Britain in the 60s

[tex]

Realise DYR is for 70s onwards but i know this short film from the 60s will interest many on here as it is more a portrayal of what it was like to be a kid growing up in the poorer areas of Britain which even then were still recovering from the hardship caused by ww2. It should be of interest to NON brits in particular who may not share the same childhood memories as many on here....Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0n5cSN-bG0

[tex]

Re: Britain in the 60s

Realise DYR is for 70s onwards but i know this short film from the 60s will interest many on here as it is more a portrayal of what it was like to be a kid growing up in the poorer areas of Britain which even then were still recovering from the hardship caused by ww2. It should be of interest to NON brits in particular who may not share the same childhood memories as many on here....Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0n5cSN-bG0

Mmmm...no interest, must say i'm surprised.

[CrystalBall]

Re: Britain in the 60s

Interesting film - I recognise some of the images from books about the period. I was born in 1967 so my childhood memories are mainly from the mid-late 1970s, but this reminds us how run down many areas of the country were in the two decades or so following WW2. Even in the 1970s there was still quite a lot of dereliction around. I can remember boarded-up terrace houses and abandoned mills and factories in the Leeds/Bradford area in probably the early 1970s, but the high-rise blocks that replaced the terraces were completely unsuitable and falling apart within 20 years. Noticeable how children played outside on the street in those days rather than being glued to a screen.

[George 1978]

Re: Britain in the 60s

I have always wondered whether DYR would think about extending to cover the 1960s as well as the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, even though obviously a lot of members would be too young to remember that decade.

The 1960s has always been an iconic decade and I believe that a poll done in around 2000 revealed that the 1960s was the best decade of the 20th century as voted by the public. At my Junior School we watched the 1960s series of How We Used to Live which was shown in 1987-1988, and of course Heartbeat (set in the 1960s) has always seemed to be more iconic than Ashes to Ashes or The Grimleys (set in the 1970s).

The shorthand for that decade seems to me, black and white television, miniskirts, Pirate Radio, The Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers and so on - the decade seems like a British one to me. It's a pity that Angus Deayton wanted to put the decade into Room 101.

[Mulletino]

Re: Britain in the 60s

My dad was in his 20s in the 60s in London and has many interesting stories from then, from The Krays trying to run him and his mate over (they weren't on their own turf so wouldn't get out the car) to travelling to the seafronts to fight mods (he was a rocker) on public holidays. I love it when he tells us the stories from then, although he only does it when mum's not about.

[battyrat]

Re: Britain in the 60s

There was a big difference between the early 60's and the late 60's both in British music and culture. It was a hell of a time of change for the country.

I think the late 60's and early 70's felt to me to be fairly consistent as a kid. Only around 76-77 did I start to notice much change in the 70's with peoples attitudes changing towards each other. Don't know if it was to do with Unions or generally people were getting fed up and the punk mentality was starting to creep into every day life.

[zabadak]

Re: Britain in the 60s

I was born in the '60s but remember the '70s better.

Having said that, we went on our one and only family holiday abroad in '68, Estartite in Spain.

My earliest memories are, indeed, from the '60s but are not very clear. School, mostly...

[Richard1978]

Re: Britain in the 60s

While my Dad has a lot of fond memories of the 1960s he has often mentioned there was plenty of things around then to get on your nerves.

[tex]

Re: Britain in the 60s

While my Dad has a lot of fond memories of the 1960s he has often mentioned there was plenty of things around then to get on your nerves.

I guess most of the nostalgia that we hold so close to our hearts was not so great at the time and that looking back is probably better than the reality in a lot of instances

[George 1978]

Re: Britain in the 60s

They do say that those people who remember the 1960s weren't there at the time. I wasn't there at the time as I born many years later so...

[Arran]

Re: Britain in the 60s

It could be argued that the 1960s were the last of Britain as a free and independent country before we joined the EU. There were probably a lot of Leave voters in the EU Referendum who based their decision on this fact.

Information I have from people who lived through the 1960s is that society back then was a lot more socially conservative than the media in more recent times makes it out to be. The liberalism and the change in attitudes associated with 1960s didn't really take off amongst the masses until the 1970s.

Enoch Powell was overwhelmingly viewed as a hero by ordinary people after delivering his famous speech.

[George 1978]

Re: Britain in the 60s

Good points, Arran - do you think that the 2020s will see Britain go back to being an independent country just like it was before we joined the EU? In other words, do you think we would go full circle in that respect?

[zabadak]

Re: Britain in the 60s

God I hope not...!

[staffslad]

Re: Britain in the 60s

In the 50s and 60s Britain was indeed quite socially conservative, with liberalism being a kind of counter-culture that gradually grew stronger in the late 60s until now it is social conservatism that is the counter culture. Looking from 2018 back to the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, social attitudes of the time are derided by many--lots of phobes and isms. However, in a few decades I expect that people of that time will look back at the social attitudes of the 2010s with equal contempt. Each generation thinks it social attitudes are the correct ones and derides those of earlier generations. It has been like that for a long time and will continue for a long time.

[amethyst]

Re: Britain in the 60s

A few things to recall Beatlemania when girls were screaming their heads off.1963 The great train robbery.When Harold Wilson became the labour prime minister famous for smoking a pipe,winning the 1964 election.Coal fires to keep warm no radiators in my parents home.Christmas time was tough not many presents but we were grateful for what we received,no gadgets in those days.