Gweini

-We've an au pair because sometimes

-we need an extra pair of hands.

-People are so paranoid

-about losing a nanny.

-I don't feel like the family's maid.

-Years ago, the maid

-did everything for the family.

-They weren't respected.

-Today, maids are impossible to find.

-Today's women would never do

-what we did.

-The working environment

-of service industry workers...

-..where women are the majority...

-..remains fairly unchanged.

-Hopefully, they treat you well.

-But you're there to serve -

-they don't think of you as a person.

-There are people

-who look down on you.

-Others appreciate

-you're there to help them.

-My own son doesn't approve

-of me doing it!

-"Don't tell anyone

-you're a cleaner," he says.

-It's not that he's posh.

-He's a bit of a snob.

-888

-888

-

-888

-888

-The upper classes hired housemaids.

-Today, there's a demand

-for cleaners and nannies.

-Many women have made

-some sort of career through serving.

-But during the last 100 years...

-..there has been a shift in attitude

-towards the masters - and the work.

-I love cleaning.

-I'm always tidying up around here.

-What I can manage, I do.

-I love cleaning.

-Nansi started serving between

-school hours at eight years of age.

-She recently retired

-as a cleaner at 92 years of age.

-At 15 years of age, she was one

-of a handful of local people...

-..who served the Marquis' family

-at Plas Newydd, Anglesey.

-During the 1930s, she was

-one of 25 staff who lived in.

-Her daughter, Ann,

-has taken Nansi back to Plas Newydd.

-It's her first visit

-for over 70 years.

-The place went full swing back then.

-What were your duties?

-Me? I was a housemaid

-in the bedrooms.

-At breakfast time, we'd come

-downstairs to collect our food...

-..and take it upstairs to eat.

-The footmen tended on us!

-You were important, then!

-They wore white gloves.

-Was the Marquis

-and his family nice employers?

-We hardly saw them.

-Did you have to bow to them?

-Oh, yes. We'd curtsey.

-They were gentries.

-Were you allowed in this area?

-No - only when they were away.

-The master and servant relationship

-is interesting.

-There was a clear divide -

-'us and them'.

-The family was different.

-They were highly revered.

-The staff lived a separate

-existence elsewhere.

-You accepted your role in the world.

-How many Welsh people worked here?

-Bessie, Betty and me.

-Were there more English

-than Welsh servants?

-I'm talking about the housemaids.

-English staff

-far outnumbered the Welsh.

-Most of the footmen were English.

-Were they from London?

-Probably.

-It's absolutely clear that the

-Plas Newydd and Penrhos families...

-..rarely employed Welsh girls.

-The Welsh staff

-were on a very low level.

-Families would move around.

-It was their English staff

-who moved with them.

-Before her promotion to housemaid...

-..Nansi had to prove herself

-in the laundry.

-This was Mrs Biner's domain.

-She bought good quality food

-but we weren't allowed to eat it.

-"You've got a sweet in your mouth,

-Nansi," she said.

-I had to throw it away.

-Oh, she was strict!

-You couldn't talk

-amongst each other.

-We would iron in a row

-on a long table.

-My sister stood next to me.

-She was allowed to iron his shirts

-and her ladyship's clothes.

-But I was only allowed to handle

-kitchen and bed linen.

-Sometimes, I scorched the material.

-I'd try to hide it, but she'd

-open it. Oh! Then, there was

-trouble!

-Oh, yes! We'd have an almighty row!

-Women are still working

-in these areas.

-They have always done so.

-But these days, the big difference

-is that they don't live in.

-It's different to arrive,

-work and return home.

-Living with the master

-was another matter altogether.

-Women are still being hired

-to help out in stately homes.

-This is Plas Moel Garnedd, by Bala.

-The maid's job

-isn't the only one on offer.

-I don't mow the lawns or trim

-the hedges. I prune the hedges.

-Men undertake 'the heavy work',

-as they call it, wherever I garden.

-They like making an entrance

-with their noisy, smelly machines...

-..to mow the lawns and hedges.

-They enjoy the big, macho jobs.

-I think you get more attention

-doing those jobs.

-With nine flower beds, four lawns

-and a caravan park to look after...

-..Eirian hires multi-skilled staff.

-I value her gardening skills

-as much as our chats over a cuppa.

-We need to plant for spring.

-We don't constantly talk

-about the garden.

-We've managed to say quite

-personal things to one another.

-Not everyone you invite into

-your own home is a good listener.

-I've liked the way you've planted

-this small tete-a-tete so early.

-I worked in places where I

-disliked the way I was spoken to.

-Some people issue commands as if

-you don't know what you're doing.

-In other places,

-I was followed around.

-My work would be forever criticised.

-That would make me so tired.

-Then I would have to hold back

-and try not to get angry.

-I would just think, 'There's

-no point. I'm not coming back.'

-That's what happens.

-So I stay where I'm happy.

-I have a cleaner

-who comes once a week.

-I've asked for their help -

-and I'm glad to be able to pay them.

-They're not employed

-just for the money's sake.

-And I'm more than willing to pay...

-..a little bit extra for the

-time we spend chatting together!

-I am definitely a happier person

-on the days that they come here.

-I like the idea that we're friends.

-I've never liked the notion

-of being an employer.

-I think Welsh people always

-feel guilty about everything.

-We always think

-we're from the same background.

-Employing a cleaner or maid

-improves your status.

-You become what you once despised...

-..a member of the ruling classes.

-All over a sudden - you have a maid!

-Oh, my God!

-Grapes, things like that. They were

-in that stage of putting pipes down.

-You have more respect now because

-you don't depend on them for wages.

-If you're happy in your workplace,

-you make a friend.

-People refer to the relationship

-between employer and worker...

-..as a partnership.

-But, really, it isn't. It's

-an employer-worker relationship.

-It's too easy within

-the domestic world to disguise it...

-..as a partnership. "We're

-friends, really." Well, are we?

-After serving in the laundry,

-Nansi climbed up the staff ladder.

-She was promoted to housemaid.

-I came here as a housemaid.

-We worked in the bedrooms.

-We made and changed the beds

-and took clean towels upstairs.

-We'd return at night to change

-them again since they'd been used.

-We'd distribute clean ones again.

-No wonder they needed a laundry!

-Oh, we thought they had

-an easy life - and it was, too.

-You had to make sure

-they didn't see you.

-Once in the laundry,

-there was a flurry of excitement.

-One of Lord and Lady Anglesey's

-children was nearby.

-We daren't show our faces.

-We had to hide.

-"They don't want to see you -

-the likes of you."

-That's what it was like. I don't

-know whether it's what they wanted.

-She might have just said that.

-Yes, indeed!

-888

-Ifan!

-Marianne! Tea's ready!

-It's nothing new to hire someone

-to help out with the children.

-If the au pair decides

-to take a holiday...

-..the hectic aspect of

-modern life returns.

-Clear away those socks, too.

-My shoes are in the car.

-THEY SPEAK FRENCH

-At the moment,

-Audrey is in France for Easter.

-She's not here - and we're stuck!

-It's difficult to be

-in two places at the same time...

-..or if I want to pop out

-on my own for half and hour.

-But she's back next week -

-and things will be much easier!

-Ta-ra, Taid!

-We hired a French au pair

-because we speak French at home.

-It isn't ideal for the au pair,

-who came here to speak English.

-Having said that,

-she knew beforehand.

-The children are accustomed

-to having an au pair around.

-We've employed an au pair

-since Ifan was two.

-Marianne loves it - having someone

-do her hair and play girlie games.

-We've also had girls

-who play football.

-Whoever comes to us must be dynamic

-and not be couch potatoes!

-Elen and Francis Dupuy hardly ever

-have the chance to watch TV.

-Running a popular Cardiff restaurant

-means life revolves around work.

-We have quite a hectic life.

-Everything hinges around

-what happens in the restaurant.

-If we're short-staffed - which

-happens quite often over the year...

-..our life changes.

-It's fun not having

-Mam and Dad around!

-They always talk shop at the table.

-We don't know what's happening.

-I carry on eating,

-and just look at them.

-Then the next minute,

-they disappear and Audrey's with us.

-It's hard for us

-because we work unsociable hours.

-Bed-time for us

-is often the early hours.

-We don't get to bed before 3.00am at

-least twice or three times a week.

-We've had a lot of au pairs.

-It's just different

-not having Mam and Dad around.

-You get used to it.

-People say, "I wouldn't like

-not having Mam and Dad around."

-I find it quite fun.

-We don't expect the au pair

-to undertake much housework.

-She lives as one of the family.

-All we expect is that she helps out

-as one of the family.

-We all wash the bathroom

-after using it.

-Everyone helps in the house.

-She isn't expected to do everything.

-Years ago,

-family members didn't have a choice.

-Parents didn't have the sole

-responsibility of raising children.

-Eldest daughters

-were expected to come home to work.

-They often looked after

-the youngsters.

-Farmers would employ...

-..a 13-year-old maid...

-..to look after the youngsters.

-There is nothing harder

-than looking after toddlers.

-That's what the eldest daughter had

-to do, in addition to the housework.

-Sali, from Pontarddulais,

-is 85-years-old.

-As the eldest daughter

-of 11 children...

-..she had to accept her fate

-early on.

-I was 14 on the 21st of November.

-Mam gave birth to a new baby

-on the 1st of November.

-She arranged for a maid

-to look after her.

-But the maid didn't turn up.

-My father wrote to the schoolmaster,

-to ask if I could leave school...

-..three weeks before turning 14.

-We were eight children at the time.

-My father worked in the coal works.

-Mam lay in bed in the parlour

-with the baby.

-We ironed twice a week.

-I washed and ironed for them all.

-I had to help. I passed the 11+.

-I wanted to attend Grammar School

-but I was the second oldest.

-Dad said, "No. There's too much work

-at home. You can't go."

-After spending a year at home, and

-Mam was better, I could go to serve.

-Although I served -

-I worked harder at home at night...

-..than where I was serving.

-If they went to work for an aunt

-or another family member...

-..they might never see their wages.

-The pay would go straight to the

-mother. They worked for nothing.

-It was a labour of love at home!

-THEY SPEAK FRENCH

-Audrey, the au pair, has returned

-from her holiday in France.

-It's now easier for Elen and Francis

-to cope with day-to-day life.

-We're very happy to know that Audrey

-is looking after the children.

-It's much easier for us.

-Sometimes, she cooks for us all.

-She looks after the children.

-There's not too much stress for us.

-She's like a big sister to me.

-A big sister who isn't an adult yet.

-IFAN COUNTS IN FRENCH

-But it isn't all sweetness and light

-when an outsider cares for children.

-Yes!

-You never forget the fact that

-there's somebody else in your home.

-A person who isn't a family member

-but who lives with us. It's hard.

-I think Audrey knows us by now.

-She laughs. She understands us!

-That's important -

-the fact she understands.

-She understands us

-and realises when we're tired.

-She's aware if there are

-problems at work.

-If we want to argue

-about something personal...

-..we have to be careful.

-We argue in the car going to work!

-That's the price we pay

-for an au pair.

-It's hard for any person to adapt

-to tensions within a family.

-It can be difficult

-for the family, too.

-Getting used to having

-someone else around.

-That person must adapt

-to the life of the family.

-But usually - it's very easy.

-We did play one trick. Ifan had

-a snake for Christmas two years ago.

-It looks like a real one!

-We put it in her bed!

-It's really slimy.

-She screamed in the night.

-We just laughed in bed.

-It can be hard

-to discipline the children.

-I'm not here to educate them.

-The parents must set out the rules.

-I have to act upon those rules.

-An agreement between myself and the

-parents must be reached beforehand.

-THEY SPEAK FRENCH

-Sali's work didn't end

-with raising her siblings.

-When they were old enough to work,

-she still waited on them.

-Once more, her duties kept her busy.

-At one time, there were seven of my

-family working in the coal works.

-My father put a row of pegs

-in the back kitchen.

-There were separate pegs

-for the work clothes.

-There were no pit-head baths.

-We hand-washed them at home.

-I washed and ironed for them.

-We patched their work clothes

-when they were in need of repair.

-When they were wet, we dried them.

-Once the clothes were dry,

-we went out to shake them.

-If a patch was needed, we'd fix it.

-In those days, there were

-two collars on each shirt.

-My sister and I would both be at it.

-One starched, blued and washed them,

-and the other ironed the next day.

-We'd put them out on the line

-and cover them in greaseproof...

-..so that flies wouldn't dirty them!

-There'd be trouble

-if there was a mark on them!

-They were very particular, even

-though there were so many of them.

-They don't know what work is today.

-Not at all.

-Whilst the au pair

-waits on the children...

-..Elen waits on

-the restaurant customers.

-Although she and Francis are happy

-with the present arrangement...

-..it hasn't always been so easy.

-One of our au pairs didn't want to

-be one of the family. That was hard.

-When an au pair or nanny

-lives in the home...

-..a close relationship is needed.

-MARIANNE SPEAKS FRENCH

-It's important the family has time

-to itself - and the au pair, too.

-But if an au pair locks herself in

-her room and doesn't communicate...

-..then it doesn't work! It isn't

-fair on the children, either.

-Traditionally, parents could

-depend on other family members...

-..to help raise children but, today,

-families live in different places...

-..and this makes it hard -

-some don't like to ask.

-I don't think it's fair

-that we depend on Mam and Dad.

-Obviously, they've helped a lot -

-fetching the children, and so on.

-But I don't depend on them.

-They have their own lives.

-888

-Good nannies are now considered

-a rare breed.

-When two professional people

-choose to earn a living...

-..it's important

-to hold onto a good nanny.

-If you lose the child carer...

-..you're totally lost.

-You depend on that person to

-love and look after your children.

-Remember what we saw on TV?

-Dad's more strict.

-Dad's looking after us now.

-But Bryn and I get bored with Dad.

-We want another nanny!

-Anne Owen

-is a successful businesswoman.

-She's an executive partner

-in an international London company.

-Every school holiday, Anne and her

-family leave their city dwelling.

-They come to their second home,

-in Lampeter.

-Her retired English husband

-helps to look after the children.

-Before that, they employed

-a nanny for more than one reason.

-I'd often set out at 6.30 or 7.00am.

-We saw parents take children

-to their childminders at that hour.

-I didn't want to get the children

-ready and get them out of the house.

-I wanted them

-to be looked after at home.

-It was important to me that

-they were raised to speak Welsh.

-It wasn't just a language issue

-but also a way of life.

-CAR HORN

-Eryl and Bryn had several nannies -

-most living in with the family.

-A favourite, Elin from Aberystwyth,

-still keeps in touch.

-Go, go, go!

-Elin was one of my favourites

-because she was really funny.

-She always played with us.

-She lived in a room in the attic.

-The attic had a shower, TV and bed.

-You could live up there

-if it had a kitchen.

-And a sofa bed.

-And a sofa bed.

-

-Yes!

-Feet up!

-A nanny's role

-is to look after the children.

-I expected her to make sure

-their clothes were in order.

-But the children are a nanny's

-priority - not housework or ironing.

-Being a nanny is a profession.

-Angharad Llwyd, from Aberaeron, has

-made a career from being a nanny.

-She also lives in an attic flat.

-Her employers live in Islington,

-London.

-I'm extremely close to Jessica.

-When I'm home,

-Jessica's the topic of conversation.

-But she knows

-when it's Friday night.

-One Friday, I said,

-"Goodnight then, Jessica.

-"I'll see you tomorrow."

-"No, Monday," she replied.

-She knows it's Angharad

-from Monday to Friday...

-..and her parents on the weekend.

-I'm responsible for feeding Jessica.

-I make sure that

-wherever she plays is clean.

-I ensure her clothes are clean.

-Will you cut it?

-I don't do anything for them.

-Housework isn't my problem.

-They have a cleaner for that.

-All I'm responsible for

-is Jessica's welfare.

-Jessica's parents work long hours.

-Her mother is a solicitor

-and her father works for a bank.

-They hired a nanny who would

-ensure that Jessica is raised...

-..exactly how

-her professional parents wished.

-At the moment,

-Jessica's at home all day with me.

-I'm with her from 8.00am to 7.00pm.

-She has music and dancing lessons.

-We go swimming -

-she enjoys everything we do.

-If she doesn't enjoy it,

-we don't do it.

-Bye bye!

-This is an affluent area -

-there are many nannies here.

-If you phone for a class,

-they ask, "Nanny or mother?"

-I don't feel like the family's maid.

-Years ago, a maid did

-everything for the family.

-They weren't respected.

-They were kept behind the scenes.

-Nowadays, people ask,

-"Are you Jessica's nanny?"

-We're not asked,

-"Are you the mother?"

-They presume everyone's a nanny.

-People are shocked when a mother

-stays at home to look after a child.

-Watch the tree.

-London is so competitive, people

-are terrified of losing a nanny.

-They buy their nanny a better car

-or pay her gym membership...

-..just to make sure she stays.

-There's a shift of power -

-it isn't with the employer.

-It's much more of a partnership.

-Originally, it was the landed gentry

-who employed maids.

-During the 20th century...

-..the middle classes enhanced

-their status by employing a maid.

-They lived in, carrying out

-all sorts of domestic chores.

-Although very many went

-to Liverpool or London to serve...

-..Sali from Pontarddulais didn't

-cross the border to find work.

-Five from my village

-went to serve in Treforest.

-One with a butcher,

-another with a vicar.

-One went to Bowen's.

-Another served an old lady

-in Glasfryn, Treforest.

-The people who tended

-to hire a 'maid of all work'...

-..were the aspiring middle class...

-..people who wanted to show that...

-..they were going up in the world.

-The maid was a symbol

-of this status.

-It was an incredibly hard life

-for the girl.

-The solicitor was alright.

-But

-she

-was awful.

-You tried your best,

-but it was never good enough.

-She was never grateful.

-There was a brass plaque

-on the gatepost...

-..showing he was a solicitor.

-I had to clean it with Brasso.

-I scrubbed the front doorstep

-and prepared their breakfast.

-You couldn't call

-their two children, Morley and Joy.

-It used to kill me to say,

-'Master Morley' and 'Miss Joy'.

-So... no, I wasn't happy there.

-I think the employer was highly

-regarded in the 1920s and 1930s.

-The mistress was the boss -

-they listened to whatever she said.

-Everything revolved

-around the mistress.

-A good and kind mistress meant

-a fairly happy life for the maid.

-If she was cruel or hard,

-life could be very hard.

-More often than not, the maid

-had to do everything in the house.

-I had every other Saturday

-and every other Sunday off.

-When I returned...

-..there'd be a mountain of dishes

-after she'd been entertaining.

-I'd arrive at 10.00pm, change

-to my black dress, apron and cap...

-..and get on with the dishes

-for the next hour and a half.

-I still had to be up

-in the morning at 6.30am.

-When I was young,

-I daren't answer back or say no.

-Whatever she wanted me to do,

-I'd do it.

-They'd last a day today

-before leaving.

-It's a good thing it's come to that.

-Oh, yes.

-Oh, yes.

-I've got hiccups!

-It's OK! Have a little drink

-and they might go away.

-Being a nanny isn't always easy.

-You must be able to tell bosses,

-"I'm not happy I'm doing this.

-"I shouldn't be doing it."

-There are people who don't know

-what a nanny's job description is.

-They think they don't have to pay

-a nanny between 11.00pm and 7.00am.

-A nanny might be the only adult

-in the house with the child.

-In my first job, I was the baby's

-monitor throughout the night.

-This one?

-This one?

-

-Yellow.

-This one?

-If he cried or moved, I'd go to him.

-I'd make sure he was alright.

-It started off one night a week.

-It became two nights,

-three and four.

-I was given

-more and more responsibility.

-We know of a couple

-who've treated nannies very badly.

-They were mother-figures,

-looking after them.

-On call, really.

-All day and all night.

-Having chosen to have children...

-..I want to spend

-as much time as I can with them.

-You trust this person

-to look after your children.

-Some parents hand over

-all responsibility to nannies.

-The children

-are designer accessories.

-Elin has turned her back

-on a career as a nanny.

-She's training

-to be a paediatric nurse.

-Aspects of the work didn't suit her.

-They were long hours

-and it was lonely work.

-I was alone.

-A lady came in to clean.

-I spoke to her but only once a week.

-I watched the news at 12.30pm

-every day.

-I became excited just

-to find out what was going on.

-It was a very lonely job.

-Aspects of living in

-as a nanny or maid...

-..don't change

-from generation to generation.

-I was between fifteen and sixteen

-and from a large, close family.

-They wouldn't allow us

-to mix with them.

-We had to stay in the scullery.

-That's where we'd remain

-'til our work was done.

-No - they weren't nice.

-It broke my heart.

-I cried more than I ever have since.

-888

-If I could have 'til

-the 9th of March, I'll be 102.

-Yes.

-I don't know how I can be like this.

-In 1916, when she was 14, Mary

-Hughes left her Rhosgadfan home.

-She became

-a Waunfawr shopkeeper's maid.

-She was their only maid.

-Life for a young girl, with

-so much housework, could be hard.

-You didn't have much freedom.

-I would go to chapel on a Sunday

-night to listen to the sermon.

-But I didn't enjoy the sermon.

-I had to get up at 6.00am

-to do the washing in the cellar.

-By 8.00am,

-I was preparing breakfast.

-I couldn't enjoy the sermon.

-I was allowed home once a month.

-After six months, I'd get my wages.

-6 for half a year.

-Compared to today's youngsters,

-it was a hard life.

-After two years,

-Mary got another job.

-She became

-a Caernarfon doctor's maid.

-She greatly respected her masters.

-But there is one unfortunate

-incident that still haunts her.

-I took the breakfast tray up

-one morning.

-It was a huge tray.

-All their breakfasts

-were on the tray.

-As usual,

-I put the tray on the table.

-As I placed it down, it slid off.

-Everything slid off.

-I didn't know what to do.

-I can remember him saying to her...

-.."Don't say a word."

-That's all I remember.

-I was so scared.

-I didn't have a row.

-They were good people.

-I could even go to the pictures.

-I'd go to the Guild Hall

-under the clock.

-That's where we would go.

-If he went to see Charlie Chaplin,

-I could go with him.

-I would accompany him to a shed

-to hold a light for him...

-..if he wanted to work on the car.

-He was friends with me.

-I shan't say any more. No.

-Yes.

-Mmm.

-Mary didn't stay long after that.

-In 1924, she married

-a lad from Rhosgadfan...

-..and stopped waiting on others.

-She has now lived over a century.

-Mary has seen great change

-in technology and machines.

-She's noticed an attitude change

-towards serving the masters.

-No-one waits any more.

-People feel they're as good

-as the next person.

-I think people do serve today.

-Given the proper status,

-it's genuinely important work.

-The tourist industry needs people

-who know how to wait and serve.

-Abroad, the quality of service

-is of the highest standard.

-They take pride in it as a craft.

-In Wales,

-it isn't granted the same status.

-Our tourist industry suffers

-as a result of lack of status...

-..especially amongst the Welsh.

-Perhaps it's a throwback to the way

-maids were treated over the years.

-Maybe young girls

-have different ambitions.

-They see the work differently.

-Some might view it

-as a profession...

-..to be developed into a business

-instead of serving one person.

-You're not a family maid -

-you're running a business.

-There is a genuine need

-for this service.

-Someone must take responsibility

-for domestic work.

-Perhaps it's easier to buy into.

-Maureen works for a cleaning agency

-in Bontnewydd, Caernarfon.

-She feels she was born

-into this career.

-I started to clean a church

-with Nain as a youngster.

-Nain showed me how to polish

-and brush the floor.

-I progressed from there.

-I like cleaning.

-I've always done it.

-I've tried other jobs

-but I prefer cleaning.

-Maureen and other daily helpers'

-attitude to a hard master...

-..proves times have changed.

-I walked in for the first time.

-She said, "There's the sink."

-It was full of dishes.

-I washed them all

-and moved to another room.

-When I returned,

-the sink was full of dishes again.

-"I don't like washing the dishes,"

-she said. I just looked at her.

-"The sink and food cupboards

-need cleaning," she said.

-She ordered me around,

-and I looked at her.

-"Oh!" I said, and never went back.

-I don't mind cleaning and helping

-out. But I won't be anyone's skivvy!

-They must show consideration

-when talking to us.

-I can easily turn around and say,

-"Oh, well. I'll find another job."

-There is such a demand for us,

-it's just a matter of a phone call.

-They're willing to pay,

-that's one thing!

-The wages can be quite good.

-We're not expected to do

-any ridiculous chores.

-Usually, they're polite and say,

-"Do this if you have the time."

-If someone bossed me,

-I wouldn't do it.

-One lady expected me

-to do silly things every week.

-Cleaning the lampshades.

-She prepared a list

-for the first week.

-The list was longer

-the following week.

-Clearly, it was

-getting longer every week.

-Before starting to argue,

-it was better to quit.

-People appreciate

-the services of a cleaner.

-It gives them more free time.

-The three or four extra hours a week

-with the family makes a difference.

-There's no doubt that the supply of

-electricity and water to houses...

-..had an enormous impact on the

-lives of women in the 20th century.

-Washing machines became gods in

-the kitchen in the 1950s and 1960s.

-The hoover

-revolutionised housework, too.

-Machines cut out

-the need for maids.

-They began using industrialised

-machines in hospitals and laundries.

-All sorts of machines have made

-a difference to domestic work.

-On the other hand,

-the social standards have changed.

-In the old days,

-I'd have a bath once a week...

-..on Sunday nights,

-before school on Monday.

-Nowadays, people bathe at least

-once a day - if not twice daily.

-We wash our clothes on daily basis.

-They're worn once and then washed.

-In the old days,

-they'd be worn for a week.

-There's more work, even though

-the work itself isn't as hard.

-I think there's more work,

-definitely.

-These days,

-they don't care how it's done.

-They just go and change jobs.

-But they have everything at their

-disposal to lighten their loads.

-Times have changed.

-They have everything

-but they complain even more.

-They complain much more

-and they have everything.

-Perhaps I was born too early. Yes!

-That's what I think.

-I was married for 15 years

-before having a washing machine.

-I'm no worse.

-No worse at all.

-There's so much cleaning equipment

-on the market.

-Washing machines,

-hoovers and everything.

-We still get more work done

-in a few hours than years ago.

-It would have taken them all day.

-The machines do everything for you.

-Life is easier,

-if this is the life you want.

-But hard work didn't kill me,

-did it?

-Did it?

-Or I wouldn't be here today.

-S4C Subtitles by

-GWEAD