What Was It Like To Be A Victorian Shopkeeper? | Turn Back Time | Absolute History
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 5. 08. 2024
- A group of modern shopkeepers and their families are on the journey of a lifetime - they're taking over empty shops in a neglected market square in Shepton Mallet to see if they can turn back time for the British High Street. They'll live and trade through six key eras of history and in this episode they begin their journey in the 1870s when the high street was born.
The shopkeepers make up the key trades; there's the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker and the grocer. Overseeing it all is an expert Chamber of Commerce, headed up by greengrocer and Masterchef judge Gregg Wallace.
00:00 Victorian Era
57:57 Edwardian Era
01:53:09 Inter-War Era
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Its so sweet to see them old ladies waiting pĂ tiently in line, smiling, probably the some of the ones appreciating this experience the most. Takes them back to childhood, or even a window to their parents/ grandparents lives
Don't miss the next parts of "Turning Back the Clock: the High Street"
czcams.com/video/KXimHSlht2U/video.html
There is the next part, WWII
(After that are 2 more: 1960s, and 1970s.)
Exactly my thought! Elderly citizens and children's loved it, it seems it brings back memories for them and fun for the children's. The old people are not judgmental about the way the shop owners do business because they lived longer and knew better about what life looks like in old days.
Yeah, my mom really enjoyed going back to the Victorian era. Sheâs 124 years old
In Eastern Europa it was usual to wait 3 h in a line for a loaf of breth - or for anything else.
Imagine a 5 year old you with a coin in the hand - waiting that long and geth nothing in tje end -
It was common.
Toilet paper shortige was also a common thing back than in the communistic dictatures - just to the downfall of the Berlin wal.
People had to be patient and creative back than.
You had also a friend, who had a friend with stuff to change husstle - social contacts to trade things.
Basically - I give you 12 eggs for a role of toilet paper - or a blister of aspirine tablets intead of smal change.
@@tilethio yea but they werenât that old they might have grown up during the Depression they couldnât have been born during the Victorian era lol
The butcher and his son are absolutely adorable and brilliantâŠâŠ loved this whole thing and especially coming from the USA . This honestly just made me smile from beginning to end
It is really funny how he basically started feeling like he really wanted to do more, and how he managed to run the shop on his own in the Edwardian Era.
Like he really started appreciating the work and enjoyed it
I agree! I liked the blacksmith Simon too during the Victorian Era. He is a brilliant craftsman. Sad it became such a lost art so quickly. You could tell how sad he was about that too.
I like buying fresh meat from the butcher⊠I hate theyâre all closing or thereâs no shops anymore, only butcher at the grocery store
@@tiffanyvarelli8834 our town still has a butcher, and we have a couple small old school grocers that have butchers within them. I quit going to Walmart years ago and shop these stores. The prices are surprisingly about the same, but the quality and customer service is SO FAR above walmart..
Someone drug me in there over Christmas and needed an item they lock away, it took over 45 minutes to find someone that would unlock it. RIDICULOUS.
@@dickJohnsonpeter sounds like yall need to overthrow the local government..
Our city council is pro small businesses and does everything they can to promote them
"I'll keep them my whole life!" That's a real impact on a person when you've made something by hand and they like it that much.
Uklhhxvb
That is something I love to hear when someone receives something I've made. I kinda think all makers strive for that.
Trouble is most people I think today, especially since COVID and the cost of living crisis (in the UK at least) would struggle to be able to afford handmade clothes or handmade anything, even if they would prefer it.
Since the 2008 recession and over a decade of austerity measures such as benefits cuts, harsher assessments for things like disability benefits so many people who needed support couldn't access it, budget cuts to many public services such as mental health care, disability support, libraries closed down, huge NHS waiting lists, etc.
All of the above and now with the cost of living crisis many people can't even afford even the cheapest foods at budget supermarkets like Aldi and instead are forced to rely on food banks (which are struggling to keep up with demand as less people can afford to donate to them).
As much as I would love to own a dress handmade especially for me, as I'm sure lots of people would, it's just not financially viable anymore for most ordinary people
â@@benandjerrys338Very well said indeed.
I think my favorite was the blacksmith. You can tell he absolutely adores his craft, I felt so bad for him when his goods started going out of fashion! Although I do think it's adorable how he was so happy to see the kids smiling that he gave away some of his toys for free. What a kind man.
I love the blacksmith. He has so much passion for his craft.
Yup... Hes adorable ...waste his son not
Heâs very invested in the people and the community more so than using them to make money, making him even more charming
My dad learned smithing while growing up in the 20s and 30s, and also got a mastery in college. It was one of his favorite things ever. He taught Industrial Arts as a career, btw.
The 12 year old boy who Simon hired was so responsible in the shop with the customers, like how he stood his ground and said everything was NOT a penny! đ
This is exactly what our colleges and universities should plan for apparentship programs for History students. This will convey a memorable and life long knowledge both for the students, for the communities and bring back memories. If the shopkeepers learn a little of the accent and words of the good old time, it would have been even great. Excellent job by every one involved and keep the videos coming out.đ
You should read Connie Willisâs Oxford History Department books and stories like To Say Nothing of the Dog, Doomsday Book, Firewatch, Blackout, and All Clear. The premise is that time travel was discovered, and the inventors intended to use it to plunder the treasures of the past. However, when they discovered that you could not bring anything consequential forward through time, they gave it instead to history departments. So now, as part of a graduate program, you would be expected to do research on-site in the time period that you were specializing in.
@@calspace Thank you so much for this informative comment. You have helped me with an option for my next book purchase which I do every year by going out with family. Although I am not a historian by proffesion I am very interested to read history books and watch documentaries about the past. Thank you for the recommendation and the works at Oxford School of History.
I would hobestly love to do something like this, if only it was an anual thing just so i can know more of what my family experianced when they went to work.
Itâs like a renaissance fair⊠we did that in high school. Good for theatre majors too
Umdunder hoh: I do have you in the fire pantry although one could exantel that tomorrowday at the gospel. You know.
I feel like the biggest issue for the baker family was that the actual baker wasnât really allowed to do her job, and everyone else pretty much had their stuff ready to sell, the grocer and iron monger always had stock already there, all they had to do was package and sell and the butcher, who was actually doing what he knows, just has to cut and sell. Iâm not downplaying his skills but it was a lot simpler than baking break from scratch and woodfire.
Not to mention the poor Smith! Heâd come in expecting to show off his craft, got one good week and then was relegated to working whatever random shop they threw his way just so they could shoe in the candlestick maker. They talk about how he needs to be a shopkeeper and sell sell sell! But heâs a smith! As a cashier Iâd love to do more swinging hammers at work but selling stuff and smithing are two very different things!
The blacksmith could've done more blacksmithing if he had family helping him man the shop. But he was alone.
I think blacksmithing is still useful.
The bakery's sale would sky rocket if the husband were to just let his wife verbally assist him, rather than just do whatever his ego tells him to and expect to make profit.
it's annoying really, they also made her ''put her foot down'' over the additives to the bread but really it was just the show runners going ''je we can't actually make that and have it sold to customers''. they could just inform us of these old rules then ignore em, or hire a family that's actually got the husband as a baker
They could've also chosen a baker who actually bakes cakes, as that's what they wanted her to make. It's like getting a sculptor in to paint your portrait!
I think it is ironic that in medival times, baking was women's work as was brewing.
I think this series is about a decade old at this point. Still a total joy to watch. Love to see a followup with all the families involved.
@@tinygrim You are seriously deficient in your COMPREHENSION skills. Maybe try some human interaction and leave the cats in the litter-box honeyâŠ.
Yes, one mentioned it was 2010. 12 years old.
@@tinygrim The person above made a point, but wasn't complaining. They still enjoyed the show. I think YOU injected the "waahhhh" and all else. I think you should "do the joy" and not project extra onto others' comments.
@@tinygrim whoa. The person was not complaining at all.. just stating it was an older show. The only negative/whiney comment I have read, not only in this comment thread but the video's whole comment section, was yours. You should take a moment to reflect on your words before you put them out in the universe.
@@tinygrim Wow. Nasty much?
My dad was a baker for a little independent baker. He worked nights and would cycle there and back again, standing all through the night, baking bread for the local community the next day. As if that weren't enough, he had a horrible boss whom I hated, even as a teenager, when I would go and see him in the morning sometimes. He always suffered from bronchitis, probably as a result of breathing in fumes from the flour. A very interesting video.
I felt it in my soul when the butcher saw that cellophane wrapped meat and said it was âthe beginning of the endâ. I work in a grocery store bakery and it feels like the heart and soul of the craft really has died. We hardly do any actual baking. Just cutting and packaging. I hate it.
Especially since period cellophane was made from plant cellulose and was VERY flammable.
It's all about cost vs value. As they said in the show when food was produced by hand the average food budget was 70% of income. Now the average food budget is 10%. I don't think most people want to return to a time when the cost of goods are a much higher percent of income.
@@GeorgeMonet That's not necessarily because the food was expensive. It could also be that most people were poor
@@jamesmcgrath23 Actually George is correct. Food was more expensive in the past in comparison with the cost of other things. It was the mid 1990s when food prices dropped and more discount supermarkets and bargain stores opened. I remember food being quite expensive in the 1970s and 1980s. For example 4 bananas cost ÂŁ1 in the 1970s; now you can get a big bunch for about ÂŁ1.30 in Lidl.
10:24 Caroline still ran a bakery with hand baked breads.
If I go to a restaurant and bakery, I want cooked foods. If it's prepackaged that the workers just heat up then I could just do that myself at home instead of paying higher restaurant prices. It also feels like a scam if it's not cooked in the restaurant.
2:06:00 2:06:34 I like butchers cause I can bring my own reusable container and prevent excess plastic packaging waste. There'll be a reemergence of butchers with people caring about the environment. Even in factories, butchers are needed.
38:08 I like that there isn't excess plastic packaging. But it should be like whole foods grocery stores where people get the food themselves and can bring their own containers or rent glass jars. Like a store on NHK Japan's video called Enjoying Meals with Less Waste - Ethical Every Day.
czcams.com/video/RP0afaUvUoE/video.html
2:42:09-2:42:28 Like with Jill in the 30s, some people do want hand done items.
1:47:36 Some customers enjoyed these kinds of services, community, and the service of special attention to the customers.
People can also make new jobs.
This is why San Francisco has worked very hard to keep large discount retailers like Walmart out of the city. They love their family owned businesses. When I first moved to SF, I missed the large retailers, since that is all I knew. But then I learned to love the character, personal interest, charm and attention you get from smaller family owned retailers. I wish that model could be duplicated in more cities.
Same! There are obviously drawbacks and limitations on the smaller stores, and depending on where in the city you live you donât have ANY shops other than liquor shops, but it is nice to have the small places. Iâve lived in SF for over a decade and it is so convenient to duck down a couple blocks to my local grocery.
As a former butcher, I feel the father so much. Its such a great job and I had to leave because it was just not feeling right anymore, you have no connection to the customers, no time to talk to them, I loved the entertaining part specially and the connection to the customers. I would die to work as a butcher in a place like that. The documentary really reflects everything I loved so dearly about this job. Its frustrating what modernity did to all those amazing jobs and the people never made the experience of this great connection you can have with the worker.
I feel like if him and his son started a shop it would do well, his son is an absolutely amazing salesman
I've watched this series a few times over and over again over the last couple years or so since I came across it. And it's really facinating to see that each shop had its own art to it. Each shop had its own struggles and strives. I wish that there were more shows like this, that took the time to step back and appreciate what our ancestors went through. Maybe a multi-season show, where each season there were new families trying the eras with new challenges. It has a lot of potential and I hope they bring shows like this back.
I don't think they're on CZcams but there's a whole series of similar style programs the BBC has produced, e.g. Back in Time for Dinner. Worth a Google to see if you can find them, really interesting!
â@@post-electric I think some of them are on CZcams - a few on this channel and a few that have clearly been recorded off the TV. Just search "Back in Time".
I think this one was on the largest scale though, most of the others just focus on one family.
Love this!!!!
I felt bad for all the shop owners in all the eras except for the grocery store. They had the better shop to work with. Really I felt the other shops actually had a trade which they made something by hand, even the butcher shop. Grocery store just sold the product, the others made the product which took time and effort. So you couldn't really compare them equally. Kuddos to everyone who participated.
2:42:09-2:42:28 Like with Jill the dress maker in the 30s, some customers preferred her unique hand crafted items over the mass produced clothes ready to sell on the rack.
I hope Andrews son has a change of mind. The knowledge of a butcher is invaluable honestly, especially in this day & age.
âThe food was purer in the Victorian Eraâ I actually laughed. But when you realize what they put into bread to make it whiter and more heavy in a cheap wayâŠ. Plaster of Paris, cement etc.
I laughed as well I watched a few other programs on it and yeah.. alot of people including kids died because of the stuff they would put in the food alone
Victorian's were the worst for health and safety. It was a time of discovery of scientific discovery and new knowledge.
They featured this in the Victorian Bakers series
They literally invented canning and had to rely so much on processed meats that the traditional breakfast has beacon and sausages. Sure food today is ultra processed, but back then people had much less money, food safety, and nutrition education
Ironic, about how the baker husband wasted salt. Anyone looking could see he was using an inhumanly large amount!
With a Master Baker for a wife, he was too arrogant to listen to her hard gained expertise .They said that Female Bakers were rare not unheard of. Had I been his wife I'd have internally debated with myself whether to insist on stepping in and baking, or just stay out of the way and "give him enough rope to hang himself" metaphorically.
I'd have watched him fall and fail to kept him humble, I think, lol
@@jacqueline8559 Yeah, what a jerk.
His arrogance is what started the ball rolling to their difficulty. Then, instead of deferring to her experience and expertise he decided to "cheat" customers. He should have had to deal with the customer complaints and criticisms instead of her. I felt so bad for her.
Keep in mind shows like this are scripted to stir a bit of drama so its interesting and meant to portray how things are back in the day.
So him doing that showed how disastrous it can be when you mess up back in those days and how restricted things where
2 years ago I had new neighbours. I immediately noticed a van parked outside my house. It promotes a Black Smith service with a man (the blacksmith) on the side of the van. This Is my neighbours father. Who is a Blacksmith. It wasn't until I watched this series that I realised that it was the blacksmith from this show!
Oh wow!
Cool
awesome! he seemed like a genuine nice man who loved and had passion for his job
đđđđźđ đ đ đđąđ3
If he's still there, mind going out and saying hi and that a lot of random people on the internet loved seeing his passion?
In my lifetime I can remember when the high street was a bustling place filled with every kind of shop you can imagine. My parents owned a grocers. It wasn't not long ago.
Am I the only one that absolutely lost it at the pig head being iced by the kid? I had to stop working for a moment I was laughing so hard
He's a professional with icing
And he said it was art! đ«đ that took me out
I'm emotionally invested in the baker's lol.
Gosh Idk how she contained herself I'd have been getting all up in the dough. She's an amazing person.
I felt that frustration â€ïž
And I also hate making cakes lol.
The chamber of commerceâs instructions said woman bakers were rare- the baker family shouldâve stuck to their regular expertise and been the rare shop- why fix what isnât broken? I really didnât like that aspect.
@@HabitualLover RIGHT?! I kept mentally screaming girl get in there!
@@DorothyDollLee Absolutely. When I saw him haphazardly putting all the ingredients into the vat (including that HUGE amount of salt wow!!!) I was cringing on what the outcome would be like. The fact that he didn't listen to his wife who is the baker in the family really made me shake my head.
@@1toshi32 same!!! Still gives me anxiety
@@DorothyDollLee Honestly, when I was watching this series, I decided to fast forward past the parts that had the bakers in it. I just couldn't watch what was happening with them. They were so inadequately prepared through the whole thing.
I feel equally sad about these places being shut down by the big shopping malls. A lot of history has gone. This series brought back some of the memories of old shopping villages where the small shopkeepers helped to create a lovely community.
Looks like the bakers are having trouble whichever era they are in. I cringe when I see them trying to get to grips with things with customers waiting all the time. I'm sure with time they would improve. Being chucked in the deep end like that with no skills at all must be a harrowing experience for them.
Doesn't help that they probably told them to do or act in certain ways to generate "tension."
@@Crazyasian123456 Yes I'm sure you're right. Doesn't do for it all to go smoothly. Wouldn't be interesting otherwise I suppose. I love this series.
Well what goes around comes around. With the invention of the internet, I predict store fronts won't exist any longer at all. Most of everything will become storage locations for things bought online and delivered within hours, not days.
@@salmonjanet I don't think that will happen. It's one thing to be able to order online but there are still people out there who prefer the shopping experience. I personally would never buy clothes or shoes online. I prefer to be able to see it and try it on personally. Also things like electrical goods. I've had the experience of buying something online and had to send it back at my own cost time and again. I am buying my goods personally so I can take it back to where I bought it from rather than have to pay for postage. You pay for postage to get it to you and again to have to send it back. Not worth it. It's a different story if it's something not available in your own country and there is no alternative. Going shopping is one of the pleasure of life.
Good thing the Retro Decade Revival Project will get them back in business for sure.
Ok, total admittance here⊠the blacksmith in his forge in the 30s literally made my face blush and heart beat faster. Clearly passion over profit is a turn on for me!
Is he single? U better hop in the DM lbs
I can see and feel how passionate Simon is about his job as blacksmith ... A real job ... if I was living in the UK, I would love to work for him and do an apprenticeship.
The way that man reacted when he saw the photograph of him standing in front of the ironmonger store had me in tears
A MUST SEE! By far, the best historical "documentary" ever! (All the way through the 1970s part.) I started watching by accident, and was ENTHRALLED from the start. Couldn't stop watching!
âWhat a fat son of unmarried parentageâ
Iâm going to need to steal that one đ
The man completely ignoring the MASTER BAKER's advice, telling her to shut up..... he really self sabotaged. A true example of male ego.
Yep, but was likely typical of the era too, so at I guess we can say at least he was consistent in that part too.
You call it male ego, I call it extremely accurate method acting
Itâs funny how people are expecting fast food style service. What part about Victorian era are they not understanding?
@@corinnepmorrison1854 Theyre not even in america. I guess the education of your generation failed you
@@corinnepmorrison1854 this show doesn't take place in America, Corinne. However, if you are a product of the American school system then your comment makes sense in regards to yourself.
@@corinnepmorrison1854 Then what do you think this video has to do with the US education system? This series is in the UK and features British people.
@@delia_watercolors Corrine comment no longer shows up, but I'm American n I'm loving this series đđ I've always love England's History, I love History on general đđ I would love to tour shops Ike these đđ
@@delia_watercolors What did Corrine say? Her comment aint available anymore
How the vegetarians almost vomited at the butchers was seriously funny to watch
đ đ
There are 3 more parts to the series:
1. WWII: czcams.com/video/KXimHSlht2U/video.html
2. 1960s:czcams.com/video/9D2bNEXjszI/video.html
3. 1970s:czcams.com/video/GZeDZo9SvrM/video.html
ah a chad
@@darkdest6664 a "chad?" Say what?
Thank you!
Thank you..đ
I have a local butcher. Just a bit more expensive than grocery but soooo much better and I can ask for special cuts. I love it
I miss going to small shops! I fondly remember going to the Deli, the Baker, Bookstore, and Grocer to pick up weekly treats 30 years ago. The big box shops and huge businesses are choking out the small ones store by store. After 40 years in our family's business, I have had to close my doors because an investor with a lot of backing has taken over in our small town. I have single-handedly kept it going for the last 12 since my parents died. The thing is I had to make the decision to stop before the tourist season or keep it going at a big loss in competition with a bells & whistles resort in the works.
The new resort promised to be operational by now and have failed to be ready. That means no one is providing those necessary services to tourists at all, which also means the other businesses that rely on this one are also suffering. I hope they get what they deserve for ruining a small town with their 'swoop-in and take over' tactics. There certainly were not enough customers to keep mine going, so it should be interesting to see how long they can sustain theirs with all their new expenses and multiple staff to pay.
Iâm really so sorry to hear that. I love Mom And Pop stores also. I remember going to the ice cream shop and getting a handmade ice cream cone . Old malt shop. My Godfathers sister worked their her entire life! I really feel for people like you in your situation. Canât beat the small town small store one on one repertoire!!!!!
â@@evilsteven5201 I still feel a little guilty for not reopening when I found out they were not going to be ready on time. I've always been a goody-goody who does the right thing, but nope, let them suffer the consequences of their underhanded tactics and poor research before starting a project like this. This remote location and small town will not allow it to be able to pay for itself, let alone draw in any crowds.
Some of the town supported them thinking that this big project will bring in more business and the town would benefit as a result. Our weather is not a big draw as a resort location, so we have only a short season.
I'm trying to see the silver lining in all this. I now get to lounge around (I'm a senior) and do as I please instead of going out of my way to be on call for 14 hours each day during the summer months.
It REALLY sucks! You are WAY more important than money! You enrich people in ways money can't buy! You are valuable as your own self! I bet people remember all the things you did for them! Watch Last of the summer wine's The great boarding house caper . . .I wonder if anything like that ever happened in real life. Much happiness and luck to you!â€ïžđđ
@@yvonneemmert9185 Thank you.
I love visiting and supporting nearby village businesses itâs usually better service and family/friends feeling
The shoppers annoyed me greatly. Complaining about time and looking shocked in contact with the real product (meat for example).. What did they expect, that pigs cut themselves and jump into plastic bags? You realize how spoiled and ignorant most consumers are.
They're used to convenience.
The good news, on that front, is that I have a strong feeling that some of the shoppers' conduct was as carefully curated as the BBC's newscasts are.
đ about the pigs jumping in bags. Funny.
It's this idea that if you asked most people where do you think meat comes from they'll say "Tescos", or "the freezer/fridge section.....".
People want to eat the bacon but don't want to know that bacon actually comes from pigs. But you can't kill babe....
This is wonderful. Iâve yet to finish it tomorrow. My Grandad Herbert - Bert - Cresswell , was a baker in 1900 and prior . In the 1930s he became a brilliant mathematic. Later spent spent 6 years in bed with a weak heart, dying at 62. It must have been caused by the bakery. He taught me so much before I went to school. At 80 I bless him always. I had a brilliant career thanks to him.
This series ran last year and I really enjoyed it, well worth watching!
This would be awesome for some of the small towns to do in the US. I am now living in a railroad town in the northern Midwest. This would be fun and educational for the entire community. We would probably be better skipping the boot legging days because boarder patrol might not appreciate the sneaking back and forth in Saskatchewan.đ
Pick an old ghost town in the desert and bring it back.
@@kellysouter4381 I call dibs on the bordello and saloon!đ
I say any ghost town in Nevada
@@amethyst5538 I'd say go for bordello/saloon hybrid
@@kellysouter4381 Bodie, CA
My grandpa, who's in his 70's was a baker when he was younger, which was his first job he said. He showed me his bread recipe which contained potatoes and it's probably some of the best bread I've had in my life.
Do u still have the recipe? I would love to know what it is, i love making new breads to try !
the people complaining about waiting time... "we've been waiting for 5-10 min" how is that LONG TIME! omg!
I'm a professional seamstress, it was so nice to see a dressmaker added. I'd love to go back in time as a dressmaker, short termed lol.
Lovely show
Me tooâŠIâm a seamstress also⊠đđđâ€â€â€đđđ
20:40 that nervous laugh after he told her "get to work wench" was hilarious, he KNEW he was in for it after the camera's stopped rolling and there were no witnesses around. đ€Ł
I caught that to
Itâs shameful to see him ignore his wife. Sheâs the baker! She canât actually physically help so sheâs trying to teach him⊠and he ignores her.. how horrible.
women can be hard to listen to
historically accurate tho
What if he didn't ignore his wife at all and let her help out with the baking? That would've been sweet.
@@reneastle8447: Perhaps, but it wouldn't have been historically accurate.
@@wendygreidanus8391 True, historic accuracy can be necessary.
I live in an Irish Burgage property in the middle of my town. This house never fails to shock me and produce something new(very very old) every other day it seems.
Unfortunately, the earliest I can date it is 1734 but we think it's much earlier.
The moral compass and compassion of Caroline is so glorious to watch. â€â€â€â€
I am a 4th generation walnut farmer and a bicycle mechanic of 10 years, Iâm curious how walnut harvest looked like and what it would be like to be a mechanic back then. This is a amazing series thank you all who put this on.
This was an absolute delight to watch! You always felt for the families, whether they had ups or downs! âHeâs only 15â Amazing!!! WHERE IS THE NEXT EPISODE?! Send me the link!!! Please and thank you!
My grandfather was a butcher and store owner, but in the 30s Depression Era in the US he extended too much credit and lost his store. When his father passed he sold his share of the butcher shop (it was large) and went to work for someone else and was happy doing that.
This is so well done and such a great way to learn about the hardships each era faced. This would be a fantastic educational supplement to teach children ! đđđđđ
As someone who likes to shop, I loved the series so so much!! This is so interesting!!
The grocer saying he hates kids was peek comedy.
I gotta love how so much of the cake shop just didn't work cause the person in charge hated making cakes.
What I like about this series is showing youth how life was in the past. A living history is great
That first batch of breaf, though! His wife is an expert, and she's right there ... but he was too ignorant to listen to ANY advice,
Micheal the butchers son is absolutely adorable what a doll!!
These are always so interesting. I know quite a few people who would be very interested in game like venison, rabbit, and pheasant being available in markets. Maybe not hanging like that lol. We've gotten so squeamish. I think many people understand now that game can be much healthier and I grew up in rural areas and ate a lot of venison, elk , salmon, sturgeon.... My dad was a hunter and fisherman. These things were as normal in our freezer as beef or chicken.
I grew up in Europe and there was a butcher store in my town with rabbits, pheasants etc. hanging in the window well into the 1990s. (They may well still be there to this day... haven't been there in 20 years)
@@gordonspond My father was a master butcher and knew all the aspects of being a butcher including making all the small goods. He used to have a side business where he would go to farms and kill their animals and cut them up for the freezer. To see this expert handling these huge animals by himself was a sight to behold. His fingers were like little sausages they were that thick. I remember him lifting one of those pigs to hang it on the hook so he could dismember it. He was like a human superman.
I'm from a small coastal town called Beaufort north carolina. In the summer they have a whole historical thing involving all the homes that have been there since forever. They have people spinning whool and everything. Dressed in the attire from the time. Then they do tours and talk about Black Beard's house.
Watching the grocer be petty and underhanded towards another business owner was just uncomfortable to watch. If I found out someone did that to sabotage another small business I wouldn't spend another penny in their store.
Omg yes. Thank you. Finally someone said it. I can't believe I had to scroll so far to find someone who feels this way too. Very unlikable throughout the video, but especially with dirty moves like that. Ugh.
If you watch part two, that husband and wife duo get so much worse...
@@wwx-lwj-ai-niand all she does is effin complain about how hard and inconvenient everything is for her like give me a damn break the bakers already have it hard enough and you are going to give them shit because you wanted bun shapes not slices? Like a different comment said sheâs obviously never been poor because Iâve had plenty of hamburgers and hot dogs in bread tastes just fine shes a total diva
If it makes you feel better, itâs not them being bad, itâs the producers asking them to do such things for dramaâs sake
Ok the localsâŠ. Extremely rude and entitled. Maybe thatâs why all the shops have closed, not worth the trouble.
We very much see the entitled boomer attitude in many of them. Mostly the overweight women who look to be in their 60s (peak boomer age) whilst the women and men who look to be closer to 80 or older (from the silent generation) were much more polite and kind.
I feel they were under informed
@@M123Xoxo đ€Łđ€Łđ€Łđ€Ł80
Year olds were NOT part of the silent geo
@@doreennagle9279 They are though
@@doreennagle9279 75-95 yr olds are part of the "Silent Generation".
it's be much harder for them to try and immerse themselves in this, whilst still having such modern life surrounding them.
I love this way of learning history through actually experiencing it. Great watch!
Omg Caroline - I can't believe she didn't just wish them luck and then go back upstairs w the vapors - Idk how she wasn't furious from minute one
When the men and boys âwent to warâ it really kinda got to me because a lot of those men and boys never got to return to run and work their shops again and see their families. Sad reality of any war no matter the eraâŠ
This show is absolutely amazing. I started on Part II (accidentally. I saw a comment stating the first half of the series was here on youtube, as well). I thought the show was great, even starting half was through. Now seeing the series from the beginning I love it more. I absolutely adore this youtube channel & this series was an absolute gem! Thank you for sharing so much knowledge & entertainment!
I don't think they're on CZcams but there's a whole series of similar style programs the BBC has produced, "Back in Time for...". Might be able to find them with some googling, the other ones I've seen have also been really interesting.
Whereâs part 2?
@@post-electric never heard of the "back in time for" shows so if anyone here knows the names of them please reply as I love anything history related, especially social history and learning how people used to live, etc.
The only other history series similar to this is "turn back time, the family". Like this series, it also takes several families to live each week in a different era of British history over 5 weeks (from Edwardian-1970s, skipping the 1950s), but instead of looking at the high street, it's about family life, and how families from the 3 social classes (working middle and upper middle) used to live (what their homes were like, how kids were parented, what jobs they did, etc) based on their own ancestors.
Ironically butchers are booked up 24 months stateside right now. How times have changed from when this show was recorded. Lovely video.
Perhaps Iâm misreading what you wrote, but Iâve never known a butcher to be booked up to 2 years in advance. I live in Texas (cattle/meat capital of the U.S. practically) and the butchers Iâve come to know are available almost on a daily basis.
@@misstekhead I believe Joyce is referring to if you raise your own meat and need someone to butcher and process it. I have heard the same things but I don't have land to raise my own meat.
People are really spoiled now a days compared to back then. It was a whole different way of life then. People now want everything right now. They didn't have modern conveniences so it took much longer.
Like child labor laws & lead free wallpaper. Lol.
No, you are of course, absolutely correct.
lol they had no choice
I actually was thinking about that like I was annoyed cuz I got iv morphine and it was not kicking in with in seconds line iv diludied dose but before I opened my mouth to bitch at the nurse I realized wtf am I doing firstly I am lucky to live in a country where no matter my status the medical system has to at least stabilize me if not care for me secondly morphine works just as good as diludied me annoyed cuz it was not working g as fast was such an American thing
â@@kkandsims4612 if you are in pain you may be crabby and that is understandable. this comming from a nurse aide.
I think that if the producers had fully educated the participant actors about everything to do in their roles and the situation of the times, they wouldn't be caught off guard in the ways that they were. I wonder if they intentionally didn't thoroughly inform them to add to the suspense factor and mystery of the experience đ€
Yeh I think that's why they did it
You mean like letting the wife baker stay out of her true role?? that confused me so much
all the stuff added to food was why the fda was made lol mercury candy
The butcher going to the pub and letting his meat loafs burn. đđ Some ridiculousness I would have done. Poor guy!
I volunteer to do this in literally any context. Sign me up. I love it. I can't get enough of these. The Victorian Farm one, this one, all of them.
I thoroughly enjoyed this show â€
It was utterly heartbreaking to see the men get called up & Caroline the baker welled up it really hit home & brought tears to my eyes.
Well done to all involved.
I live in America. When a real butcher set up shop in my small town, thatâs the only place we get our meat from. For nearly the same price, we get amazing cuts and much better quality.. theyâve really thrived over the last 10 years here. People come from all over to get their meat cuts there.
I LOVED THIS DOCUMENTARY. I DIDNT THINK I WOULD AND I WATCHED ALL 2 1.2 HOURS OF IT, AND I FOUND IT VERY INTERESTING. I CANT WAIT TO SEE WHAT OTHERS YOU HAVE FOR ME TO SEE
I really enjoyed this video. It just feels a bit incomplete to me because, the thing is, it still takes a lot of time and labor to produce and package the goods you'd buy at a high street.
It is only by supplementing the English economy with exploitative hard labor in lands that they invaded that it was possible to have the Edwardian penny shop, or the interwar candy shop.
The dynamic moved from shopkeepers laboring and earning and patronizing other shops all within the high street and surrounding town, to one in which labor is done primarily manufacturing and industrial farming factories, and the lion's share of earnings go to a select few running big box shops, shipping services, and factories, who are most certainly not spending that money in the highstreet.
Im not saying that Victorian or Edwardian or any tine perood is better or more wholesome than an other; I'd just like bits where the historians explain a bit why the ironmonger became less of an everyday figure, and /briefly/ share where that iron work went to. Who is doing it? Where? How? Just a few minutes chat about it.
That said this is an extraordinary program and I'd watch it over and over again set in any town, big or small.
Don't even get started on how terrible the tea trades were đ
Okay Iâll
Q
Ima
This is still happening
This show is supposed to be bringing forward what the individual shop keep went through. Not all blacksmiths knew exactly where their customers were going. Some also moved from the high street closer to the farmers. Some places were also in smaller towns that didn't modernize to the Edwardian era until right after the war.
I feel so bad for the bakers, just everything kept going wrong⊠my mom was born in the 1940âs and she said trick is to make ur husband âthinkâ he wears the pants but really u doâŠ. Her husband donât listen lol
I was stationed in Old Blighty in the mid 90s; I loved the high street. Makes me sad to hear they now stand diminished.
The 1890s?
@@bl00dhoney 1990s
For two hours, forty-seven minutes and eleven seconds on a not-so-great day, this show made me very happy (and sometimes a little sad). Thank you.
I'm not alone.
Thank you.đ„čđ„čâ€ïžâđ©č
Why are people concerned with lard? It's natural unlike most breads sold in stores today.
I feel like the show producers should've picked one goal. Either be completely historically accurate or bring back the market square. Because if the goal is to gain the long term interest of modern shoppers and actually make money then obviously you can't do everything exactly how the Victorians, etc, did. Their two goals are opposing. By being historically accurate, the shop keeper's work gets harder. And by focusing on sales and profitability, you will have to fulfill modern expectations, meaning some historical accuracies will be laid aside. Having both things as a goal means you're always hurting your ability to reach one or both of your goals no matter what. Not the best setup. Of course I guess the true goal the entire time was really just the success of the show, so I suppose they didn't actually care if the other two goals were actually compatible or not. It just annoyed me how just as the shop keepers find ways to succeed the accuracy police come in to put a stop to it, and yet they still expected them to appeal to modern customers when they are allowed little flexibility to do so. Also they clearly set the bakers up for failure from the start. If they actually wanted them to succeed they would've chosen a family where the man was the bread baker already. Instead they chose one where the woman was the baker, knowing she wouldn't be baking. So really they didn't choose a baker, they chose someone who apparently wasn't a baker at all and expected them to learn to do it overnight.
I kept running into this too. Especially in the Victorian era when they were telling the grocer and baker that it was common practice to stretch things with substitutions to try and make a profit. I know they only added rice to the bread, but when they were showing the family adding sawdust and alum, and telling them they had to use filler. (After the bakery had sold inedible bread the day before!) The chamber of commerce is incentivizing 21st century residents to come shop there and you're going to push bad Victorian practices on them??
i wish we had more like these to watch, well done AH.
Content like this, as an American, just makes me appreciate British Culture even more đ©”
As a American and a history lover I would have loved to have been a shopper for this experience because it's so cool in my mind because I know here in the US we have a lot of theme parks or attractions that do similar things like this where there based in a certain time but in my opinion it would be a whole lot different doing it in the UK because over there you guys have a much more longer history then we do here
The downtown farmers market in my town is almost like stepping into a time warp. Part victorian with homemade candles and local flowers. I love it because I can get fresh lavender and honey and fresh fruit, then step over and get the best chowder ever. I love it.
Big problem that the customers arenât representative of the eraâs. The needs are not there.
In 1950 i knew a man in Dunedin NZ who was so wealthy he retired aged 50. He had owned a bakery and told my family they used to put brown colouring in loaves of bread. These were expensive but supposed to be very healthy. Due to inflation he died poor. No consolation to those ripped off. However it shows things didnât stop In Victorian times.
Poor Caroline gets the most challenges of anyone, but she's still hanging in there. I bet she was glad together the 21st century.
The butcher could have bought the too-salty bread and cubed it
to soak in the pease porridge, salt free đ
Watching this made me so grateful that my dad taught me how to process an animal and do my own cooking/baking, as well as churning butter and other things. He grew up doing it and passed the knowledge down to his offspring who wanted to learn the skills. And yes, he was born in 1922 and learned from his parents and grandparents.
P.S.
I have a recipe for Suet Pudding brought over the pond from the 1600s that Dad made every Christmas, so it was nice to see them make it. đ
I wish they did stuff like this here in the US with some of our old town squares and main streets. We have several cities in my area with beautiful main streets with run down and vacant stores. It's still pretty when they put up Christmas decor every year. But they still feel hollow with boarded up windows and empty sidewalks.
We can still make it happen.
We DO do it. Itâs extremely common for that to happen all across the world in areas that try to increase trade or community engagement. Even places with very little civic life do it. The hard thing is for people to choose to show up and to hear about it. There is a reason why these things were âlostâ, there are just better uses of our time and money. Specially our money (and the bankâs and land ownerâs).
But think of farmers markets, 4th of July celebrations, fairs, street concerts, and the many cultural events that are organized by local governments and smaller organizations all across the country.
Congratulations for this series. Absolutely loved it. đđđđ
I loved this. I especially loved the Buchers Shop. When it started the father was about showing his son the craft. He came out respecting his fathers talent and wanting it to succeed.
i LOVE the blacksmith. You've got the guy selling candy that hates kids then you have the blacksmith wanting to give toys away because he loves kids.
Great video. I loved the butchers and iron mongers personalities the most. I felt bad for the bakers. From the very beginning in each segment they started with problems not of their own making. The grocers were annoying.
If youâve ever lived in NYC, specifically Brooklyn, you never have known the all-knowing, all-selling shopkeeper. The Italian immigrants there, still today (ahem, mob reference), are just amazing and quality is just superb. I know live in Australia and the only Italian grocer I know was lieterlly burned down (aka 1900âs style) in 2021.
This presentation is EXCELLENT and well worth the time to watch it. Thank you
I have no pity for the closures of town squares. All those building sitting empty bringing in no money. The landlords could charge $100.00 a month just to get them opened again. They could be earning something instead of nothing and they could rent to artists, embroideries, tapestries those sort of skilled labor that doesn't sell in high quantities. That way the community gets what they need and the land owners earn income as well. Then the artists could sell their work at prices akin to the way artists sold their labor back in the day. They charged by the hour and supplies. No more no less. Not all this $6.00 per square inch bullshit. Highway robbery that is.
The school girl said, "That's why I want to be a vegetarian", after seeing the displays of meat at the butcher's. LOL đ
I enjoyed every minute of this series & would love to see it go on but can't find any links to more even though it was hinted at by the end. Guess I'll just watch them all! Thank you for the program, it was a tough life back then, modern people need to stop griping so much about their jobs it seems. lol
Love watching documentaries like this. I hope they do more. Like from from the middle ages
They should have had a cake shop run by a real cake maker
Watching this was an absolute joy. Thank you for the video, well done to the butchers son. So good to see how hard these people worked to make this a success. Give this video a chance and watch. cheers
Yes the son is born businessman! The goal is to make more moneyđ
As a history major student in the Philippines, I wish my people would give more importance to our rich history as much as the British people would. Victorian era is one of my favorite European historical period because it's such a unique thing to learn to without all the wars that other European nations go through and just all about Industrial revolution and the success of the English people as inventors and businessmen and all the bizarre inventions made during this time deadly or not lmao. Regardless, the Springtime of Nations of 1848 is very much appreciated but my heart just have the soft spot for the former because it's just so lovely seeing how people lived in the past. If I were to have a time travelling machine, I would want to see Regency, Victorian and Edwardian era with my own eyes though I'm very much sure being a Southeast Asian and a woman at that would not be the best idea đ