0:00:02 > 0:00:04Meet the Ashby-Hawkins family.
0:00:04 > 0:00:07For one summer, they're giving up the trappings of their modern lives
0:00:07 > 0:00:09and travelling back in time
0:00:09 > 0:00:12to live through 50 years of British weekends.
0:00:14 > 0:00:20Steph, Rob, Daisy and Seth will experience a radical transformation
0:00:20 > 0:00:22in how we spend our leisure time.
0:00:22 > 0:00:23I'm free!
0:00:23 > 0:00:26- From the formal... - I feel like I'm going to a wedding.
0:00:26 > 0:00:28..to the frivolous.
0:00:28 > 0:00:29Going on holiday!
0:00:29 > 0:00:31From do-it-yourself
0:00:31 > 0:00:33to doing almost nothing.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35You've turned into Wham!
0:00:35 > 0:00:40Starting in 1950, their own home will be their time machine...
0:00:40 > 0:00:43- Oooh!- It's 1961!
0:00:43 > 0:00:46..fast forwarding them through a new year each day.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49What on earth are you doing?
0:00:49 > 0:00:51We're making a massive dartboard.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53It's beige!
0:00:53 > 0:00:55Oh, there's a telly up in the corner as well, look.
0:00:55 > 0:00:57As they discover how a social...
0:01:00 > 0:01:01..technological...
0:01:01 > 0:01:02What's that?
0:01:02 > 0:01:03..and spending revolution...
0:01:03 > 0:01:06Oh, my God!
0:01:06 > 0:01:10..has transformed our free time forever.
0:01:10 > 0:01:11- Are you ready?- Yeah!
0:01:11 > 0:01:15This time, it's back to the thrift and formality of the '50s.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Is that the entertainment? Mum playing the piano in the evening?
0:01:20 > 0:01:22- SHE SCREAMS - I get stressed
0:01:22 > 0:01:24when I can't do things perfectly!
0:01:38 > 0:01:42This quiet corner of suburban London is home to the Ashby-Hawkins family.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Mum Steph is an IT consultant.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47- How was your day?- Tough.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50I've got a really heavy bag cos I've got two laptops today.
0:01:50 > 0:01:52She's the family's main breadwinner
0:01:52 > 0:01:55while dad Rob works from home as a childminder
0:01:55 > 0:01:58and does all the cooking and cleaning.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00I make breakfast for my family in the mornings
0:02:00 > 0:02:02then lunch for all the children in my care,
0:02:02 > 0:02:03then dinner for all the children
0:02:03 > 0:02:05and all of my family in the evenings.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07Have you got a nuclear bomb?
0:02:07 > 0:02:09I don't think we should be throwing it around.
0:02:09 > 0:02:1316-year-old Daisy and 12-year-old Seth's spare time
0:02:13 > 0:02:16is dominated by technology.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19I don't really remember life before internet because I'm only 12.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23And even time spent together as a family is on individual screens.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29But, for one summer, the Ashby-Hawkins have agreed
0:02:29 > 0:02:31to leave their modern lives behind
0:02:31 > 0:02:34and embark on an extraordinary journey into the past.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38It really feels like it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
0:02:38 > 0:02:40for us to do something together
0:02:40 > 0:02:43cos when we don't have the devices getting in the way,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46we might actually have to talk and listen a bit more.
0:02:50 > 0:02:53But it's not just the family who are time travelling.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56Their modern home is being ripped apart
0:02:56 > 0:02:58and returned to how it would have looked in 1950.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03Their entertainment-filled lounge
0:03:03 > 0:03:06has been replaced by a sparse sitting room.
0:03:07 > 0:03:14The 21st-century garden now has a functional shed and vegetable patch.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18And, instead of open-plan living,
0:03:18 > 0:03:22there's a formal dining room and basic kitchen.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27'Along with social historian Polly Russell,
0:03:27 > 0:03:30'I'll be running this ambitious experiment
0:03:30 > 0:03:32'to explore just how much our leisure time
0:03:32 > 0:03:36'has been transformed in the last 50 years.'
0:03:36 > 0:03:39We have so much choice today in how we spend our free time.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42Our houses are crammed with gadgets to divert and entertain us
0:03:42 > 0:03:44and the sheer range of things to do outside the home
0:03:44 > 0:03:46would have baffled previous generations.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51So, how do we think our family, the Ashby-Hawkins,
0:03:51 > 0:03:53are going to respond to this sort of a room?
0:03:53 > 0:03:55They're a very modern family.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58This is going to be really strange for them,
0:03:58 > 0:04:00to be in a space where there is no electronic gadgets,
0:04:00 > 0:04:02there's nothing for them to play with.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06The kids are going to have to get used to being able to be still,
0:04:06 > 0:04:07to sit and read, play the piano.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10When you say that they will be reading and playing the piano,
0:04:10 > 0:04:15I think that sounds quite nice for an evening, but EVERY DAY?
0:04:15 > 0:04:18I mean, it's incredibly boring, probably, for a modern family.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21There will not be the instant distractions that we're used to now.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26In 1950, Britain was still recovering from the war.
0:04:27 > 0:04:32Taxes and prices were high so people had little disposable income.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34And there wasn't much to buy anyway.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37Food was still rationed and most of what we produced was exported.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Just at the moment, we're not earning nearly enough
0:04:42 > 0:04:45to pay for the food and materials
0:04:45 > 0:04:48which we've got to have to keep ourselves going.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52And, in these circumstances, we just can't afford
0:04:52 > 0:04:56to spend on anything that isn't absolutely necessary.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00As the government tried to boost Britain's shattered economy,
0:05:00 > 0:05:03they commissioned an extraordinary survey
0:05:03 > 0:05:04to find out exactly how much
0:05:04 > 0:05:07people were spending and what they were spending it on.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10Thousands of households kept detailed diaries
0:05:10 > 0:05:14of everything they bought and continued to do so until 1999.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19These expenditure surveys give the best possible insight
0:05:19 > 0:05:22into what families were doing in their leisure time.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Over the next six weeks,
0:05:25 > 0:05:29everything the Ashby-Hawkins do will be guided by these surveys.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33So, what sort of clues does this give us
0:05:33 > 0:05:36about how people were spending their time in the '50s?
0:05:36 > 0:05:40Well, what you see is quite a lot of the goods that are being bought
0:05:40 > 0:05:43are goods which will require time to be used.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45So, things for sewing, things for mending.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48This one, for instance, wood to repair the fender.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51So, you see this make do and mend practice
0:05:51 > 0:05:54coming out in these surveys.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Mending materials, second-hand shoes, a jigsaw puzzle,
0:05:56 > 0:05:59a small piece of lace.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02What's really striking from our perspective
0:06:02 > 0:06:07is how little is being spent or how few goods are being spent
0:06:07 > 0:06:10compared to if you did a diary of this nature now.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16It's time for the Ashby-Hawkins to step back to 1950
0:06:16 > 0:06:19and see their remodelled home for the first time.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25I reckon it's going to be a pretty good history lesson for me.
0:06:25 > 0:06:29The whole not being able to message my friends, I'm dreading that.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31No Wi-Fi - really, really dreading that.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36I'll be living like, I suppose, my grandad.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41It's a trip into the unknown. I haven't got a clue what to expect.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44I'm just genuinely really, really excited.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54- THEY GASP - Oh, my God!
0:06:54 > 0:06:58This looks so gross!
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- Wow!- Look at the photos.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05Oh, no! Look at Seth!
0:07:05 > 0:07:08It feels like the house has gone back to where it started.
0:07:08 > 0:07:12I like this room, actually,
0:07:12 > 0:07:15but it sort of feels like I'm in my grandma's house.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Is that a radio?
0:07:17 > 0:07:23- There is one of those modern clocks. - I mean, where's the TV going to go?
0:07:23 > 0:07:26Is that the entertainment? Mum playing the piano in the evening?
0:07:26 > 0:07:28It feels like we'll be more upright.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31This is a sitting room, not a lounge.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34SHE PLAYS A SCALE
0:07:34 > 0:07:37- That's so cool! - This is the entertainment.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40- Oh, my God, pink! - SHE LAUGHS
0:07:40 > 0:07:45It feels really, really closed in and really tiny.
0:07:45 > 0:07:49I love the fact you've got your best china on display.
0:07:49 > 0:07:50What is that?
0:07:50 > 0:07:53- I don't want to move it.- That? Bring it out, bring it out.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56- It's a carpet sweeper. - Yep.- Look at that.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59You push it backwards and forwards, instead of a Hoover.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03There's not much in the way of technology in the house,
0:08:03 > 0:08:05but the garden shed is packed with all the tools
0:08:05 > 0:08:08no self-respecting '50s husband would be without.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13That's brilliant, look. They've got massive tools in there, look.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16- Look at the size of that wrench! - What would they use that for?
0:08:17 > 0:08:19I love the little vegetable patch
0:08:19 > 0:08:23and the tools inside the shed, there's about 30 different spanners.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26For me, to have my own shed is quite cool.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29I'm looking forward to sawing stuff or wrenching stuff.
0:08:29 > 0:08:31Yeah, that's really good.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35I've come to ensure the Ashby-Hawkins understand
0:08:35 > 0:08:38just how much the strict conventions of the 1950s
0:08:38 > 0:08:40will control what they do with their time.
0:08:43 > 0:08:44Hello, Ashby-Hawkins family.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48- Hello, Giles.- How do you like your '50s house?
0:08:48 > 0:08:51- I like it, I like it. - I like all the aspects of it.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53I say YOUR 1950s house.
0:08:53 > 0:08:5768% of people didn't own their houses in the 1950s.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59That's the rent book.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02I would hand it to you, but you're a woman so you wouldn't understand.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06I'll hand it to Rob, because Rob will be the breadwinner.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09You're going to be at home all the time, running the kitchen.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13- Mm-hmm.- You'll be in there a little bit, helping your mother,
0:09:13 > 0:09:15training to become a full-time mother
0:09:15 > 0:09:17- because you're 16, aren't you?- Yeah.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19So there's no such thing as a teenager.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22Children have been invented, but there's nothing for you to do.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Invented? They're not really invented. They are more sort of...
0:09:25 > 0:09:27Smart-arse remarks like that to your elders
0:09:27 > 0:09:31and betters in 1950 won't wash. Yes, a bit of that.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34You'll just have to run around outside and amuse yourself.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37But, yes, you've got nothing to do in the modern sense.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41There's no TV in here, there is no computers, there's no phones.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43- They've all been taken away from you, haven't they?- Yes.- Yes.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Like going to prison.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48I've got a guidebook for you - How To Live In The 1950s.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50It's quite thin.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53There's not a lot to do, you have to make your own fun.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Good luck, have a brilliant time in the 1950s!
0:09:55 > 0:09:57- Thank you very much. - Thank you.- Awesome!
0:09:59 > 0:10:01Normally, the weekend is the time
0:10:01 > 0:10:03for the family to kick back and relax.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08But, in the 1950s, Rob's got jobs to do.
0:10:10 > 0:10:15I'm going to attach... the terminal...
0:10:16 > 0:10:19- HE LAUGHS - It looks nothing like that!
0:10:19 > 0:10:23Let's start from the beginning, shall we? Always handy, isn't it?
0:10:23 > 0:10:26The expenditure survey is full of spending on tools and hardware
0:10:26 > 0:10:28and Rob's following in the footsteps
0:10:28 > 0:10:31of a '50s husband from Hampstead who bought...
0:10:35 > 0:10:37..to build a new doorbell from scratch.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42How's it going, son?
0:10:42 > 0:10:47The batteries are wired in series, ie the tail of the first
0:10:47 > 0:10:52is connected to the centre terminal of the second. What?!
0:10:52 > 0:10:57So, basically, if you were to attach this part,
0:10:57 > 0:10:59you'd have to attach it to the opposite part of that.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02So, there's positive. Put that onto negative,
0:11:02 > 0:11:04- is that you're saying? - Yes.- OK.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07In this era before cheap mass production,
0:11:07 > 0:11:09ready-made items were a luxury.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12Men were encouraged to make everything themselves,
0:11:12 > 0:11:16from a clothes horse to a draining rack...
0:11:17 > 0:11:19..even their own stepladder.
0:11:22 > 0:11:23- Ready?- Yeah.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26Three, two, one...
0:11:26 > 0:11:28SILENCE
0:11:28 > 0:11:30See, that's why I do the washing
0:11:30 > 0:11:31and ironing and cleaning and cooking.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34- You're not very good at DIY. - No, I'm not very good.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39With no washing machine, dishwasher or Hoover, for Steph,
0:11:39 > 0:11:42the prospect of leisure is even more remote.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44Oh, my God, it's revolting!
0:11:44 > 0:11:46It really is horrible.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52This doesn't feel like it'll be any different than it would have been
0:11:52 > 0:11:55100 years, 200, 300 years before.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58It seems like in the last 30 or 40 years, we've come an awful long way
0:11:58 > 0:12:01with appliances and stuff, but this is just no further on
0:12:01 > 0:12:02than washing stuff in a river
0:12:02 > 0:12:05and throwing it on the stones, is it, really?
0:12:07 > 0:12:09- ARCHIVE VOICEOVER:- 'A pile of washing, a couple of tubs,
0:12:09 > 0:12:12'gallons of hot water, clouds of steam, bars of soap
0:12:12 > 0:12:14'and a whole heap of honest to goodness elbow grease.'
0:12:16 > 0:12:19In the early '50s, a washing machine cost around £30,
0:12:19 > 0:12:22just over a month's wages.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25It was so expensive that only 4% of households owned one.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31Domestic chores took up 11 hours a day, seven days a week.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34It'll be interesting to see exactly how dry
0:12:34 > 0:12:36the stuff comes out the other end.
0:12:36 > 0:12:40And the answer is actually not very much difference at all.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43It's still really wet.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45But I've just seen something.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49I think I'm doing it the wrong way round. Look at that!
0:12:49 > 0:12:51See, THAT'S the way you mangle!
0:12:53 > 0:12:54Yes!
0:12:54 > 0:12:56Let's try it down here.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59- BELL RINGS - Oh!
0:12:59 > 0:13:01You DO have to connect it!
0:13:01 > 0:13:03BELL RINGS
0:13:03 > 0:13:05It's alive!
0:13:05 > 0:13:08Next week, making a car.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11Right.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13Affordable power tools are nearly a decade away
0:13:13 > 0:13:16so Rob's got to install the bell with a hand drill.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26I think... Please, please...
0:13:26 > 0:13:29You can't just get an odd job man in to help.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32With virtually full employment, most men had full-time work
0:13:32 > 0:13:35and tradesmen were hard to find and expensive.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38Doing it yourself became a necessity.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42I think that's it, I think I'm in.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44I've done it. I think I've done it.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49I really, really hate DIY.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53SHE COUGHS
0:13:53 > 0:13:55So much dust!
0:13:56 > 0:13:5916-year-old Daisy normally spends her spare time on social media,
0:13:59 > 0:14:02but, in 1950, she is a housewife in training
0:14:02 > 0:14:04and expected to help out.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08It's really annoying me now!
0:14:08 > 0:14:11Mum, can you get one and help me?
0:14:11 > 0:14:13Please!
0:14:15 > 0:14:17SHE COUGHS
0:14:17 > 0:14:20'I had an inkling about what it was going to be like
0:14:20 > 0:14:22'in terms of being a '50s housewife.'
0:14:22 > 0:14:25I think it's just brought it crashing down as a reality of,
0:14:25 > 0:14:28"Wow, this is actually going to be quite hard work!"
0:14:28 > 0:14:31Nearly there! This is it, this is it, this is the moment!
0:14:31 > 0:14:33So, erm, yeah...
0:14:33 > 0:14:35Hang on a minute.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37BELL RINGS
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Rock and roll! Yeah.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42After this, we can do the other carpet in the lounge.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44Oh, that will be so much fun!
0:14:44 > 0:14:47Then we can wash Dad's clothes, then Seth's pants
0:14:47 > 0:14:50and then we can do the socks afterwards.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52CLOCK TICKS
0:14:52 > 0:14:54After a long day on their feet,
0:14:54 > 0:14:57the family can finally sit down together.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00This is really difficult.
0:15:00 > 0:15:02I hate to say, baby, it's cos you're not doing it right.
0:15:02 > 0:15:07I'd normally be on my phone or watching TV.
0:15:07 > 0:15:12I haven't really made a lot of jigsaws since I turned ten.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15I think what you're trying to get across here
0:15:15 > 0:15:16is it's just so limited
0:15:16 > 0:15:20that the only thing that you have to entertain yourself
0:15:20 > 0:15:23is a piece of cardboard with a bit of a picture on it.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27- I love a jigsaw!- Yeah, but, Mum, you grew up on the jigsaws.
0:15:27 > 0:15:29You didn't have an iPhone.
0:15:29 > 0:15:34'The lounge is so empty, it's not even a lounge.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37'It's not for lounging around and watching TV.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40'Usually when I sit on the sofa, I'm looking at the TV'
0:15:40 > 0:15:45and now, I am looking at the floor cos there's nothing to look at.
0:15:45 > 0:15:47It's a bit weird.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51'The tech I thought I'd miss would be my computer
0:15:51 > 0:15:54'and tablet and that sort of stuff, but actually the tech I've missed
0:15:54 > 0:15:57'is the white goods cos everything's really labour-intensive.'
0:15:57 > 0:16:00The state of my hands after all that washing!
0:16:00 > 0:16:02They're all dry and crusty
0:16:02 > 0:16:06and I've got hangnails, which are really sore.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09I don't know how women coped doing that every day.
0:16:09 > 0:16:10It's really, really grim.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21It's a new day, which means a new year for the family.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26# Good morning, life
0:16:26 > 0:16:29# Good morning, sun How are your skies above?
0:16:29 > 0:16:33# Gee, it's great to be alive and in love... #
0:16:34 > 0:16:37Even though it's the weekend, there's no lie-in for Steph.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41Sunday would normally be quite a relaxed day.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45Generally, Rob does a Sunday roast every Sunday, which is lovely.
0:16:45 > 0:16:49My sister comes over and we chat and we have a massive dinner
0:16:49 > 0:16:53and I drink half a bottle of wine. I miss the wine!
0:16:57 > 0:16:59- NEWSREEL:- London on a Sunday.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02Any other town in Britain might look much the same.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06Boring, do you think, or just nice and quiet?
0:17:08 > 0:17:13On a typical Sunday in the 1950s, there was almost nothing to do.
0:17:13 > 0:17:17It was illegal to trade and shops were shut.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Commercial sporting events were banned
0:17:20 > 0:17:23and cinemas and pubs had extremely limited opening hours.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27In fact, pretty much the only thing open was church
0:17:27 > 0:17:29so that's where the family are heading.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35Sunday mornings for us
0:17:35 > 0:17:38are the only morning of the entire week where we get to have a sleep.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41The appeal of just staying in bed on a Sunday morning
0:17:41 > 0:17:44just becomes too powerful, more powerful than God.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46You're thinking, "Duvet or God?
0:17:46 > 0:17:48"Duvet or God?" And you go, "Duvet every time."
0:17:48 > 0:17:50You're going to go duvet every time.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54I kind of like Sunday best, but I do feel wildly...
0:17:54 > 0:17:57I feel like I'm going to a wedding. I feel like really...
0:17:57 > 0:18:00- Overdressed.- Overdressed. And now ridiculous.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07In 1950s Britain, most respectable families went to church.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11Contributions to collection plates appear regularly
0:18:11 > 0:18:15in the expenditure survey, like this family of three from Manchester,
0:18:15 > 0:18:18who gave sixpence to their church collection every week.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25# All things bright and beautiful
0:18:25 > 0:18:27# All creatures... #
0:18:27 > 0:18:30Rob, Steph and Daisy will be attending the main service,
0:18:30 > 0:18:32while Seth and his friends Harvey and Tom
0:18:32 > 0:18:35are doing what the majority of children did on Sunday mornings.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40- Good morning, children. - Good morning.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43Welcome to Sunday school.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45How are we today?
0:18:45 > 0:18:47Today's lessons will be led by Ann Widdecombe,
0:18:47 > 0:18:49a former Sunday school teacher.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52Right, well, I think you will find that in church today,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55they're learning all about the Good Samaritan
0:18:55 > 0:18:59and that's what we are going to learn about this morning.
0:18:59 > 0:19:03CHILDREN SING HYMN
0:19:03 > 0:19:08In 1951, over 50% of children went to Sunday school every week
0:19:08 > 0:19:12compared to just 5% now.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16Seth and his friends have never been before.
0:19:16 > 0:19:21I want you to think of situations today
0:19:21 > 0:19:24where you can help somebody and be a good Samaritan.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27I want you to write me a little description of that.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32'It wasn't a big chore to go to Sunday school.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34'I used to walk two miles to get to mine in Bath.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37'We would certainly have been in our best shoes and socks.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39'Any old thing wouldn't have done.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42'The majority of people went to church'
0:19:42 > 0:19:46and I think eyebrows would have gone up a bit if you didn't.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50What have we come up with eventually, Seth?
0:19:50 > 0:19:53I came up with helping an injured animal by taking care of it,
0:19:53 > 0:19:56feeding it and keeping it warm before setting it free.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58Absolutely right and particularly
0:19:58 > 0:20:00as the animal would be helpless, wouldn't it?
0:20:00 > 0:20:02So, before you go back into church,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04we want to say a little prayer, don't we?
0:20:04 > 0:20:07So, hands together, eyes closed.
0:20:07 > 0:20:13O Jesus, help us always to be good Samaritans
0:20:13 > 0:20:17and help us to look round and look for the needs of others.
0:20:17 > 0:20:19We ask this in thy name.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21- Amen.- Amen.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24Still weeping, she stooped to look inside
0:20:24 > 0:20:26and she saw two angels in white,
0:20:26 > 0:20:28sitting where the body of Jesus had been.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33Sunday school over, Seth has rejoined his family in church.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Supposing him to be the gardener,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39she said, "Sir, if you have taken him away,
0:20:39 > 0:20:43"tell me where you have put him and I will go and remove him."
0:20:43 > 0:20:45ORGAN PLAYS
0:20:45 > 0:20:47For a nonbeliever like Steph,
0:20:47 > 0:20:50the demands of 1950s respectability are proving too much.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52She's leaving the service.
0:20:52 > 0:20:54CONGREGATION SING
0:20:54 > 0:20:57If I'd been a '50s housewife, I'd be seething with resentment
0:20:57 > 0:21:01and having to suppress it and that would be awful.
0:21:01 > 0:21:04And it's not saying that I think religion is wrong
0:21:04 > 0:21:06or people are wrong to worship or whatever, it's up to them,
0:21:06 > 0:21:08but if I were being forced into doing something,
0:21:08 > 0:21:10I would have been one of those poor women
0:21:10 > 0:21:12that got locked up for hysteria.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17It doesn't really seem fair, the fact that people have to go.
0:21:17 > 0:21:23People would heavily judge you and frown upon the fact
0:21:23 > 0:21:26that you didn't go, even though the things that they were teaching you
0:21:26 > 0:21:29during church were not to frown upon people, no matter what.
0:21:34 > 0:21:36Perfect!
0:21:36 > 0:21:39Conforming to what is expected doesn't stop at the front door.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43While Steph and Daisy cook Sunday lunch,
0:21:43 > 0:21:44Rob and Seth get to relax
0:21:44 > 0:21:48with activities appropriate for a Sunday afternoon in 1951.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54I am reading Prelude To Space by Arthur C Clarke.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58Sundays were sacred and children were expected to stay inside.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Some parks even tied up their swings.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07It feels like I should be doing something active with my hands,
0:22:07 > 0:22:09which is, in this case, shuffling cards.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13This is my 1950s version of what I would be doing
0:22:13 > 0:22:15instead of texting people.
0:22:17 > 0:22:18Very nice!
0:22:18 > 0:22:22That looks...edible. It does!
0:22:22 > 0:22:24Don't look so surprised!
0:22:24 > 0:22:25It looks really nice.
0:22:25 > 0:22:31It's meatloaf, which is onions, oats and egg and some beef.
0:22:31 > 0:22:37And we've got the best china today and crystal glasses, we decided.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Here's to going through today and getting through the other end
0:22:40 > 0:22:44and it be an experience for us all, OK, and just be grateful
0:22:44 > 0:22:47that your parents have not forced you every Sunday to do that.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52What's really weird is that, in the generation we live in now,
0:22:52 > 0:22:55we shut the front door, anything goes.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57It's none of anybody's business
0:22:57 > 0:23:00and actually it's almost as though it was somebody else's business
0:23:00 > 0:23:02what you were doing behind closed doors,
0:23:02 > 0:23:06that you'd be judged if you did things differently.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10If Rob was seen at the kitchen window, for example,
0:23:10 > 0:23:13you would be judged for it.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16I thought the hardest thing was going to be,
0:23:16 > 0:23:18that I was going to find the hardest
0:23:18 > 0:23:20because I wouldn't have my technology.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22Now, it's not the technology I'm missing.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24I'm actually missing genuine freedom.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29A normal Ashby-Hawkins weekend is more relaxed.
0:23:29 > 0:23:33It is not so intense and we will spread out our things evenly.
0:23:33 > 0:23:34If one person lays a table,
0:23:34 > 0:23:36the other person clears, regardless of gender.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40My mum and I have no downtime whatsoever
0:23:40 > 0:23:43and we spend our entire time looking after other people.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56"Fulham hit back after early reverse."
0:23:56 > 0:23:59It's 1952 and Daisy and Steph
0:23:59 > 0:24:02are still looking after the men of the house.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04It's really weird seeing you going out.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08- It's normally the other way round. Have a good day!- See you later!
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Now he's the family breadwinner, Rob is off to work.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Seth is off too and, for boys, that meant freedom.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25All over the UK, millions of children
0:24:25 > 0:24:30were members of organisations like the Scouts, Boys Brigade and Cadets.
0:24:31 > 0:24:36The average boy would be a dab hand with sharp tools, self-defence,
0:24:36 > 0:24:39even amateur boat-building.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42- NEWSREEL:- If it's adventure you want, you can get it easily enough
0:24:42 > 0:24:44if you're only prepared to "Scout" around for it.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49'What mattered was being outside and having fun.'
0:24:49 > 0:24:51- Hello, Seth.- Hello!
0:24:51 > 0:24:55Hello, kids. Welcome to your 1950s childhood.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57- Do you know what this is?- A forest?
0:24:57 > 0:24:58This is the great outdoors.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00This is basically where you spend all your time.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02Your parents just chuck you out in the morning
0:25:02 > 0:25:05and you don't come back till nightfall, if at all.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08- Wow!- And your first job is to pitch your tent.
0:25:08 > 0:25:09Let's get to work, then.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11- Just lay it out flat. - Are those instructions?
0:25:11 > 0:25:14- No, I think these are pegs.- Yeah, they're pegs. Let's lay it out.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16I don't really know how to do it.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19I've left them to get on with it.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Most '50s boys could make camp with their eyes closed.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26- CLATTERING - Oh, they all fell out!
0:25:28 > 0:25:30It's not the best hammer!
0:25:31 > 0:25:35- Pull, Harvey!- Oh, sorry. That way, sorry.- That way, yeah.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38There you go.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40Amazingly enough, if this were the 1950s,
0:25:40 > 0:25:42our boys would definitely have one of these
0:25:42 > 0:25:43for chopping wood for the fire.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46They'd have all sorts of sharp instruments,
0:25:46 > 0:25:48which I think is fantastic that they had that sort of freedom.
0:25:48 > 0:25:51It's not as if they didn't have safety procedures.
0:25:51 > 0:25:53This is from a boys' handbook from the 1950s.
0:25:53 > 0:25:54"When one uses the axe,
0:25:54 > 0:25:57"chop downwards and never in the direction of one's own body,"
0:25:57 > 0:25:59so it's basically, "Don't chop your own head off."
0:25:59 > 0:26:01"If the base becomes loosened from the head,
0:26:01 > 0:26:03"desist your actions immediately."
0:26:03 > 0:26:06So it's "Foom!" I guess, what you don't want there.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09Do you know, to be honest, sensible though that is
0:26:09 > 0:26:11and amazing though it is to think that in the 1950s,
0:26:11 > 0:26:15you'd send your kids to woodland with a very sharp implement
0:26:15 > 0:26:18and no supervision, it is marvellous,
0:26:18 > 0:26:20it's just unthinkable now.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25Here's a Dandy and a Beano.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29I haven't given them the axe, but I have left them some matches.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32- There we go.- Finally!
0:26:32 > 0:26:35- We have...fire.- No, we don't.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38I can't see any flame, I think that's just smoke.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41While Seth learns how to survive in the great outdoors,
0:26:41 > 0:26:46Daisy is inside, training to be a housewife.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50One must-have skill was sewing
0:26:50 > 0:26:53and expert seamstress, Rob's mother Jennifer,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55has come along to help teach Daisy.
0:26:57 > 0:27:01The expenditure surveys show thousands of examples of women
0:27:01 > 0:27:03buying fabric and haberdashery for sewing projects,
0:27:03 > 0:27:05like this housewife from Manchester,
0:27:05 > 0:27:09who bought two yards of curtain material for five shillings.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14Social historian Polly Russell is joining the group,
0:27:14 > 0:27:18bringing with her one of the year's most fashionable designs.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21- Hello, good morning.- Hello.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23I'm bringing you some fantastic fabric
0:27:23 > 0:27:26because we're going to be making some curtains and some cushions.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30That is what woman did in the 1950s.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32What do you think of this fabric, Jennifer?
0:27:32 > 0:27:34I think it looks modern NOW.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37I'd actually make a pair of curtains in that.
0:27:37 > 0:27:38How are all your sewing skills?
0:27:38 > 0:27:42My mum taught me the basics of how to knit and how to sew.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44What about you, Daisy?
0:27:44 > 0:27:45- Where are you?- No, I can't sew.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48Actually, last night, I sewed some buttons on
0:27:48 > 0:27:50with the wrong colour thread and the wrong buttons
0:27:50 > 0:27:52and the wrong technique so, yeah.
0:27:53 > 0:27:57- So, I think the pattern goes down the fabric.- Yeah.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01- I'm feeling the other way.- What, you think it goes that way, do you?
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Of course it can't, that's the side.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08I'm just trying to sort of semi-press a line in there
0:28:08 > 0:28:11and the pins are really just a guide, Daisy.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14This is really putting me off, actually, really putting me off.
0:28:14 > 0:28:15I don't have the patience to do this.
0:28:15 > 0:28:20I think if you think about if you're in the 1950s as a young woman,
0:28:20 > 0:28:22there wouldn't be very much else to do.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25Women's lives were very much centred around the home
0:28:25 > 0:28:29so you can't go to the pub, you can't go out betting,
0:28:29 > 0:28:31you probably aren't going to go to football.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33Your social life is quite domestic.
0:28:33 > 0:28:37It's just very long and difficult and...
0:28:37 > 0:28:39So, it's not instant?
0:28:39 > 0:28:42Yeah, I need something to be like there, done.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44It's not going to take that time.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47- Wow!- It's like the Olympic torch.
0:28:47 > 0:28:50Apart from the fact that the Olympic torch actually got set alight.
0:28:50 > 0:28:53Right, chaps, how are you getting on?
0:28:53 > 0:28:54What you've got here is...
0:28:54 > 0:28:57- We've got a bucket of leaves!- You've got a bucket of leaves, haven't you?
0:28:57 > 0:29:00- Do you think we should start again? - Yeah.
0:29:00 > 0:29:02'My three years as a cub scout
0:29:02 > 0:29:05'in 1970s north London are finally paying off.'
0:29:08 > 0:29:11Right, well, we have our fire basically working now and hot
0:29:11 > 0:29:13so let's cook. What have you got?
0:29:13 > 0:29:16- I'm looking for a whole roast piglet or something.- I've got some spam.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18- And baked beans.- You've got spam and baked beans.- Yeah.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20Oh, that's good.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23- That looks good.- I don't know if that looks good or not.
0:29:23 > 0:29:26Oh, look at that spam fritter! That's bubbling nicely.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31- Who's going to go first? - I'll do it.- Go on.
0:29:33 > 0:29:36Mmm! It's like salmon.
0:29:36 > 0:29:38Spam is actually not bad.
0:29:38 > 0:29:41Does it taste better because you're outdoors
0:29:41 > 0:29:44and you're bonding with your friends and battling the elements?
0:29:44 > 0:29:48I think it feels a bit more like an achievement, actually.
0:29:48 > 0:29:49That's probably why I like it a bit more
0:29:49 > 0:29:53because we made the fire, we found the wood and the leaves.
0:29:53 > 0:29:57I mean, today, in the school holidays,
0:29:57 > 0:30:00if you weren't here doing this, what would you be likely to be doing?
0:30:00 > 0:30:02- Gaming, playing computer games. - Really?
0:30:02 > 0:30:05I think it would be nice to kind of do this more often,
0:30:05 > 0:30:08sort of get away from a screen and go out here and do this.
0:30:08 > 0:30:11..paper, scissors... Yes!
0:30:14 > 0:30:18It's nice to see these 21st-century kids who are into gaming
0:30:18 > 0:30:21responding to the 1950s outdoor lifestyle.
0:30:21 > 0:30:24One has to remember that the flipside of that
0:30:24 > 0:30:27was they were being trained to respond to authority,
0:30:27 > 0:30:29to be given orders, to follow rules, to put on uniforms,
0:30:29 > 0:30:33to join the army, to be men, to be grown-up members of society.
0:30:33 > 0:30:34It wasn't all fun and games.
0:30:40 > 0:30:435.15 sharp and Rob is home.
0:30:45 > 0:30:48But there is still work for the man of the house.
0:30:48 > 0:30:49She's made the curtains.
0:30:49 > 0:30:51It would appear I'm the one who has to put them up.
0:30:51 > 0:30:56I'm not sure it's going to be great, but, I don't know, the bell worked.
0:30:58 > 0:30:59Am I going the right way?
0:30:59 > 0:31:01I'm going the right way now, there we go.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03Oh, is it that way?
0:31:03 > 0:31:05I think that's the way.
0:31:05 > 0:31:09What you do is rinse the plates first
0:31:09 > 0:31:11cos otherwise you end up with all the bits floating in the water.
0:31:11 > 0:31:14Just soak everything? I think that's easy, yeah.
0:31:14 > 0:31:17- But if you rinse it first... - No, no, no, no, no.
0:31:23 > 0:31:27I think men were constrained and women were constrained in the '50s.
0:31:27 > 0:31:30How they coped with that, I don't know.
0:31:30 > 0:31:34My idea of leisure and pleasure isn't DIY.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37I definitely am feeling trapped
0:31:37 > 0:31:39and the fact that girls my age
0:31:39 > 0:31:42actually thought this was what their life was going to be
0:31:42 > 0:31:49for the rest of their life makes me kind of go, "Wow! WOW!"
0:31:52 > 0:31:54Right now, I'm actually in the tent.
0:31:54 > 0:31:56It's really nice to be out here, actually.
0:31:56 > 0:31:57It's been a lot of fun,
0:31:57 > 0:32:00just enjoying and sort of chilling and hanging out.
0:32:15 > 0:32:19I have absolutely no idea what the flowers are at all.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Red, white and blue is what I know.
0:32:23 > 0:32:27In 1953, Britain was in the midst of a massive house-building programme.
0:32:27 > 0:32:291.5 million homes were built,
0:32:29 > 0:32:32replacing those destroyed by bombs and slum clearance.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38As a result, many British families got their first ever garden
0:32:38 > 0:32:42and gardening became one of the nation's favourite pastimes.
0:32:44 > 0:32:47I mean, how hard can it be to plant plants? It can't be that difficult.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51You've got to make sure that the flower is above the surface
0:32:51 > 0:32:54of the earth, and the roots are below the surface of the earth.
0:32:56 > 0:32:59New garden centres made it easy for novice enthusiasts by selling
0:32:59 > 0:33:02pre-grown potted plants.
0:33:02 > 0:33:05Like those bought by this couple from Shropshire, who,
0:33:05 > 0:33:09on 8th May, 1953, spent two shillings on a dozen lobelia.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15I'm going to go for red bull's-eye, white on the outside,
0:33:15 > 0:33:17then blue on the outside of that.
0:33:17 > 0:33:19See how it works out.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22It may look dreadful but, at the end of the day, it would be
0:33:22 > 0:33:24an explosion of colour, and that's what's important.
0:33:24 > 0:33:27Rob's created a patriotic floral display to celebrate
0:33:27 > 0:33:30the biggest event of the year.
0:33:30 > 0:33:32Once it's bedded in and it's blooming,
0:33:32 > 0:33:34it's going to look absolutely fabulous, I'm sure.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36TRUMPET FANFARE
0:33:36 > 0:33:411953 saw the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44- TV ANNOUNCER:- 'The most important symbol of all is the crown of St Edward.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47'The Archbishop gently sets this splendid emblem
0:33:47 > 0:33:48'on the Queen's head.'
0:33:48 > 0:33:50'All hail the Queen!'
0:33:50 > 0:33:52'And the trumpets sound!'
0:33:52 > 0:33:55The day was declared a national holiday.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58And, like millions of other families,
0:33:58 > 0:34:00the Ashby-Hawkins are celebrating with a party...
0:34:00 > 0:34:03"Cream fat and vanilla together."
0:34:03 > 0:34:04Is butter fat?
0:34:04 > 0:34:07..which means it's Daisy's job to make a cake.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13It's a bit shelly. That's OK.
0:34:16 > 0:34:18It does look like cat sick.
0:34:20 > 0:34:23- OK, ladies. Welcome to the lounge of 1953.- Oh, my goodness.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25Oh, I remember carpets like this.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29The party's special guests are Barbara, Anne and Frances,
0:34:29 > 0:34:33local WI members who all set up home in the '50s.
0:34:34 > 0:34:36Look at the radio.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38Typical.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41- So, does this lounge look familiar territory to you?- Yes.- Yes.
0:34:41 > 0:34:43No fitted carpet,
0:34:43 > 0:34:48just carpets covering as much of the room as possible, you know.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51Interior design hadn't really taken off.
0:34:51 > 0:34:54Nothing was desperately co-ordinated.
0:34:54 > 0:34:58Which is what this has the appearance of.
0:34:58 > 0:35:00- It's a mishmash, isn't it? - It is a mishmash.
0:35:00 > 0:35:02It was things left over, really.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06People hadn't really got on top of things in the early days of '50s.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09Things were still very lean on the ground.
0:35:10 > 0:35:14No wonder an estimated 17 million people across the country
0:35:14 > 0:35:17leapt at the chance to forget austerity and celebrate.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24Dates and cinnamon,
0:35:24 > 0:35:26and then the icing is coconut and orange.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29That looks lovely, thank you.
0:35:29 > 0:35:32I think the '50s has turned Daisy into a domestic goddess, myself.
0:35:32 > 0:35:35- TV ANNOUNCER:- 'Crowds have waited for this moment,
0:35:35 > 0:35:38'as the golden coach appears in view for the first time...'
0:35:38 > 0:35:42Like 96% of the population, the Ashby-Hawkins don't have a telly,
0:35:42 > 0:35:44so they're listening to the coronation on the radio.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48'..escorted by her cavalry, she drives through cheering crowds
0:35:48 > 0:35:51'down the gaily decorated avenue of the Mall.'
0:35:51 > 0:35:54Flags everywhere, bunting everywhere, you know.
0:35:54 > 0:35:56And we were very patriotic.
0:35:56 > 0:35:58I think it was an event that
0:35:58 > 0:36:01lifted the general public.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03We'd had so much doom and gloom.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06And I think it was an excuse to party.
0:36:06 > 0:36:07Well, happy coronation.
0:36:07 > 0:36:09Cheers. Here's to the Queen, huh?
0:36:09 > 0:36:11Here we are. Cheers.
0:36:11 > 0:36:13God bless her.
0:36:13 > 0:36:15NATIONAL ANTHEM PLAYS ON RADIO
0:36:15 > 0:36:17For the 1950s generation,
0:36:17 > 0:36:21standing up to sing the national anthem was almost instinctive.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24It was played in cinemas, theatres and on the radio
0:36:24 > 0:36:26and television every day.
0:36:26 > 0:36:33# ..happy and glorious
0:36:33 > 0:36:36# Long to reign
0:36:36 > 0:36:40# Over us
0:36:40 > 0:36:46# God save our Queen. #
0:36:46 > 0:36:51- TV ANNOUNCER:- 'And, so, this day of days most memorable comes to an end,
0:36:51 > 0:36:53'and with it begins a new era.
0:36:53 > 0:36:54'Long may she reign!'
0:36:59 > 0:37:02I think I actually felt the joy of the occasion,
0:37:02 > 0:37:04just purely with flowers and bunting.
0:37:04 > 0:37:06The moment they stood up and sang was priceless.
0:37:06 > 0:37:08For me, that was brilliant.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11I can't believe Daisy actually successfully made a cake
0:37:11 > 0:37:14that people could eat without spitting it out.
0:37:14 > 0:37:17That's really good, I'm really pleased for her.
0:37:17 > 0:37:19And, yeah, it's been a really good day.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35- Oh, it's revolting.- Is it getting in your face?- It's so disgusting.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38- Sorry.- I can smell the sink and everything you've washed up in it.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41I literally scrubbed that sink yesterday, so it should be clean.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45So far, Daisy's time has been dominated by domestic duties.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48But today she's got the chance to go out
0:37:48 > 0:37:51and get a taste of some respectable '50s fun.
0:37:52 > 0:37:55I think you're done.
0:37:57 > 0:38:00Ballroom dancing was a hugely popular leisure activity
0:38:00 > 0:38:04in '50s Britain, with over 200 million tickets sold every year.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09People flocked to dance halls across the country,
0:38:09 > 0:38:12all dancing to the same music and following the same steps.
0:38:13 > 0:38:16Left foot forward for one.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19Right foot to the side and slightly forward for two.
0:38:19 > 0:38:23Close your left foot up to your right foot for three.
0:38:23 > 0:38:25Now, can I see you doing that?
0:38:30 > 0:38:33Daisy and her friend Ella have come to the local village hall
0:38:33 > 0:38:37to be taught ballroom dancing by someone who learnt in the 1950s -
0:38:37 > 0:38:38Angela Rippon.
0:38:43 > 0:38:47- Hello.- Hi.- Daisy?- Yes, hello.
0:38:47 > 0:38:50- And Ella?- Yes, nice to meet you.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53- I have to say, you both look lovely. - BOTH:- Thank you.
0:38:53 > 0:38:56Well, I have to tell you, a 16-year-old in the 1950s,
0:38:56 > 0:39:00if you were a proper young lady at that time, you would not be able
0:39:00 > 0:39:04to go to a dance if you could not do proper, grown-up dancing.
0:39:04 > 0:39:07'The extraordinary thing about ballroom dancing
0:39:07 > 0:39:11'when I was a teen is that you were doing what your parents did.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14'Most of the time, I was dancing at events
0:39:14 > 0:39:17'that I went to with my parents, so I got the advantage of being able
0:39:17 > 0:39:20'to dance with my dad who could really dance well.'
0:39:21 > 0:39:23Now, all we're going to do is three steps.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25You're going to go forward...
0:39:25 > 0:39:26sideways...
0:39:26 > 0:39:29- and then bring together. All right? - All right, I've got that.
0:39:29 > 0:39:34Do it again. Forward... sideways, bring together.
0:39:34 > 0:39:36Back, side, together.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38You can waltz!
0:39:38 > 0:39:41Ready? And...go.
0:39:41 > 0:39:47Three, back, two, three, forward, two, three, back, two, three,
0:39:47 > 0:39:50back, two, three.
0:39:50 > 0:39:52OK?
0:39:52 > 0:39:54In time with the music, that's it.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56'Being able to dance formally
0:39:56 > 0:39:59'and properly in the '50s was certainly very important.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01'The majority of young women were
0:40:01 > 0:40:06'thinking about growing up, getting married, being a housewife,
0:40:06 > 0:40:09'doing that as a career, and having children.
0:40:09 > 0:40:12'And being able to dance was all part of that.
0:40:12 > 0:40:16'You had to learn how to, you know, be a good wife and a mother,'
0:40:16 > 0:40:19and a good social companion for your husband.
0:40:20 > 0:40:23We're going to do the quick step.
0:40:23 > 0:40:25Which is what it says. It's quicker.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28As simple as that.
0:40:28 > 0:40:31Forward, forward, side. Straight lines.
0:40:31 > 0:40:35Back with your left. One, two, sideways.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39You can see how ballroom dancing is, sort of... It's formal
0:40:39 > 0:40:43because there's a set pattern to the steps.
0:40:43 > 0:40:47It's not, like, music of the 21st-century - the 20th century! -
0:40:47 > 0:40:51or even later in the '50s and '60s when it was rock and roll,
0:40:51 > 0:40:54and you could, kind of, freestyle and do, really, what you liked.
0:40:54 > 0:40:57But in ballroom dancing, there are set steps.
0:40:57 > 0:40:59And, go.
0:40:59 > 0:41:03One, two, sidestep, one, two, sidestep...
0:41:05 > 0:41:08THEY LAUGH IN FRUSTRATION
0:41:08 > 0:41:12One, two, sideways. One, two, sideways.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15One, two, sideways. One, two, sideways.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18Go back. One, two...
0:41:18 > 0:41:21Once you'd mastered the steps, you could go on to the real thing -
0:41:21 > 0:41:23have fun dancing with boys,
0:41:23 > 0:41:25and even possibly meet your future husband.
0:41:27 > 0:41:30'We would go to a dance hall in Plymouth called The Majestic.
0:41:30 > 0:41:34'And the girls would all sit around the outside, and the boys
0:41:34 > 0:41:37'would come up to you and say, "Can I have this dance, please?"'
0:41:37 > 0:41:40And you'd be sat down with your girlfriends,
0:41:40 > 0:41:42and you'd size him up, and if you thought, "Yeah, he's a bit fit,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45"he's all right," you'd say, "Yes, thank you so much."
0:41:45 > 0:41:47And you'd get up, you'd be very demure,
0:41:47 > 0:41:49and you'd go out and dance, and you'd get that physical contact.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52That's the great thing about ballroom dancing.
0:41:52 > 0:41:54Of course, you get the physical contact of it.
0:41:54 > 0:41:58And if you didn't like the look of them, you'd say, "No, thanks."
0:42:02 > 0:42:05I totally enjoyed dancing. Even though I can't do it very well,
0:42:05 > 0:42:07I still have a laugh and it's really nice,
0:42:07 > 0:42:09but it's still formal.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12In the '50s, everything is formal and, you know, I have to go
0:42:12 > 0:42:15to a dance to meet a husband, to get married and to be like my mum,
0:42:15 > 0:42:18- and it's quite annoying!- Yeah.
0:42:18 > 0:42:22SHRIEKING
0:42:22 > 0:42:25I get stressed when I can't do things perfectly!
0:42:35 > 0:42:38It's Saturday afternoon and Rob's on his way to the pub.
0:42:40 > 0:42:431950s boozers were a different world -
0:42:43 > 0:42:47no women, no kids, but plenty of beer and fags.
0:42:47 > 0:42:50Before the link between tobacco and cancer was well-known,
0:42:50 > 0:42:54cigarettes were cheap and smoking was a national pastime.
0:42:54 > 0:42:57The expenditure survey features countless examples of daily
0:42:57 > 0:42:59spending on tobacco.
0:42:59 > 0:43:0380% of men smoked and you could light up anywhere -
0:43:03 > 0:43:05at home, at work,
0:43:05 > 0:43:07even on the pitch.
0:43:13 > 0:43:17A respectable housewife like Steph would certainly not have
0:43:17 > 0:43:19gone to the pub to smoke and drink.
0:43:20 > 0:43:24Luckily, there's plenty at home to keep her occupied.
0:43:24 > 0:43:28# A woman's touch can weave a spell
0:43:28 > 0:43:32# The kind of hocus-pocus that she does so well
0:43:32 > 0:43:36# With the magic of a broom She can mesmerise a room
0:43:39 > 0:43:41# With a whisk-whisk here and a whisk-whisk there
0:43:41 > 0:43:43# And a dustpan for the cinders With a rub-rub here
0:43:43 > 0:43:47# And a rub-rub there She could polish up the winders... #
0:43:48 > 0:43:51I'm here in the house and, actually,
0:43:51 > 0:43:53I'd quite like to be in the pub as well...
0:43:53 > 0:43:57without the criticism of, "But have you done the washing?"
0:43:57 > 0:43:59Because I bet you there was a lot of that went on.
0:43:59 > 0:44:02"Yes, it's all right, dear, you can go off and do whatever you want
0:44:02 > 0:44:05"as long as there's dinner on the table, the house is clean,
0:44:05 > 0:44:07"my shirts are starched," all that sort of stuff.
0:44:07 > 0:44:11"Absolutely. Have as much free time as you want." Er...there isn't any.
0:44:11 > 0:44:15I was expecting it to be the communications tech that I would miss.
0:44:15 > 0:44:18I hadn't really thought about the domestic tech that
0:44:18 > 0:44:21I absolutely take for granted.
0:44:21 > 0:44:23I miss the washing machine, the dishwasher.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25I mean, you've got a mangle and you've got a washboard
0:44:25 > 0:44:27and you've got a rudimentary sink.
0:44:27 > 0:44:30It feels like I'm just waiting for the explosion of technology
0:44:30 > 0:44:32to happen that's going to really free me.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35By Jove, the tech is going to free me.
0:44:41 > 0:44:43By the second half of the decade,
0:44:43 > 0:44:46Britain's economy was finally picking up.
0:44:46 > 0:44:51The average wage jumped from £7 a week in 1950, to just over £10.
0:44:53 > 0:44:55Almost everyone had a bit more money to spare
0:44:55 > 0:44:59for treats like children's cinema club,
0:44:59 > 0:45:02a regular Saturday morning fixture across the country.
0:45:05 > 0:45:08- NEWSREEL:- Today, the modern housewife uses aluminium foil,
0:45:08 > 0:45:10for that is the correct name...
0:45:10 > 0:45:14The club screened anything from westerns to educational documentaries.
0:45:16 > 0:45:19The films are quite boring for us
0:45:19 > 0:45:23compared to what we watch in the 21st century.
0:45:23 > 0:45:27But the good thing is, as usual, it's an adult-free zone.
0:45:28 > 0:45:31My parents will probably tell me to sit down, shut up.
0:45:31 > 0:45:33Now I can sort of turn on Harvey and just do that.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37It wasn't just kids who were getting treats.
0:45:37 > 0:45:41The expenditure surveys reveal how women were too,
0:45:41 > 0:45:45like this young woman from Hackney who bought herself a little
0:45:45 > 0:45:46luxury for Valentine's Day.
0:45:47 > 0:45:50A powder-puff for one shilling and threepence.
0:45:53 > 0:45:57Capitalising on this new market, Boots' cosmetics range exploded
0:45:57 > 0:46:01and Polly's come to meet their archivist Sophie Clapp.
0:46:01 > 0:46:05In the '50s, in store the range expanded on a scale that had
0:46:05 > 0:46:06never happened in the past.
0:46:06 > 0:46:09We started to introduce things like this beautiful
0:46:09 > 0:46:12powder for after the bath.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14I mean, this is just pure luxury.
0:46:14 > 0:46:17- It's just a bit of being a film star in your home, isn't it?- Absolutely.
0:46:17 > 0:46:19And what about the cost of these?
0:46:19 > 0:46:21What was the most expensive in the range?
0:46:21 > 0:46:24So surprisingly, it was our lipsticks.
0:46:24 > 0:46:26- That was seen as the luxury item. - Oh, really?
0:46:26 > 0:46:29It was beautifully decorated with these stars,
0:46:29 > 0:46:30again, that touch of glamour
0:46:30 > 0:46:33and the idea really was that women could pull it
0:46:33 > 0:46:35out of their handbag with a flourish,
0:46:35 > 0:46:37because they were confident because it looked so beautiful,
0:46:37 > 0:46:39so that was the real aspirational piece.
0:46:39 > 0:46:42And you definitely get a sense that this is what women want.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45You know, they've had this period of not being able to treat
0:46:45 > 0:46:47themselves, so by the end of the decade,
0:46:47 > 0:46:49they're very comfortable on buying themselves a treat.
0:46:49 > 0:46:51And it's sort of self-perpetuating, isn't it?
0:46:51 > 0:46:53You know, the more you have, the more you want,
0:46:53 > 0:46:57the more that's available, and it just sort of goes on and on.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00Sort of the beginning of the rise of consumerism.
0:47:00 > 0:47:02Complete explosion.
0:47:04 > 0:47:06"I've splashed out on a little treat for you.
0:47:06 > 0:47:11"A new lipstick in the most popular shade in 1956, copper rose. Enjoy."
0:47:11 > 0:47:13From Polly.
0:47:19 > 0:47:21Oh, my word. That's wild.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27This is the first, like, ultra-glam thing that's happened to me
0:47:27 > 0:47:30in the '50s and I know it's only a lipstick, but I'm really chuffed.
0:47:30 > 0:47:32Thank you, Polly! It's a lovely present.
0:47:32 > 0:47:37I kind of feel a bit more... you know...more modern.
0:47:43 > 0:47:49# Oh, the good life
0:47:50 > 0:47:56# Full of fun Seems to be the idea... #
0:47:56 > 0:47:59After seven days in the '50s, the Ashby-Hawkins are beginning
0:47:59 > 0:48:02to look like a picture book version of times gone by.
0:48:03 > 0:48:05The kitchen might be his usual domain,
0:48:05 > 0:48:08but Rob's starting to feel at home in the shed.
0:48:09 > 0:48:11He's spent all morning making a table.
0:48:11 > 0:48:13The instructions are bit vague,
0:48:13 > 0:48:15because it looks like there should be a lip here,
0:48:15 > 0:48:19so I've given it a lip and now I'm going to put the very last leg on.
0:48:19 > 0:48:22I've really enjoyed sanding as well. It's all...smooth and lovely.
0:48:22 > 0:48:24Very satisfying.
0:48:24 > 0:48:28Well, he's been doing something in the shed for hours.
0:48:28 > 0:48:29Yet to see what it is.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32I'm sure there will be a grand reveal at some point,
0:48:32 > 0:48:35but I think his DIY has got better.
0:48:35 > 0:48:37Or should I say less worse?
0:48:38 > 0:48:43Yeah, sturdy, solid and level, and that was without a spirit level.
0:48:43 > 0:48:47I've never ever made a table before.
0:48:47 > 0:48:49I think I'm really proud of it.
0:48:49 > 0:48:51I didn't think I could do it when I started.
0:48:51 > 0:48:53I'm really pleased with that.
0:48:53 > 0:48:59- My attractive, modern table. - Ooh!- Wow! Look at that!
0:48:59 > 0:49:01- Did you really make it? - I really made that.
0:49:01 > 0:49:03- That's really cool.- Huh?
0:49:03 > 0:49:06Seriously, I'm really impressed that you've put it together.
0:49:06 > 0:49:14My dad's table, which he made, which I thought was pretty... It was OK.
0:49:14 > 0:49:16My dad is normally all cooking and stuff.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19It doesn't seem right that he suddenly transfers all the way over to DIY.
0:49:19 > 0:49:23It's a bit weird seeing him in another form, sort of.
0:49:29 > 0:49:32It's 1958! Yay!
0:49:34 > 0:49:35By the end of the decade,
0:49:35 > 0:49:40a new generation was emerging with a name all of their own.
0:49:40 > 0:49:42- NEWSREEL:- This is the age of the teenager.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45Youth 1958, what's it got to say for itself?
0:49:45 > 0:49:47This is us, see? We're today.
0:49:47 > 0:49:51If you don't dig us, shoot away some square joint with the rest of the creeps,
0:49:51 > 0:49:54or why not stick around and get with it?
0:49:54 > 0:49:57In 1958, Britain had a million more teens
0:49:57 > 0:49:59than at the start of the decade.
0:49:59 > 0:50:01Thanks to full employment and the new welfare state,
0:50:01 > 0:50:05they were healthier and wealthier than any generation before.
0:50:05 > 0:50:08Teenagers across Britain rejected conformity
0:50:08 > 0:50:13and embraced their own fashions, fads and, most of all, music.
0:50:13 > 0:50:17- Right, OK, that's a lot older than I expected it to be.- Right.
0:50:17 > 0:50:21- So, I guess...- # One, two, three o'clock, four o'clock, rock... #
0:50:21 > 0:50:22I think we have to tune it in.
0:50:22 > 0:50:24# ..Six, seven o'clock eight o'clock, rock
0:50:24 > 0:50:27# Nine, ten, 11 o'clock 12 o'clock, rock... #
0:50:27 > 0:50:31- SHE SNIGGERS - Do you want to dance?
0:50:31 > 0:50:35- I'm not dancing.- Come on, darling! You have to.- I'm not dancing.
0:50:35 > 0:50:37And unlike ballroom dancing,
0:50:37 > 0:50:39it isn't up to Daisy's boyfriend TJ to take the lead.
0:50:39 > 0:50:44- We're not actually going to dance. Do we have to?- We have to.- OK.
0:50:44 > 0:50:46Erm...
0:50:46 > 0:50:50- I have no idea what I'm doing. - What are you doing?- I don't know!
0:50:50 > 0:50:54- Do I keep in time with you? - Yes, just keep the foot... Right.
0:50:54 > 0:50:58- So sorry!- You're not sorry, though, are you?
0:51:01 > 0:51:03Rock and roll signalled a sea change.
0:51:03 > 0:51:06The days of following in your parents' footsteps were over.
0:51:18 > 0:51:20- Boom!- Boom!
0:51:20 > 0:51:21It's really, really nice.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24Like, the clothes have changed, I'm a lot more, like, relaxed.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27I had fun in the first time in this decade!
0:51:29 > 0:51:32And change is afoot for Steph too.
0:51:32 > 0:51:33I got rid of her mangle and everything,
0:51:33 > 0:51:37and we're going to put this in there to make her life easier.
0:51:38 > 0:51:41So far, Steph's life in the '50s has left her very little
0:51:41 > 0:51:44time for leisure and the washing has been the most time-consuming
0:51:44 > 0:51:45chore of them all.
0:51:48 > 0:51:52But Rob's bought her a surprise present, a piece of technology
0:51:52 > 0:51:55- that would change women's lives forever.- Just here.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00There we go. Looks nice, doesn't it?
0:52:02 > 0:52:05Thanks to the relaxation of borrowing laws,
0:52:05 > 0:52:08which led to a surge in hire purchase, modern appliances
0:52:08 > 0:52:12were finally becoming affordable to ordinary families.
0:52:12 > 0:52:14Ms Harrison, what have you bought on HP?
0:52:14 > 0:52:19Well, there's the mixer, the fridge, the washing machine,
0:52:19 > 0:52:21the dishwasher and the polisher.
0:52:21 > 0:52:27In 1958, sales of washing machines leapt by 48%,
0:52:27 > 0:52:30eclipsing even fridges in their popularity, and no wonder,
0:52:30 > 0:52:33when washing was one of the most time-consuming
0:52:33 > 0:52:34tasks of a woman's 75-hour week.
0:52:37 > 0:52:40- ARCHIVE ADVERT:- It's the new English Electric Liberator.
0:52:40 > 0:52:42You can be miles away
0:52:42 > 0:52:45and when you come back, your washing has been done for you.
0:52:48 > 0:52:53- Come and have a look. Come on. Go through and have a look.- What is it?
0:52:53 > 0:52:58It's for you to find out. It's to make your life easier.
0:52:58 > 0:53:00Thanks.
0:53:00 > 0:53:04- That's pretty impressive, actually. - What does this do?- That does...
0:53:04 > 0:53:05That's a lever.
0:53:07 > 0:53:09With hot water.
0:53:11 > 0:53:14MACHINE WHIRS AND SQUEAKS
0:53:16 > 0:53:19Oh, I think it might need oiling.
0:53:19 > 0:53:22Look how filthy the water is.
0:53:25 > 0:53:281950s women would've thought it was a miracle.
0:53:29 > 0:53:31We're not there yet, but it's a simple...
0:53:31 > 0:53:34It's a beacon in the corner of the kitchen.
0:53:34 > 0:53:37We might actually be able to get out that way
0:53:37 > 0:53:39and that men might actually come this way.
0:53:43 > 0:53:48I'm excited because I actually get to go out.
0:53:48 > 0:53:52# Good golly, Miss Molly! #
0:53:52 > 0:53:55Hopefully this is the start of a bit of liberation for me,
0:53:55 > 0:53:56so, you know, my nice washing machine -
0:53:56 > 0:54:00maybe life is looking up for me as a '50s woman.
0:54:00 > 0:54:02Oh, God, I really hope so. I really do.
0:54:09 > 0:54:13And...
0:54:13 > 0:54:16- it's 1959!- Yay!- Woohoo!
0:54:16 > 0:54:17The last year of the decade.
0:54:17 > 0:54:20We're celebrating the end of the 1950s
0:54:20 > 0:54:23and I WILL be celebrating the end of the 1950s.
0:54:23 > 0:54:27I'm looking forward to the '60s, so we're having a few friends round
0:54:27 > 0:54:30and we've got some fabulous 1950s party food,
0:54:30 > 0:54:32which consists 90% of Spam.
0:54:32 > 0:54:35I expect there's a technical term for this in 1950s housewife arena.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38It's probably persuading,
0:54:38 > 0:54:42persuading a blancmange out of the mould or something, isn't it? Right.
0:54:42 > 0:54:44I'm going in.
0:54:44 > 0:54:48- Oh. I heard a plop. - SHE GIGGLES
0:54:53 > 0:54:55Hm.
0:54:55 > 0:54:59I think we're going to need a bigger plate.
0:54:59 > 0:55:01Guinness?
0:55:01 > 0:55:02One Guinness for you, look.
0:55:05 > 0:55:08I'm joining the party to find out how the family got on in the 1950s.
0:55:10 > 0:55:14- There you are, sir.- What's that? - It's a festive ginger beer.
0:55:14 > 0:55:19We have devilled eggs, we have sardines, we have Spam.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22- Corned beef.- And if you don't like Spam, we've got Spam with tomato.
0:55:22 > 0:55:27Rob is quick to use the occasion to show off his new-found skills.
0:55:27 > 0:55:29What do you think it looks like? What does it look like?
0:55:29 > 0:55:32- It looks functional.- And? - And stylish.- And...
0:55:32 > 0:55:34What do you think it looks like?
0:55:34 > 0:55:37I think it looks like an attractive, modern table.
0:55:37 > 0:55:39CHEERING
0:55:39 > 0:55:41How's it been? How has the '50s been for you?
0:55:41 > 0:55:44I am glad it's over, because it's been really hard,
0:55:44 > 0:55:45because I've been in all the time.
0:55:45 > 0:55:48How's it gone with the DIY? How's it gone in the shed?
0:55:48 > 0:55:51DIY started off poorly, but I became better as I went along.
0:55:51 > 0:55:54- Do you think you'll kick on and make more things?- No.
0:55:54 > 0:55:57No, I'm finishing on top. I've peaked, that's it.
0:56:01 > 0:56:05It has given me an appreciation of what it was like in the '50s,
0:56:05 > 0:56:09because we have lived it 24/7 and it's so different.
0:56:09 > 0:56:12It's so different from our lives now.
0:56:12 > 0:56:17As a '50s woman, leisure didn't really exist for me. It just didn't.
0:56:19 > 0:56:24I think the '50s was... It was very strict and conventional.
0:56:24 > 0:56:26In the evenings, we would play cards and we would talk
0:56:26 > 0:56:29and that was quite nice, but as a family,
0:56:29 > 0:56:32there wasn't a great deal of leisure time that we had.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35This experience has made me really appreciate, you know, my freedom
0:56:35 > 0:56:38as a person because I can go out at any time.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42I don't have to stay at home and clean the kitchen.
0:56:42 > 0:56:44I don't have to do that.
0:56:45 > 0:56:47I think I have had the best deal out of everyone.
0:56:47 > 0:56:50I'm the only one that sort of can do what I want to do, rather than
0:56:50 > 0:56:55being put in their place by social expectation.
0:56:56 > 0:56:59The Ashby-Hawkins have survived a decade of austerity,
0:56:59 > 0:57:02hard graft and rigid convention.
0:57:04 > 0:57:08The '60s are fast approaching with the promise of a bit more freedom.
0:57:09 > 0:57:14- ALL:- # I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts
0:57:14 > 0:57:19- # There they are all in a row - Boom, boom, boom
0:57:19 > 0:57:24# Big ones, little ones Some as big as your head... #
0:57:31 > 0:57:33It's clearly been very difficult for them.
0:57:33 > 0:57:36They're a very modern family, you know, even by modern standards,
0:57:36 > 0:57:38so to go back to that era of conformity,
0:57:38 > 0:57:41for there to be so little freedom of expression,
0:57:41 > 0:57:43they're restricted in everything that they do,
0:57:43 > 0:57:46they have very little freedom of movement, apart from Seth.
0:57:46 > 0:57:49He's really happy. Seth seemed to think it was marvellous
0:57:49 > 0:57:51and when we think of the '50s as a golden age,
0:57:51 > 0:57:54the people we're listening to are people who are old now, who were Seth's age then.
0:57:54 > 0:57:58We're not hearing the voice of Rob and Steph, we're hearing the voice of Seth.
0:57:58 > 0:57:59Clearly it was a great time to be 12.
0:58:16 > 0:58:20Next time - it's out with the old... and in with the new...
0:58:20 > 0:58:22Oh, yeah!
0:58:22 > 0:58:25..as the Ashby-Hawkins swing into the '60s.
0:58:25 > 0:58:28Yeah!
0:58:28 > 0:58:30I'm free!