Leisure and travel Flashcards
Greyhound racing pre-WW2
2nd largest sport
Affordable for the working-class
June 1927 White City Stadium became the biggest track
100,000 people would attend to bet on their favourite dogs on busy nights
Betting appealed to working-class people
Growth of spectator sports 1918-1939
20s and 30s – 22 million per year attended professional football – similar for amateur football
Great Depression – sports clubs in deprived parts of the country struggled – declining ticket sales and cheaper tickets - difficult to survive financially.
Other sports had middle-class audiences between the wars: tennis, show jumping, and golf all attracted large audiences – 50,000 people paying to see the Ryder Cup in 1933.
Broadcasting sport pre-WW2
Radio broadcasts on sport began in 1927
1936 – BBC broadcast live from football matches – worried the FA – people would not attend matches.
Helped increase mass participation in football and the amount of money that sport could generate began to increase.
Audience was exclusively male - little impact on women.
The impact of WW2 on spectator sports
Stadiums closed during the war due to fear of casualties from bombing
Effected morale and demand from the population led reopening.
Military formed teams. and hosted matches for charity
1943 55,000 attended a football match at Chelsea which raised £8,000 for naval welfare charities.
Successful cricket matches were staged between the British Empire XI and the London Counties XI.
Services football team played France and Belgium in their capital cities in September 1944 shortly after their liberation- swept for mines beforehand.
Development of spectator sports 1945-79 - the decline of cricket
1948 Ashes Australia vs England was almost as popular as the 1948 Olympics
Asian immigrants was a stronghold fan base - enjoyed watching England against their native country.
50s favourite game was cricket but in the 60s due to deference it became a sport for the upper and middle-class
1955 there was 3,473 cricket matches but in 1965 it was 2,268
Development of spectator sports 1945-79 - the growth of football but the decline in footfall
Colour TV introduced in the 60s
1966 World Cup final, 32 million viewers watched England defeat West Germany.
Benefit – increased investment in sporting facilities in the 60s and 70s.
The blackout rule 1960’s - prohibited matches being shown that kick off at 3 and instead could only be shown from 17:15 onwards in order to increase footfall
1964 Match of the Day - allowed people to watch the highlights of other matches at home - previously only had the radio to give score updates and commentate
High wages for footballers - the wage caps were scrapped in 1960 and professional footballers could now earn huge amounts through advertising
Hooliganism in the 60s and 70s
Glasgow and the Rangers over religious reasons
Teams in the cities - predominantly Northern and London led to rivalries - outlet for people
The decline in living standards during the 60s and 70s resulted in built up anger especially among the working-class who typically attended the matches
High alcohol consumption led to violence - put others off from attending (old men)
Associated with Skinheads, Rockers and Teddy Boys
Resulted in clubs building fences to try and keep fans off the pitch
Holidays in the 20s for the wealthy
Tourist facilities – expensive hotels in seaside and spa resorts and leisure facilities like golf courses - Sailing was popular
Many people went to seaside holidays for their health, so brochures advertised that side
If they go abroad, it is usually to locations such as the French Riviera or Greece to look at museums or art galleries
Holiday Pay Act
1938 - Strongly suggests employers pay for 3 consecutive days of holiday
The difference in holidays based on class 60s and 70s
1965 – full employment and more workers rights – 60% of working adults had 2 or 3 weeks of paid holiday a year and 25% had no paid holiday
1960s – 1/3 middle class had holidays abroad but around 1/5 of the working class could afford to go overseas on holiday.
Around 1.5 million people holidayed abroad in 1951 compared to 8.5 million in 1972.
Declined again from 1973 due to the rise in prices.
Tourism 1918-1939 - Boarding houses
Cheaper option - run by spinsters/widows who lost marriages during WW1
1920s – 4,000 boarding houses in Blackpool
Became less attractive as there was limits – not given their own keys or had curfews
Landladies had strict operating rules of behaviour – considered overbearing
The growth and decline of Butlins
1936 – 1st Butlins in Skegness – weeks holiday for a week’s wages
1939 – 100,000 visitors per year at Skegness and Clacton
Cheap with activities and entertainment + 3 meals a day
Ended domination with the introduction of cheap package holidays
1960s – 6 more camps built but visitors declined in the early 1970s
Dislike of the regimented nature – increased demand of more individual holiday experiences
Butlins began to market holidays to teenagers and young people instead of just families to combat its decline.
Stories of vandalism, drinking, teen sex, and antisocial behaviour damaged Butlins reputation
Holidays during WW2
Government tried to prevent travel for leisure to free up roads
Railway companies banned from running extra trains during peak holiday hours
Ineffective – seaside holidays continued
Government tried (some success) to promote – ‘holiday at home’ – mainly accepted holidays were good for morale
Wartime institutions like POW camps – later used for holiday camps
Foreign tourism 1950s to 1970s
Foreign places changed during the 1960s to high-rise holiday apartment blocks and hotels, with bars, cinemas, and restaurants
Combination of cheap accommodation, cheap flights, and hot weather was attractive to British holidaymakers who now afford foreign travel.
Increase in British holidays to the Mediterranean in the 1960s (8% of all British holidays in 1971) allowed for developments and encouraged tour operators to find similar overseas locations.
1960s – the gov (to keep the value of the pound high) prevented people from taking more than £50 out of the country per year – limited the scope of holidaymaking, and the number of holidays people could take.
The growth of caravanning
1934 – 90 types of caravans available to the public
Individual type of holiday unlike holiday camps.
Boom in car ownership and growth in driveways
End of 70’s – ½ the population had been on caravan holiday
