Mr Davison
Children "breeched". Hiding from Zeppelin. Co-op food department and ordering system. Horse and carts with milk, rabbits etc for sale. Crystal radio. Miniature railway delivering coals to the back yard. Middens, washhouses, lines across the alley, a few street lights. Fetching water, washing in rain barrel. Camping with scouts. "Pit time" ten minutes late to fit round trains. Women's work cleaning and mending pit clothes, proggy mats and baking. Newspaper for toilet paper, fetching water, horse muck. Children's games including skippy, jack shine a light, cigarette cards, red ash got everywhere...

Miss Marcantonio
Family background - parents from near Cassino in Italy, came to England with little money. Started manufacturing ice cream and opened a café. Father fought in world war one. Started working in business at 14. Parents strict - boys had more freedom than girls. Father built house on Jesmond Dene. Making ice cream by hand. Progress of business. Father interned on Isle of man during world war two. Home front experiences of prejudice and violence against the Italians. Sense of identity. Italian food.

Bill Dixon
Father a shepherd, went to feasts at certain times. Father asked to drive cattle to Carlisle. Sow that ate lambs. Country bumpkins. Saw Halley's comet. Staying on farm in Birkenside, largely self sufficient, sent wool to Otterburn Mill, so tried to gather more. Watching the slag tipping at night at Consett ironworks - done in the day in world war one. Moving house. Father bad tempered, beat the children - large family. Grandfather died while on a horse trap on the moors. Uncle Tommy died eating "maxi mutton" - i.e. from sheep found dead. Aunts died eating berries as children. Lived at Bluehous...

anonymous woman farmer
Worked on the land at Flint Mill, Pockerley and Beamish Mills. Resident throughout world war two, worked with German prisoners of war, and land girls. Life on the Beamish estates

songs
Accordion and singing, including Scotland the brave, Yankee doodle, Phil the fluther's ball, trumpet hornpipe (captain pugwash), New York girls - on accordion. Talks a little about performing and dancing. Sings - lish young buy a broom, tom and dick and Harry, bonny moorhen, you'll never miss your mother till she's gone

anon
Evacuated just before world war two broke out, stayed in Middleton in Teesdale. Introduced to rural life, different experiences - feeding goats, swimming in the river etc. Soldiers around. Siren was a policeman with a whistle. Aeroplane came over, shots in the street. Sweets hard to come by, things gradually rationed though to start with not too bad. After two years went back to live in Walker. Air raids heavy. Uncle too young to join up, at 18, but had to do fire duties. Family stayed together, all the women in house of grandfather. Inside the air raid shelter, gasmasks and gas suit for baby....

High Level Ranters
Northumberland forever: dance and song from the north east, 12T186– show us the way to Wallington- the peacock followed the Hen; The Sandgate Girls lament- Elsie Marley; Bellingham Boat- Lambskinnet; Adam Buckham; Meggy’s foot; The lads of North Tyne- The Redesdale hornpipe; The Hexhamshire lass; Tom Gilfellon; The breakdown- Blanchland Races; The lads of Alnwick- Lamshaw’s fancy; Byker Hill; Whinham’s reel- Nancy; Because he was a bonny lad; Salmon tails up the water; Sweet Hesleyside; Dance to your daddy; Billy Boy; Nae Guid luck aboot the hoose; Mi’ Laddie site ower late up; The Keel Row- K...

Collinson Birch
Grandmother in wheelchair. Moved in 1935 to High Heaton – road works, man watching tools overnight. Quiet streets. Street sellers. School play, keen reader, didn’t recognise mother with new false teeth. Evacuation to Eastbourne - kids battles. Outbreak of war, windows with tape on etc. Bomber coming low nearby. Watching air raids, hunting shrapnel etc, waiting in Anderson shelter, fire when goods station bombed. Game spinning milk bottle tops, chasing barrage balloons, talking to Home Guard, taking golf balls on course. Visiting local smith, old ruined house with prisms from chandeliers. Men g...

Mrs Philips
Father killed in Seaham colliery, mother and children forced to move out. Eldest brother delivered milk, and neighbour with policemen lodgers helped, gave them all her dripping. Money situation, on relief. Mother had to go to work with two small children in tow. Playing nearby, round gasworks and Dawdon Dene. Bathed in poss tub, first sight of friend’s bath, and flush toilet. Netty with big hole and small one for children, shared with other families. At five, sat on the back axles of a funeral cab and went along with them. Didn’t want to go to school, mother said they were just going to the bu...

Mrs Reay
People would wipe your face if fell over, mothers didn’t like you to get mucky. Father and brothers miners, she helped mother at home. Piano lessons till teacher wouldn't let her off to visit sister. School – discipline, she was a “talker”, would avoid reading books and ask others for summary. Singing lessons. Teasing young teacher. Pupils pushed towards having a career. Helping to poss. Cleaning at the water works part time. Interested in hair styling, used to do own and friends and others, though many older women had tight buns. Mother helped at chapel, she and friends helped out, could be ...

Mrs Young
Page 1 A housewife’s daily life: early morning breakfast, children to school or to work, daily shopping, dinner at 12 for the children and in the evening for working members of the family. Weekly rota of cleaning clothes, washing, bread baking, older widows cooked a few cakes for pence. Widows eked out pensions made toffee, knitted socks for miners; others helped her with coals and firewood, liked to stay in their own homes. Houses two rooms and back yard, bungalows or one up one down, rooms let for half a crown a week. People were content, first pensions 10-- a week Pag...