Period Nanny State Reminders

[LadyArowana]

If you think that's going to get you a Kit-Kat from me, Yer Ladyship, you're much mistaken. So go ahead and shove a potato up my exhaust pipe.

:lol: but the laugh is on you, I don't eat chocolate, so would really rather have the potato ( not up the exhaust pipe though :shock: )

 

[DJH]

Now I'm worried the zombies will get in...

Never mind the zombies... I'd be more concerned about Lady A and Joce getting in for a good look... :lol:

Doug

 

[Penners]

You should be so lucky...!

 

[Zebra]

What other "tricks" did people used to do on Hallowe'en when out trick or treating, in the days when such things didn't carry risks of litigation? I think these days it's pretty much treat or treat.
I haven't got any sweets in - what might the local under-tens Mafia do to my dear house if I refuse their demands for protection money?

 

[Penners]

What other "tricks" did people used to do on Hallowe'en when out trick or treating, in the days when such things didn't carry risks of litigation?

In those days we didn't Trick-or-Treat. Britain had its own culture, back then, rather than blindly copying everything that the USA does. Hallowe'en was barely observed at all.

 

[DJH]

Can't find that broom this morning... :lol:

 

[Feltwell]

Alas Penners, as one involved in the sale of tat to support such events, I can report that bonfire night is in terminal decline (well, the sales of fireworks are anyway) and Halloween is more popular than ever.

I can recall the bemusement us natives experienced when watching all our American neighbours in the 1970's (I lived near an American Air Force base) celebrate Halloween, and the trick-or-treating, which was very alien. All the British kids were strictly banned from doing something so naughty.

However, I can report that round here at least, "Happy Halloween-ing" is much more prevalent. Kids get dressed up - they put a lot of effort into it actually - and go round, generally with a parent hovering at the end of the driveway, knock on doors and simply wish "Happy Halloween" and sometimes sing a song in the hope of a reward, with no extortion threats to do anything nasty. Mine made some "scary" ghost-shaped biscuits and gave those out as they went round a few immediate neighbours. All very harmless really, even if it's not what we did as kids.

 

[LadyArowana]

Alas Penners, as one involved in the sale of tat to support such events, I can report that bonfire night is in terminal decline (well, the sales of fireworks are anyway) and Halloween is more popular than ever.

Personally I'm not too sad about the decline of fireworks. In ye olden days there were always lots of nasty injuries, and not necessarily to people who were doing anything irresponsible. I would rather watch a proper orgainsed display from a safe distance ( about 5 miles :lol: )

 

[Feltwell]

I'm actually with you on that Lady A. I do like Fireworks, but every year there is a story of idiots misusing them, people/animals being terrified / injured, etc etc. I used to spend every bonfire night under the dining table consoling our old collie when he was alive, he was so scared of the sound.

Modern home-use fireworks aren't as dangerous or loud as those of old though, the EU changed the regs to reduce the explosive content a few years ago.

For those who hate fireworks, take comfort that last week one of the biggest importers told me that the major retailers are about 40% down year-on-year on firework sales so far this year, and that is against being around 30% down last year. So the home-use market is in very steep decline.

 

[Penners]

Kids get dressed up - they put a lot of effort into it actually - and go round, generally with a parent hovering at the end of the driveway, knock on doors and simply wish "Happy Halloween" and sometimes sing a song in the hope of a reward, with no extortion threats to do anything nasty.

My grandsons did just that, last night. The youngest (Edward, 3 yrs old) was pushed to the front because he charmed the maximum quantity of goodies out of people with his, "Scuse me - please can we have some trick-or-treats?" Between the three of them they amassed 37 bags of sweets!

The dentist is planning a Caribbean holiday.

 

[Flyfisher]

I can recall the bemusement us natives experienced when watching all our American neighbours in the 1970's (I lived near an American Air Force base) celebrate Halloween, and the trick-or-treating, which was very alien. All the British kids were strictly banned from doing something so naughty.

Mrs FF says much the same thing as she was also brunged up near USAF bases, though fireworks were the big thing for the native residents. Their dogs were never scared of the bangs but could get frustrated that they were not allowed to run out and search for the pheasants they were expecting to fall from the skies.

As a north London lad, halloween was pretty much a non-event for me and it was all about bonfire night and fireworks (including the homemade ones we used to make with saltpetre and sulphur bought from the local chemist shop - don't tell me the shopkeepers didn't know what 12/13 year olds wanted such things for!).

By the time FF junior arrived, Halloween was a big thing but we didn't do the door-knocking thing in preference to combining it with a bonfire party that a friend always held after we'd walked all the kids through the nearby woods trying to scare them with ghostly noises (what sort of twisted upbringing is that? :lol: ). We'd then spend the rest of the evening sitting around the bonfire eating sausages, drinking wine and toasting marshmallows. Happy days - shame the kids have to grow up really.

 

[DJH]

Halloween is very big over here. I've been trying to persuade everyone to have a Bonfire Night so we can celebrate when we burnt a Catholic at the stake. :shock:

Doug

 

[LadyArowana]

By the time FF junior arrived, Halloween was a big thing but we didn't do the door-knocking thing in preference to combining it with a bonfire party that a friend always held after we'd walked all the kids through the nearby woods trying to scare them with ghostly noises (what sort of twisted upbringing is that? :lol: ). We'd then spend the rest of the evening sitting around the bonfire eating sausages, drinking wine and toasting marshmallows. Happy days - shame the kids have to grow up really.

You know grown ups are allowed to do what they want, so there's no reason you can't go walking through the woods making funny noises and then have a big fire in the garden and burn a dirty mac stuffed with straw........ hmmmmm on second thoughts maybe there are some things grown ups shouldn't do.

 

[atticman]

Up here in sunny Scotland, Hallowe'en, or Hunty Gowk (hunt the witch, I think?), was celebrated by most local kids back when I were a lad (early 1960's), but we called it
Guisin' (concatenation of dis-guisin-g).

Same as trick or treat without the trick - dressed up and went round the neighbours and sang a song, told a poem or a joke etc etc.

It still happens, but is usually just a bunch of kids on the doorstep with their hand out, and a lot of them seem to expect cash not sweets!!

Ah, how times have changed!

 

[noj]

Twas always playing with explosives for me (and still is...)

And we discovered last night that our ancient little cottage squatting in the midst of suburbia must be seen as the local haunted house - none of the packs of little beggars ventured past the front gate!

It does mean I'll be forced to eat all the little bags of Haribo myself now

 

[Flyfisher]

You know grown ups are allowed to do what they want, so there's no reason you can't go walking through the woods making funny noises and then have a big fire in the garden and burn a dirty mac stuffed with straw........ hmmmmm on second thoughts maybe there are some things grown ups shouldn't do.

There was never any burning of effigies, we're not completely loopy . . . :lol:

 

[Penners]

When I worked for an advertising agency in Ipswich, in the 1960s, the company used to hold an annual boat race on the park pond around the 5th November. The rules required that you should design and build your own model boat, to be powered by firework(s) to the value of no more that ten shillings. The winner was the boat that travelled the farthest in a straight line from the starting point (on the water, not under or above it!).

The time and trouble that most people went to in building their boats was wonderful, and the event itself was hilarious. Boats would submarine (yes, a rocket will continue to burn underwater!), take off, rotate at high speed, catch fire, explode... etc.

In retrospect, it was all highly dangerous, but nobody was ever hurt.

 

[philpjuk100]

When I worked for an advertising agency in Ipswich, in the 1960s, the company used to hold an annual boat race on the park pond around the 5th November. The rules required that you should design and build your own model boat, to be powered by firework(s) to the value of no more that ten shillings. The winner was the boat that travelled the farthest in a straight line from the starting point (on the water, not under or above it!).

The time and trouble that most people went to in building their boats was wonderful, and the event itself was hilarious. Boats would submarine (yes, a rocket will continue to burn underwater!), take off, rotate at high speed, catch fire, explode... etc.

In retrospect, it was all highly dangerous, but nobody was ever hurt.

Our model flying club did something similar with model aircraft,it was usually a balsa/tissue type plane with tinfoil behind the rocket outlet and had to be powered with a 6d rocket (the type that just went "woosh") someone cheated and bought a more expensive rocket which gained a lot more height and then finished up with a great starburst destroying the aircraft!.

 

[Penners]

Do you remember Jetex model aircraft, Phil?

http://www.jetex.org/index.php

I built several, as a boy.

 

[philpjuk100]

Yes,I remember those! The fuse/gauze/gaskets and pellets,had a small motor, (50?) which my dad bought me in a tethered car which also saw duty in a hydroplane and a scale glouster with an "augmentor" tube.Times have moved on,I saw a chap at a local ex RAF runway with a model car powered by a minature gas turbine which had to be run up and shut down using a laptop!(never saw it run "sotware problems"!) never had that with jetex!.