Historical notes

The occasion of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee seemed like a good excuse to delve back into the past to give a little snapshot of what life was like.

We always think of images of grubby-faced boys kicking a pig's bladder around brick-strewn back streets. Meanwhile girls in plaits and gingham dresses clapped out songs, skipped and played house.

For adults it was a question of back to work. So what was it like for ophthalmic opticians and dispensers (as both were then)?

Sad to say they were ' barely on speaking terms' by all accounts. Something I had also not fully appreciated was just how bad things were for the optical business back then. Later reports refer to the 50's slump.