Videos tagged with factories

A life in Lewisham, South London, spanning 90 years

A life in Lewisham, South London, spanning 90 years

John Deal was born in 1921 and has lived in the same house in a conservation area of Lewisham for all of his 90 years. John explains what life was like as a child growing up in the 1920sa and then goes on to speak in vivid detail about the differences in the Lewisham area before, during and after the Second World War. In terms of shopping, commerce, industry, home-life; Lewisham was a thriving area, something which has gradually died out... There were countless factories making anything from biscuits, guns and motorcycles to London's fire engines and buses (which used to be made in Greenwich). John gives a fascinating and detailed insight into how life in London has changed in the past century.

Life in the aftermath of WW2 for a working-class girl in South London

Life in the aftermath of WW2 for a working-class girl in South London

In the second part of her interview Violet speaks of the days after WW2. When her grandfather died her parents her self and her sister took over his flat and that is where she stayed until she was married. Violet describes the conditions of the flat, which seemed quite luxurious compared to other families of her background. They had an in-door bathroom and a roll-top bath in the kitchen. She speaks of her school days and the many different jobs she worked in after leaving school at 15... she worked in everything from being a machinist to a sausage linker! In those days working-class women never had the opportunity to go to university, factory and office work was what they all did until they were married...

Childhood memories of post-war life in the North East of England (Part 2)

Childhood memories of post-war life in the North East of England (Part 2)

In the second part of her interview Sylvia recalls more of her childhood memories growing up by the River Tyne in the North East of England. Her father worked for the Co-Op and everything that the family needed was bought using tickets. Sylvia recounts her first trips to the big shopping centres to buy her first high heels and fabric to make micro min skirts in the 1960s. As a small child, some of the activities children used to invent to pass the time were highly imaginative and there was a real sense of safety on the streets. Games included dressing up, playing detective and 'Knock Down Ginger'. Children used to crave sweets and when rationing was still in place Sylvia and her friends used to concoct sweet replacements to get over their cravings.