Things you remember from your childhood that would not be ok today!

[Starlight1984]

Light-hearted and inspired by the comments on the baby in the pub thread (and TikTok!)😀

But what are things you remember from your childhood that people would be absolutely outraged at today?!

I remember being babysat by our neighbours child when I was 4/5 and she was about 12/13. God knows what she would have done if anything went wrong as there were no mobile phones to get hold of our parents?! 🤔

Also remember going to the pub in the summer but kids weren't allowed inside so we sat in the beer garden with a coca cola and bag of crisps whilst the adults were inside 😂

Early 1980’s, Sunday morning
ride bike down the newsagents, aged 14 for 20 Rothmans cigarettes , a tin of st Bruno ready rub tobacco, pay the papers (always thought what a waste of money and never had a regular paper all my life), a Jackie magazine, and ten pence of sweets from the penny sweets or a quarter ounce of pear drops or toffee crunch I think it was called.

Oh God and the smoking....

One teacher in my school (mixed) reportedly caned every boy in one class because none of them would own up to some misdemeanour. Even at the time (1970s) this was shocking. There were men teachers who were known to keep a cane and use it.

We got .milky coffee in the winter at my third primary. My brother was at secondary so he got warm Vimto.

Yes to being hit/ caned/rulerered at school. And it wasn't what you did, it was which teacher you had that determined punishment.

I could write a book.

Nearly every time that my parents and I visited my grandparents, shortly after our arrival grandad would hand me an A5 sized envelope containing a ten shilling note (worth 50p in today's money) and I would trot off up the road to the Off Licence of the local pub.

There was no bell on the door of the Off Licence and no bell to ring on the counter, I had to climb up onto the brass bar that was installed about a foot from the floor to shout out and announce my arrival. The lady who worked in the Off Licence was very nice, she always said, "Hello, dear, Mr Farrow's cigarettes?"

I would say, "Yes, please", and she would take the ten shilling note out of the envelope and replace it with 20 Senior Service or Capstan cigarettes and the change from the ten shilling note, then she would seal the envelope and give it back to me. She always gave me a few sweets for free, usually Black Jacks or Fruit Salad, and off I would trot back to my grandparents' house.

Better not get started about how the railway station at the top of my road was the playground for all the kids in my area, I could bore you all to death with that.

Being left in the car in the summer while mum did her weekly food shop! All three of us under 8, youngest 4. Just wow

I remember making snowflake Christmas decorations in Junior school. This was achieved by heating up a knife over a flame and using it to cut/melt a shape out of a polystyrene ceiling tile. The snowflakes were then attached to the classroom ceiling and we broke the polystyrene offcuts into small pieces to make a kind of mosaic spelling out "Merry Christmas 1973" on the notice board.

I was born in 1957

Sitting in front of my 16 year old brother on his motorbike at the age of about 3, he was speeding around the village roads at about 50mph

At the age of 9 getting the bus into Belfast to look for second hand records in the market, batting off pervy old men creeping up behind you.

Common to see white dog poo on the pavement, they were let out in the morning to wonder the streets.

Going on my own to the cinema and being scared out of my wits at the banshee in Darby O'Gill and the Little People.

Everyone smoking. Getting hit with a wooden pointer by the teacher. Calling at random people's houses to take their dogs out, you'd never seen them before.

That reminds me of being on a swing when we were on a caravan holiday, I was wearing a new frock Mum had made for me, and when the swing was at its highest I jump off, having done it loads of times, however this time my new frock caught on something and it tore badly. I got such a telling off, my grazed legs where I'd landed badly were just bathed.

Junior school - there was a fad for bringing in Tipp Ex and painting our nails with it - also Tipp Exing our names on pencil cases - basically using it for just about every purpose you can imagine other than correcting mistakes. I may be wrong but I can't imagine nowadays that nine-year-olds would be allowed to mess about with solvents in school!

My daughter, in her 20s, went on a city break with another young woman, planning on going into the city for a night out. I warned her that the son of our friends was now a policeman in that city and may have to arrest her if they drank too much. Hah, if he does I'll just tell him and anyone listening that we used to have a bath together when we were small!

We used to be picked up from school to go on a long journey to Weymouth lying on the back seat with cushions and blankets.

Just remembered another one, my primary school had a swimming pool (think giant, deep paddling pool type structure). In the summer holidays the school would leave the whole site unlocked during the day and anyone who fancied a dip could let themselves in, no supervision required.
You had to climb up a ladder to get into the pool, it was absolutely freezing and there was no shallow end - it was all about 75ft deep (or do it seemed at the time!!). I have the best memories of spending days in there.

I can remember almost everything pps have described. What a lovely walk down memory lane. I was just about to pop in and say that we used to tie a rope around the lampost and make a kind of loop for a "seat" and swing round and round - but the lampost was on the grass verge beside the main road and often we'd swing over the cars we'd go that high. But someone got there before me with the tale of ropes around trees and knives etc.😊

I don't recall being smacked or anything, but maybe I was. However, the teachers at school used a big wooden ruler to slap the palms of your hands. But they were lovely ironically, and would make you put your hand out but would barely tip you with the ruler.

Believe it or not, I remember my first day at school, over sixty years ago now. It was a small three teacher school. The reception class teacher or whatever it was called back then was a Mrs. Rynne. All the reception kids were in a big long row at the front of the class and she sang a song for us..... I remember it to this day - "Who's afraid of the big bad wolf, the big bad wolf" She was a bit of a terrorist and every kid including me were screaming and roaring with fright. It's like it was yesterday.

In winter at my primary school (c.1980) a huge sheet of ice would often form down one side of the playground. The headmaster would stand at one end and a queue of kids at the other. One by one they'd do a run up then skid the whole way down the ice to be caught by him at the end. He'd then gesture 'next!' Huge fun but a miracle nobody broke their neck.

I've remembered another. We had no heating, just a coal fire, and in the winter my mum would fill lemonade bottles with hot water to cuddle in bed.

Male teacher in first year in grammar school pinging my bra strap.

Had my hair in a feather cut, which was a bit like a mullet. Huge clumpy platform shoed.

Same. The old boot went to sit down next to me, I hadn’t quite swung my legs around to under the table, and gave me a swipe on the back of my legs. I remember the naughty kids went up the Headmistress for the ‘slipper’.

Used to do exactly this at 10 or 11, but with siblings and cousins following along behind - I was the eldest, youngest was 6 or 7, and we went off for the whole day, cycling for miles. Nobody knew where we were or what we were doing; we had a few coins to use in a phone box in an emergency, but that was about it as far as safety precautions went. I can remember it being a bit hair raising at times, especially as the responsibility for all the other kids fell on me!

Also, in terms of things not allowed now, was employed from age 13 in various Saturday jobs, working long days and earning two thirds of bugger all, but still managed to save for a car by the time I was 17.

This stuff seems shockingly lax now, but it definitely fostered resilience, independence and the ability to think for yourself. There was a lot wrong with the 70s and 80s, but it was a pretty good time to grow up.

Going on holiday in the early 80s on planes with seats that would be classed as business class now and my dad lighting his cigar to have with his brandy. The proper days of air travel before package holidays were really a thing. I can never get my head around why we were allowed to light up in flying tin cans

Sister would give me a backie on her bike in our pjs to the sweet shop to get sweets on a main road. Dad would shove me in the back of his van with a duvet on long journeys! I was mortified!

So many.

Going out in people's cars with 5 or 6 kids squished in the back seat and baby on the mums lap.
Kneeling in the boot of granny's van.
No kids in the pub after 7pm so all the kids in the beer garden with a coke, packet of crisps and 0 adult supervision , if you were lucky there was a half broken play frame to play on.
Family party (usually at the pub) and kids sleeping on 2 chairs pushed together after exhausting themselves on previous beer garden adventures. Leaving a party for a kids bedtime was unheard of.
Kids birthday party where everyone is sat at the table singing happy birthday and every adult is smoking. Bonus points if said party is also in the local pub with all the adults having beers whilst chain smoking the entire party.
Pubs been considered appropriate children's party venues - not function room or pub with attached soft play, just the lounge of the local.
The local 10 year old babysitting every child over 6months on their street for hours at a time.
Going out to play with all the kids on the street in the morning and drinking from the hosepipe and going to someone's house for sandwiches or snacks. When you are aged 8 and over, just taking yourself off to the park/ railway line/ random scrap yard/ fly tipping area and playing there for hours without telling anyone's mum where you are going.

At my primary school (mid-70s) we didn’t have a school uniform and one day in summer I was wearing a strappy top. I was talking in class when the teacher was talking and she thumped me so hard on the back she left a dark bruise. My mum gave me a rollicking for talking in class and didn’t let me wear the strappy top until the bruise had gone in case anyone asked about it and I’d have to admit I’d been in trouble. WTF?

Having pudding at primary school which was died cornflakes with custard.
Going to the local shop to buy my mum's 20 silk cut cigarettes I was under 12 years old
Travelling in the boot of the car.

This happened loads at my secondary school, we also thought one of the sixth formers was sleeping with the English teacher.

Sounds like Swallows and Amazons from which comes one of my favourite quotes!

BETTER DROWNED THAN DUFFERS IF NOT DUFFERS WON'T DROWN