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- Wages were rising quickly, but living standards were well below today's. On average people earned a lot less than they do today, even allowing for inflation. In 1950 the average weekly wage was £5.60. In 1959 it was £8.90, an increase of nearly 60%.
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People living in 1950s Britain saw many changes after the Second World War. There were differences in living conditions, work, transport, entertainment and music. However to begin with, life...
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- National Savings Club Poster
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C. S. Lewis published The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.British troops were sent to Korea, they fought with American forces as the first military action of the Cold War. Around 60,000 members of the British armed forces served, many were National Servic...Winston Churchill became Conservative Prime Minister, aged 77 years after leading the country during the Second World War.On the 100 years anniversary of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the Festival of Britain in 1951 showcased British achievement since the Second World War. This was a bright look at the future. The fe...Two members of a Soviet spy ring Donald Maclean and Guy Burgess escaped to Moscow. They infiltrated the intelligence system in Britain and passed information to the Soviets during Second World War...The UK’s first National Park, the Peak District was introduced. This was soon followed by the Lake District, Snowdonia and Dartmoor. National Parks protected by the government, allow the public to...King George VI died, Britain’s wartime monarch. Elizabeth, his eldest daughter became Queen Elizabeth II, our longest reigning monarch4,000 people die in London’s ‘Great Smog’Britain tested an atom bomb in the Monte Bello Islands off the coast of Western Australia.James Watson and Francis Crick discover the structure of DNA and how it served as the ‘building blocks’ of life.Ian Fleming published the first James Bond book, Casino Royale.New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Nepalese Tenzing Norgay are the first to reach the summit of Everest.The DH.106 Comet launched as the world’s first commercial jet airliner.Medical student Roger Bannister ran a mile in under 4 minutes.Rationing, in place since the Second World War ended.Winston Churchill resigns due to ill health, Anthony Eden takes over as Prime Minister.Television with adverts began, the first commercial channel was ITV.Mary Quant opened her first shop, ‘Bazaar’ in Chelsea, London.Ruth Ellis was the last woman to be hanged in Britain. Her execution played a major part in the movement to abolish the death penalty.The Clean Air Act was introduced in response to London’s Great Smog of 1952 to prevent pollution from smoke.Britain’s first nuclear power station at Windscale.Dodie Smith published 101 Dalmatians.Suez Crisis – Britain and France invade Egypt after the Suez Canal is nationalised, but are forced to withdraw under American pressure.Anthony Eden resigned. Harold MacMillan became Prime Minister and said “most of our people have never had it so good”.The Gold Coast became the first African state to become independent of Britain, renamed Ghana.The Treaty of Rome signed by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany created the European Economic Community, later the E.U.22 out of 40 people on board BEA Flight 609 died at take-off from Munich airport. Those killed included eight members of Manchester United’s football team who were nicknamed ‘the Busby Babes’.Britain’s first motorway opens, the Preston by-pass, a section of the M6. This motorway now covers 230 miles from the Midlands to the Scottish border.Britain’s first parking meters introduced in Mayfair, London.Michael Bond published A Bear Called Paddington.The first Mini motor car was built by British Motoring Corporation, became an icon for the 1960s. The cars used less petrol and were a cheaper to run!The first postcodes introduced by the Post Office in Norwich.Stevenage had been designated as Britain’s first New Town. It was built with the first traffic-free shopping zone which was officially opened in 1959 by the Queen Elizabeth II.The 1950s were the 'never had is so good' years. Wages were rising quickly, but living standards were well below today's. On average people earned a lot less than they do today, even allowing for inflation. In 1950 the average weekly wage was £5.60. In 1959 it was £8.90, an increase of nearly 60%.
Sep 15, 2022 · In 1952 when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne, the UK was a major economic power, but still reeling from the costs of the Second World War, with rationing and austerity still visible. The post-war period saw a remarkable rising living standards, strong economic growth and radical changes in…
The UK’s first National Park, the Peak District was introduced. This was soon followed by the Lake District, Snowdonia and Dartmoor. National Parks . protected by the government, allow the...
People living in 1950s Britain saw many changes after the Second World War. There were differences in living conditions, work, transport, entertainment and music.
In 1950s Britain, a decade of noteworthy social, economic, and cultural changes unfolded. Following the austerity of World War II, the country commenced a rebuilding process. Rationing persisted into the early years of the decade but ceased by 1954, leading to a gradual enhancement of living standards. The inception of the Welfare State ...
