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Perhaps you'll learn more about me as you read my blog. For anyone who translates my blog using the translator facility, don't forget if you wish to read the comments in your own language to click on the title of the post down the left hand side otherwise they will remain in english. Also I assume that the translation is accurate but I don't know, so please allow for errors.

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Years And Years Ago...

I had an Auntie and Uncle who were probably similar to the stereotypical image of a suburban couple living and working in London. He caught the train to the city, walked across Waterloo bridge and managed a big departmental store(or that's what we were led to believe)in reality he probably was manager of a particular floor in that store and resembled the character Captain Peacock in the TV sitcom Are You Being Served.

I don't think my Auntie worked(by choice?)though I suspect she probably was involved on various local committees of various organisations(?)There was even an air about them and could've even been the characters played by Paul Eddington and Penelope Kieth in The Good Life. The house was small(two up, two down)as was the garden. They chose(?)not to have children but they had the obligatory cat. They drove a Morris Minor.

He went to work wearing a bowler hat, a pin stripe suit, carried an umbrella and newspaper. She wore tweed two piece suits. She talked liked Dame Anna Neagle. Looked a bit like her too.

Anyhow after all that background...the point is...they never owned a TV. They were to be honest a bit snobbish about television. I assume they listened to the radio and back then when I did visit perhaps the one and only time(I was very young)they had record player but I don't remember a great library of records and the only one I do remember which is a bit of a surprise was the comedy album by US comedian Bob Newhart about the lady being taken for a driving lesson by an instructor.

However, whenever they used to visit my Uncle's Sister in a neighbouring town to mine and stay for a week or two they were mesmerized by television.  Perhaps if you don't have something like a TV in the house you don't miss it or get taken in. For quite some time I fell out of love with TV and found it boring(perhaps I was not looking at the right programmes)and as Mum became ill we both started to watch less and less, And when she passed away I felt strange watching programmes we had shared. I also found it difficult to take an interest in any of it.

I go through phases now where I can easily find myself letting TV wash over me if I let it or I channel surf not really watching anything. Then occasionally I do get into a film and stay the course. I prefer one off films/programmes to watching series'

Again I suspect in time I will get back into some kind of regular TV viewing and find something that gets my attention.

I was going to watch a few things last night and gave up. I watched the first of a sitcom starring and written by comedian Peter Kay. I may watch the second one tonight but if I miss it I won't be that bothered. I was also going to watch an old Clint Eastwood film co-starring Shirley Maclaine "Two Mules For Sister Sarah" which I have long since forgotten but gave up on that too.

I did pop out to the supermarket to buy a birthday card for my friends birthday next week so that's one task taken care of. And when I came home I found a ready meal in the fridge(I'd missed)out of date but I cooked it well, smelled it, looked at it, tasted it and decided it was OK and it was. So I had mince, dumplings and gravy.

Oh and as for my Auntie and Uncle...they did finally give in and purchase a TV of their own. But we are talking quite late in the day and they have been dead for years. We in the UK first accessed satellite TV around 1989 and I don't think they were alive when that started(or perhaps my Auntie was around a little longer)but having taken so long to get a TV I doubt they would've stretched to that technology. And probably therefore they still were only accessing two public channels from the BBC, ITV and Channel 4.

Had they lived they would've probably managed to go as far as having Freeview which offers viewers in the UK more channels via a different delivery system for free. But then again my own Father passed away so long ago he missed out on satellite, Freeview and never saw a computer or the internet but I know had he lived he would've embraced the new technology and been on here.

Some of my references may be less understandable if the programmes have not been shown in your country or you are too young.


2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think back in the 50s and 60s. it wasn't the "done thing" for a married woman to work, was it? My mother got married in 1945 and have to give up her job working as a bank teller.

I was a child/teenager during the 70s, so I remember very well all those old sit-coms. I did love The Good Life. :)

A-L

1 May 2015 at 18:16  
Blogger The Great Gildersleeve said...

I think that you are right about mothers working. My Mum went to work before I was born(or I was too young to remember)I do know she worked for a Dry Cleaners(that doesn't exist anymore)I assume it was a national retailer called "Zip"

Before marriage a high class food retailer in the town she was born and lived(in the 40's)called Lingfords(again)not there any more.

Another retailer in the North with a reputation called Dogarts.

Disappeared years ago.

There's a pattern here, can you see it? Another dept store Robinsons, another called Dressers which sold books, stationery, art equipment, toys and ornaments etc...

Some time working for the cooperative in one of their big stores and then finally an exclusive clothes retailer on my town(approx. 5 mins from home)Again all gone.

Mum always seemed to be there for me especially in my early years.

But I do remember times where my grandma used to do my meals during school terms(luckily she lived quite close to both my home and school)so even then grandparents were depended upon much as today.

I didn't stay for school meals.

2 May 2015 at 00:33  

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