The effect of WW2 on living standards and leisure (T2)

Question 1

What happened to the average wage during WW2?

Answer 1

It doubled

Question 2

What were the effects of the blitz?

Answer 2

• 3.5 million homes bombed

- 60 million changes of address

Question 3

How did housing change due to WW2?

Answer 3

• 1944 Housing and Temporary Accommodation Act
• After WW2 prefabricated homes were built
• 1946 New Towns Act

Question 4

What were the regional variations in health and diet after WW2 like?

Answer 4

Infant mortality: 5.17 per 1000 in Wales, 0.86 in Kensington

Still no national healthcare - hospital care a ‘postcode lottery’

Question 5

What surprised families who looked after children during WW2?

Answer 5

The children’s diets - They would rather eat fish and chips or biscuits for dinner than vegetables

Question 6

What was the overall impact of rationing in WW2?

Answer 6

Gov. price controls meant food became more affordable, working class had a healthier diet

Question 7

Who ran the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign in WW2?

Answer 7

The Ministry of Food

Question 8

What did the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign encourage people to do?

Answer 8

To grow their own vegetables

Question 9

How many Britons were killed in WW2?

Answer 9

450,000

Question 10

In 1944 what did Beveridge calculate about unemployment?

Answer 10

85% of all long-term unemployment was in South Wales, Scotland and North of England - the war highlighted the regional differences

Question 11

What did clothing rationing during WW2 do to help the class divide?

Answer 11

Levelled fashion across all classes - life became more drap during this time

Question 12

In 1946, what % of consumer expenditure was controlled by rationing?

Answer 12

25%

Question 13

In 1948, what % of consumer expenditure was controlled by rationing?

Answer 13

30%

Question 14

How did National and regional radio change during WW2?

Answer 14

National and Regional programmes were replaced with the Home Service

Question 15

Why were National and Regional radio programmes were replaced with the Home Service during WW2?

Answer 15

To prevent enemy aircraft using regional radio as navigation

Question 16

How did the gov. try to boost morale for factory workers through the radio?

Answer 16

Programmes like Workers’ Playtime aimed to boost the morale

Question 17

What were the radio shows during WW2 like?

Answer 17

News and speech based entertainment

Question 18

What were cinemas like in the 40s?

Answer 18

‘Americanization’ of cinemas:

• youths dressed like gangsters + girls like actresses
• Using slang like ‘sez you’

Question 19

What was the 1950 ‘Eady Levy’ charge in cinemas?

Answer 19

A charge on tickets that was used to subsidise British film-making

Question 20

What was the cinema boom in WW2 like?

Answer 20

Popular war films were introduced

• 1942 film: In Which We Serve
• 1943 film: The Gentle Sex

Question 21

What was the 1942 film In Which We Serve about?

Answer 21

About the navy

Question 22

What was the 1943 film The Gentle Sex about?

Answer 22

Exploring the wartime problems for women

Question 23

How did travel change during WW2?

Answer 23

The government tried to prevent travel to free up the roads

Railway companies banned from running extra trains during peak holiday hours

Question 24

What sorts of holidays were popular during the war?

Answer 24

Seaside holidays

Question 25

Give some examples of the popular seaside holidays during WW2

Answer 25

• Wakes Week

- Trip Week

Question 26

What sort of holidays did the gov. try to promote during WW2?

Answer 26

They tried to promote the ‘Holiday at Home’ - it was mainly accepted that holidays were largely good for morale

Question 27

How did the war create more holiday camps?

Answer 27

Prisoner of war camps + military barracks built during the war

These were later transformed into holiday camps - this provided the popularity of the holiday camp culture before the 60s