then rolling gently along metal tracks, with… Continue reading Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, The 30s, I write, You Compare, Part 1
Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, in order, Empire Day and Royal Occasions
When we first heard the King’s speech on the wireless, it was really a celebration of the Empire and its reinforcement, tightening the ties. My first recollection of Empire Day, although I know it was celebrated in most schools in England, was when it was celebrated in Livingstone. Unsurprisingly it was a ‘great day’, which… Continue reading Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, in order, Empire Day and Royal Occasions
Pre WW2, 1930, in order, Butchers’ Slang
In the ’30s, youngsters thought they were being terribly secretive , and of course, clever, by talking a simple ‘back slang’. I haven’t heard it for years, but perhaps I now move in the wrong circles. It was simple enough, you took the last letter or syllable of a word, made it the first, added… Continue reading Pre WW2, 1930, in order, Butchers’ Slang
Pre WW2, 1930 to 39, in order
A Comparison – The 30’s and Now A little history gives a slant on what people say. We thought we were Middle Class, we had the social graces, the accent, the interests, but not the cash. We, my mother, brother and I, had just returned from Africa under the British Raj, where we had lived… Continue reading Pre WW2, 1930 to 39, in order
Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, in order, Beef Dripping
Existing posts, The Toboggan Run (Frivolity) Willie and the Suitcase(General) The Very Poor And The Not So Poor I would like to relate the story of me and the beef dripping. Not far from my Grandmother’s house was a Victorian slum building known locally as ‘The buildings’. It was not unlike a poor version of… Continue reading Pre WW2, 1930 to ’39, in order, Beef Dripping
A Man Apart
Over the past months I have written about religion from a number of stand points, good and bad. As someone who is no longer a believer, when one sees religion that really works it can give pause for thought. In our midst we have a man, a cleric, who is modest, worldly, in that he… Continue reading A Man Apart
War, War, and still more War
I Write, You Consider! This is a philosophical, and psychological outpouring, and having calculated that I am probably one of less than 1% of the population of the UK who has been subjected to, involved in, or rub shoulders with war for more than 80 years, I’m putting this in as a Sunday Special, because… Continue reading War, War, and still more War
Results of African Experience,1928 to 30
Livingstone, N. Rhodesia I write this to draw conclusions about psychological reactions in children, they and their adults are not aware of, but which have damaging long term consequences; not making a criminal, but disadvantaging and imprinting a permanent lack of self-respect on the child. The final paragraphs are extracts from a previous, general comment… Continue reading Results of African Experience,1928 to 30