1950s Childhood Spangles Tiddlywinks And The Clitheroe Kid

A book recalling what it was like to be a child in the 1950s, including home life, school days, music and fashions.

Ivor the Engine, Noggin the Nog, Pingwings, Pogles Wood, Clangers, and Bagpuss - the iconic animations produced by the Canterbury-based Smallfilms studio between 1958 and 1984 - constitute a significant thread of British cultural history. The lasting appeal of the imagined worlds created by Smallfilms is evident in the highly-successful BBC reboot of Clangers (2015-present), which has introduced a whole new audience to the pink moon mice. As well as the shows likely to be famiilar to readers, this history expands the Smallfilms story to include those less well-known animated shows that nonetheless played an important part in the studio's history. Through extensive studio access, interviews with many key Smallfilms collaborators, press and audience analysis, Chris Pallant provides a comprehensive and definitive historical record of the studio's work. Beyond Bagpuss is illustrated with 100 images from the Smallfilms archive, including those that have not previously been published.

Children of the 1950s have much to look back on with fondness: Muffin the Mule, Andy Pandy, and Dennis the Menace became part of the family for many, while for others the freedom of the riverbank or railway platform was a haven away from the watchful eyes of parents. The postwar welfare state offered free orange juice, milk and healthcare, and there was lots to do, whether football in the street, a double bill at the cinema, a game of Ludo or a spot of roller-skating. But there were also hardships: wartime rationing persisted into the '50s, a trip to the dentist was a painful ordeal, and at school discipline was harsh and the Eleven-Plus exam was a formidable milestone. Janet Shepherd and John Shepherd examine what it was like to grow up part of the Baby Boomer generation, showing what life was like at home and at school and introducing a new phenomenon – the teenager.

Do you remember Beatlemania? Radio Caroline? Mods and Rockers? The very first miniskirts? Then the chances are you were born in the or around 1960. To the young people of today, the 1960s seems like another age. But for those who grew up in this decade, school life, 'mod' fashions and sixties pop music are still fresh in their minds. From James Bond to Sindy dolls and playing hopscotch in the street, life was very different to how it is now. After the tough and frugal years of the fifties, the sixties was a boom period, a time of changed attitudes and improved lifestyles. With chapters on home and school life, games and hobbies, music and fashion, alongside a selection of charming illustrations, this delightful compendium of memories will appeal to all who grew up in this lively era. Take a nostalgic look at what it was like to grow up during the sixties and recapture all aspects of life back then. PAUL FEENEY is a writer and part-time business consultant. He has also written a local history of Highgate and A 1950s Childhood: from Tin Baths to Bread and Dripping. He lives in Surrey. "If you grew up in the Swinging Sixties, you’ll love Paul Feeney’s A 1960s Childhood." Reviewed in Yours Magazine, 23rdFeb ’10. "The author captures the atmosphere and 'furniture' of the Sixties to perfection, even recreating a typical family Christmas of the time. Whether you were a child or an adult in that most eventful decade, this excellent book, with charming black and white illustrations, will throw up lots of talking points." Reviewed in This England, Summer 2010 edition

Born in 1948, Maureen Harvey was brought up in a poor working-class household in Birmingham at a time when the city was still a major manufacturing centre. Despite her family's poor circumstances, the author recalls a childhood filled with family pride and neighbourliness; of making do with whatever came to hand; of being thankful for small mercies. This was an age where the deserving poor could write to the Daily Mail and receive a pair of serviceable boots free of charge; when as a small child Maureen would forage for coal and wood for fuel. The industrial working classes really were 'poor, but proud and honest'. The perfect book for readers of nostalgic historical non-fiction, about life in Britain as the country emerged from the grim years of the Second World War.

Do you remember PathÉ News? Taking the train to the seaside? The purple stains of iodine on the knees of boys in short trousers? Knitted bathing costumes? Then the chances are you were born in or around 1950. To the young people of today, the 1950s seem like another age. But for those born around then, this era of childhood feels like yesterday. This delightful collection of photographic memories will appeal to all who grew up in this post-war decade; they include pictures of children enjoying life out on the streets and bombsites, at home and at school, on holiday and at events. These wonderful period pictures and descriptive captions will bring back this decade of childhood, and jog memories about all aspects of life as it was in post-war Britain.

Do you remember Pathé News? Taking the train to the seaside? The purple stains of iodine on the knees of boys in short trousers? Knitted bathing costumes? Then the chances are you were born in or around 1950. To the young people of today, the 1950s seems like another age. But for those born around then, this era of childhood seems like yesterday. From waking up to ice on the inside of the windows, washing in a tin bath by the fire, and spoonfuls of cod-liver oil, home life was very different than today. A 1950s Childhood in Pictures is the companion book to Paul Feeney’s bestselling paperback edition. This delightful collection of photographic memories will appeal to all who grew up in this post-war decade, whether in town or country, wealth or poverty. With chapters on games and hobbies, holidays, music, and fashion, the wonderful memories and delightful illustrations will bring back this decade of childhood, and jog memories about all aspects of life.