Hello gaucho34
I hope these excerpts and links will build up a picture of London in
1975 for you.
===============
NEWS & POLITICS
===============
We have to start with the October 1974 election to set the political
scene for 1975.
"In October [1974], Prime Minister Harold Wilson called a second
election and secured a majority - of just three. The following year,
Edward Heath was dumped as Conservative leader, and replaced after a
bruising and bad-tempered contest by the darling of the ascendant
right wing, Margaret Thatcher. At the end of 1975, the dramatic and
luckily non-bloody Balcombe Street siege in London focused public
attention once more on the conflict in Ireland."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Millennium/0,2833,247051,00.html
"Labour [...]won unexpectedly in 1974, with Wilson presiding over a
minority government. Going to the polls again in October gave Labour a
workable majority.
Wilson's government now had to face an international recession. The
divisive issue of Europe also had to be broached, but a serious
internal split was avoided by holding Britain's first referendum in
1975."
http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page129.asp
The October 1974 election was called by Harold Wilson to try and get a
proper Labour majority, and he just about succeeded with a final total
of 319 seats out of 635 - an overall majority of three. It took less
than a year for this to be eroded by deaths and defections, but Labour
carried on as a minority government until May 1979, led first by
Wilson and then from May 1976 by James Callaghan.
http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/fw74o.htm
"Heath's third electoral defeat paved the way for Margaret Thatcher's
election as Tory leader in 1975
Even though the polls had shown a Labour lead of 5-10%, Wilson ended
up with a majority of just three MPs. Heath had now lost three out of
four general elections. He was criticised by The Economist for putting
in a "soggy performance", and his days as Tory leader were numbered.
Wilson had now become Prime Minister for the fourth time, equalling
Gladstone's record.
The October election contained more women candidates, more Liberals,
more Welsh and Scottish nationalists and more National Front than ever
before. Margaret Beckett and Bryan Gould were among those new members
brought into the House on the back of Wilson's victory.
The Labour share of the vote increased by 2%, the Tory vote dropped by
the same amount. The Liberals made a strong showing of 18% but this
was, disappointingly, 1% lower than in February. Labour had 42 seats
more than the Tories and would be able to govern comfortably, at least
for the moment."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/election97/background/pastelec/ge74oct.htm
"1975: Tories choose first woman leader
The British Conservative Party has chosen Margaret Thatcher as its new
leader.
She will be the first woman to head a British political party after a
landslide victory over the other four - male - candidates.
Mrs Thatcher - who served as Secretary of State for Science and
Education in Ted Heath's Government - exclaimed "It's like a dream."
The MP for Finchley, north London, since 1959 rejected suggestions of
great celebrations.
She said: "Good heavens, no. There's far too much work to be done." "
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/11/newsid_2539000/2539451.stm
~~~~
"22 September 1975
1975: Bomb blasts rock Northern Ireland
A day of IRA bombings across Northern Ireland has placed the ceasefire
it declared seven months ago in serious doubt."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/22/newsid_2528000/2528435.stm
"Balcombe Street Gang
Following the collapse of the IRA's 1974-1975 ceasefire, a fresh
campaign began, led by a four-man gang who became known as the
"Balcombe Street Gang".
Martin O'Connell, Edward Butler, Harry Duggan and Hugh Doherty carried
out a wave of bombings detonating their first ten devices in just five
days.
The gang also killed Ross McWhirter, the co-editor of the Guinness
Book of Records, after he had offered £50,000 for information leading
to the arrest of the team.
However, after a botched attack on a Mayfair restaurant, the four men
took local residents hostage (in an apartment on Balcombe Street) and
began a tense stand-off with the police.
After six days, the four surrendered, providing a major victory to the
security forces.
The men were charged with 10 murders and 20 bombings and jailed for
life."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1201738.stm
February 1975
"Tibble murder linked to IRA bomb factory
Scotland Yard has said the man who shot dead a police officer in
London yesterday had been staying in a flat used as a "bomb factory"
by the Provisional IRA.
[...]
Within two hours of the killing, a large Victorian house was searched
after routine enquiries.
The basement was found to contain enough bomb-making equipment to make
half a dozen high explosive bombs as well as a box of ammunition and
an automatic pistol.
It is the first IRA bomb factory to found in London.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ernest Bond said: "Evidence shows that
the equipment can be definitely connected with other bomb incidents
and outrages recently in London and the provinces." "
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/27/newsid_2515000/2515789.stm
September 1975
"London Hilton bombed
Two people were killed and 63 injured when a suspected IRA bomb
exploded in the lobby of the Hilton hotel in central London."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/5/newsid_2499000/2499203.stm
October 1975
"Man killed in Piccadilly bomb blast
A man has been killed and at least 20 people have been injured - two
of them children - in the latest in a string of bomb attacks in
London."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/9/newsid_2531000/2531191.stm
~~~~
"In 1975 Margaret Thatcher replaced Ted Heath as leader of the
Conservative Party. The country voted to stay in the Common Market.
Although 67% of those who went to the polling stations voted Yes to
the EEC membership, it is doubtful that many knew the deeper
implications of the Treaty of Rome."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/sceptred_isle/page/238.shtml?question=238
"Six months before the EEC Referendum of June 1975, all the opinion
polls suggested that the No campaign would be home and dry. In fact,
they lost by a 2:1 majority, and Britain's entry into the European
Union was Resoundingly confirmed. "
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/whatif/what_if_20020418.shtml
June 1975
" British voters have backed the UK's continued membership of the
European Economic Community by a large majority in a nationwide
referendum.
Just over 67% of voters supported the Labour government's campaign to
stay in the EEC, or Common Market, despite several cabinet ministers
having come out in favour of British withdrawal.
The result was later hailed by Prime Minister Harold Wilson as an
"historic decision". For him the victory came after a long and
bruising campaign against many in his own party, following Labour's
promise to hold a vote in its general election manifesto last October.
Faced with the referendum question, 'Do you think the UK should stay
in the European Community (Common Market)?' Britons voted 'yes' by
large majorities across the country. "
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/6/newsid_2499000/2499297.stm
~~~~
February 1975
"Dozens killed in Moorgate Tube crash
A London Underground train has crashed at Moorgate, killing the driver
and at least 29 passengers and injuring more than 70 in the worst-ever
Tube disaster.
[...]
The front three carriages have been crushed together with the last
three intact at the platform.
The crash left the station in total darkness and threw up a huge
amount of soot and dust.
The rescue operation has involved several teams - police, London
Underground staff, fire crews, doctors and nurses from St
Bartholomew's Hospital and members of the Salvation Army. "
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/28/newsid_2515000/2515033.stm
Also:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/witness/february/28/newsid_2758000/2758949.stm
~~~~
"Attack on British vessels heightens Cod War
An Icelandic gunboat has opened fire on unarmed British fishery
support vessels in the North Atlantic Sea, it is reported."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/11/newsid_2546000/2546045.stm
~~~~
"In the 1970s more and more Hindus came to London, as many Indians had
to leave African countries such as Uganda and Kenya."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/yourlondon/unitedcolours/hinduism/welcome_history.shtml
Snow in the SE at the beginning of June and one of the two mildest
winters oF the 20C
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/weatherwise/living/keydates/index6.shtml
This news touched many people in London:
"1975: Saigon surrenders
The war in Vietnam ended today as the government in Saigon announced
its unconditional surrender to the Vietcong."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/30/newsid_2498000/2498441.stm
The first Cricket World Cup was played [at] Lord's [in London].
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Millennium/0,2833,247051,00.html
Spaghetti House Siege - Knightsbridge
http://www.met.police.uk/history/spaghetti.htm
More 1975 news from the BBC
://www.google.co.uk/search?q=+site:news.bbc.co.uk+%22on+this+day%22+1975&hl=en&lr=&cr=countryUK|countryGB&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&start=0&sa=N
Notable events from the 70s
http://www.naffcaff.co.uk/timeline.html
1975 news stories
http://www.btinternet.com/~john.weedy/iln_years/year/1975.htm
=============
SOCIAL ISSUES
=============
"Radical new legislation introducing a woman's right to equal pay and
status in the workplace and in society come into force today.
The Sex Discrimination and Equal Pay Acts will prevent women being
paid less than their male counterparts. The Acts are being introduced
to coincide with the end of the International Women's Year.
Sex discrimination by employers, unless they employ five or fewer
people, is now illegal as is any form of bias by landlords, finance
companies, schools and restaurants.
The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has been set up, and under
the Act it has a duty to promote equality of the sexes.
Job advertisements will now have to be sexless and it will no longer
be possible to offer a position exclusively for males or females.
In every day language there will be many changes for example, such as
"firemen" becoming "fire fighters".
[...]
The Inner London Education Authority is already considering the
replacement of "sexist" reading material which uphold stereotypes, for
example a woman in the kitchen and a man at work.
These are currently not barred by the Acts but in a booklet sent to
13,000 head teachers, managers and governors of schools the authority
recommends "myths and taboos" should be tackled.
Advisory panels of teachers are also considering lobbying authorities
to make mathematics compulsory up to the fifth year in a move designed
to help girls.
But the most poorly-paid women are unlikely to gain a lot from the new
legislation the Low Pay Unit said in a report yesterday.
Despite the gradual introduction of equal pay until its final
implementation today women's earnings have risen to only 55.5% of
men's earnings from 51.1% in 1972."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/december/29/newsid_2547000/2547249.stm
"London has seen some of the biggest demonstrations and campaigns for
women's equality in Britain's history [including] demonstrations for
equal pay, the right to choose and lesbian and gay pride from the
1970s onwards.
London led in the expansion of nurseries and child care as more women
entered employment in the 1970s."
http://www.poptel.org.uk/morning-star/features/articles/liv080303.htm
"Women have made huge gains as a result of feminism in the 1970s.
In 1970, the Equal Pay Act was passed, stipulating that women and men
should receive equal wages for equal work.
In 1975, the Sex Discrimination Act was passed, outlawing
discrimination in the workplace on the grounds of sex or marital
status.
[...]
Perhaps the most significant achievement though, was the way in which
feminism in the 1970s thrust women into the political and social
limelight. Women supported each other in the demand that their voices
be listened to, and they were heard. The way in which men and women
think about each other changed irrevocably."
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/F/flourbombs/thennow_t.html
"National Abortion Campaign, which was founded [in London] in 1975."
http://www.3bh.org.uk/IV/main/IV%20Archive/IV338/IV338%2012.htm
"By the 1970s the Gay Liberation Front was shouting 'gay is good'
around the streets of London . ."
Campaign for Homosexual Equality rally, Trafalgar Square, 1975. -
small picture
http://www.museum-london.org.uk/MOLsite/exhibits/pride/index.htm
"In 1972 the Barbican Estate was completed boasting the highest tower
in Europe; by the mid-1970s, however, high-rise building came to a
halt as doubts were thrown on construction methods and the social
consequences of poor quality building."
http://www.museum-london.org.uk/MOLsite/exhibits/towerb/towerb.htm
"Worst decade for high rise: The 1970s, when the backlash against
faulty structures and the concentration of social problems almost
halted construction of tower blocks."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4143037,00.html
"The 1970s saw an increase in homelessness and the start of cuts in
council house building. Shelter Housing Aid Centre (SHAC) was opened
in London to give free housing aid and advice, the first of what has
become a network of housing aid centres nationwide."
http://www.shelter.org.uk/about/whatisshelter/history.asp
"The mid-seventies boom in squatting
There were a number of developments which served to heighten the
housing crisis in the early seventies. These were the years of the
property `boom' when house prices soared, especially in newly
`desirable' parts of major towns and cities." [e.g. some parts of
Islington]
http://www.squat.freeserve.co.uk/story/ch4.htm
"The [property prices] boom of the early 1970s did, however, coincide
with a spectacular collapse in the birth rate. A surge in prices
between 1971 and 1973 left many young couples frustrated in their
attempts to get onto the property ladder. The number of births fell
from 901,600 in 1971 to 697,500 in 1975."
http://www.tiscali.co.uk/cgi-bin/news/newswire.cgi/news/telegraph/2002/05/12/review/36_househome.html&template=/news/telegraph/templates/main.html
"In the 1970s and 1980s, [The Northern Line] was dubbed the "Misery
Line" and few who travelled or worked on it disagreed."
http://tube.tfl.gov.uk/content/mediawatch/default.asp?vid=97
More on the London Underground in the 1970s
://www.google.co.uk/search?q=site:.tube.tfl.gov.uk++1975+OR+1970s&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&start=10&sa=N
========
THE ARTS
========
National Gallery :
"The Northern Extension, which opened in 1975, provided considerable
extra exhibition space: nine large rooms, and three smaller ‘cabinet’
rooms. These new galleries made use of natural lighting as far as
possible."
http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/about/history/building/1975.htm
"As the seventies wore on the days of the Underground faded into
adolescent memory and the Co-op was integrated into the fine arts
avant garde, there were screenings at the Walker Gallery in Liverpool,
the Serpentine Gallery and eventually at the Tate. Art schools
introduced film making and many Co-op members became tutors. The
B.F.I. and the Arts Council began during this period to recognise the
avant garde and fund it's film makers, and in 1975 the Co-op received
it's first major B.F.I. grant for further production facilities. Dave
Curtis became the Film and Video Officer at the Arts Council."
http://www.explodingcinema.org/underground.html
"1970-1994 A New Era for Photography-As-Art
A full account of British photography during the 1970s and 1980s
remains to be written, but it is not unreasonable to regard the early
1970s as being something of a watershed. The Photographers' Gallery
was founded in London in 1970, other specialist photography galleries
such as the Half Moon (which later became Camerawork) in East London,
soon followed, and the Arts Council began to provide financial support
for photographers to carry out personal work. Documentary photography
from the 1930s, '40s and '50s was rediscovered through exhibitions and
magazines such as Creative Camera, edited by Bill Jay. At the same
time a renewed interest in socially-concerned photography became
allied to a perception of the need to document traditional communities
whose continued existence was clearly threatened by technological
development and de-industrialisation."
http://www.photolondon.org.uk/essay/1970_newera.htm
~~~~~
National Theatre 1975:
Playboy of the Western World
"Financial Times, B. A. Young, 30 Oct 1975
The Playboy is for laughter anyway, for laughter and pathos and poetry
and sympathy, and I doubt if there is a happier evening to be had in
the London theatre anywhere at this moment."
https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/?lid=1626&tmpl=whatsonreviews
Hamlet
http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/?lid=1592
Associate Director Jonathan Miller resigns, describing the new
building as "a mixture of Gatwick airport and Brent Cross shopping
centre". Peter Hall decides to move into the new building as soon as
one auditorium is ready. Staff move into the still unfinished South
Bank building to prepare to open it theatre-by-theatre.
http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/?lid=149
"The National Theatre, designed by Denys Lasdun, opens in 1975 after a
long design and development period which began in 1964.
[...]
The National Theatre comprises three distinctive auditoria, suited to
different types of production — the Olivier, the Littleton, and the
Cottesloe. The stratified design creates a series of 'stages and
auditoria' which connect the inside and outside of the building, set
against the backdrop of the cityscape."
And more:
://www.google.co.uk/search?q=+site:www.nationaltheatre.org.uk++productions++1975&hl=en&lr=&cr=countryUK|countryGB&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&start=10&sa=N
~~~~~
Theatricalia
http://www.phyllis.demon.co.uk/theatricalia/02rsc/rsc7579.htm
"Lindsay Anderson, April 23 1975
The Royal Court, Mr Billington rules, is doing the wrong plays.
Instead of delighting the public with Joe Orton, we should be
enlightening them with "Brenton, Hare, Griffiths, Barker and
Poliakoff"."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,3604,566512,00.html
Gay Sweatshop (theatre group) started London 1975
http://www.sbu.ac.uk/stafflag/gaysweatshop.html
Open-air theatre in Regent's Park
"In 1975 a new fan-shaped auditorium was built with a 1,200 capacity,
making it one of the largest theatres in London."
http://www.touchstone.bham.ac.uk/exhibition/NSC/history.html
More 1975 theatre:
://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=+site%3Adspace.dial.pipex.com+theatre+1975&btnG=Google+Search&meta=cr%3DcountryUK%7CcountryGB
~~~~~
1975 films
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Jaws
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Shampoo
Barry Lyndon
Day of the Locust
Dog Day Afternoon
The Man Who Would Be King
Nashville
Night Moves
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Picnic at Hanging Rock
Tommy
The Wind and the Lion
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/films.shtml
http://www.filmsite.org/1975.html
~~~~~
"The music of the 1970s was brash and trashy. Disco seized America,
while Britain thrilled to glam rock and punk."
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/F/flourbombs/1970s_t.html
Chartbusters 1975
http://www.backdate.co.uk/1975_charts.htm
Top of the Pops 1975
Listen to some of the Number One hits from 1975 - from Bowie’s "Space
Oddity" to Queen’s "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Bob Marley
The lion roared into the charts and sparked a reggae explosion in
Britain.
The Bay City Rollers
The Tartan-clad popsters reduced both teenage girls and music fans to
tears - for slightly different reasons.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/music.shtml
Bob Marley at the Lyceum
http://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutmusic/memories/dickinsonbob.shtml
The May 1975 Hyde Park Concert
http://www.maguire22.freeserve.co.uk/donarchive/hydepark.html
~~~~
"Henry Wood Hall
London ‘s first purpose built home for orchestral rehearsals.
The principal Orchestra at the Hall is the London Philharmonic
Orchestra.
[...]
By the mid 1970s, London’s orchestras had been searching for some time
for a suitable permanent rehearsal space.
The Minister for the Arts, Hugh Jenkins, tapped the last piece of roof
copper home in a topping-out ceremony on 13 June 1974. On the evening
of 16 June 1975 a concert was given by members of the London
Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestras to an invited audience to
inaugurate the newly named Henry Wood Hall. The hall was so named
after receiving a substantial donation from the Henry Wood Fund (set
up for rebuilding the blitzed Queen’s Hall, which never happened).
[...]
Since 1975, the Henry Wood Hall has been the scene of constant musical
activity. Besides rehearsals for all the leading London orchestras and
chamber groups, there has been constant recording activity covering
all types of music in the classical repertoire, from solo pianists to
full scale grand opera."
http://www.tnra.org.uk/hwoodhall.htm
~~~~~
"1970's classics first published by Flamingo.
"The Female Eunuch" is a landmark in the history of the women's
movement
Other titles in the series include:
If I die in a combat zone - Tim o'Brien
Dice Man - Luke Rhinehart
Flashman's Lady - George MacDonald Fraser
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S Thompson"
High Rise - J G Ballard://www.google.co.uk/search?q=cache:rfk2cbTikxAJ:www.book-expert.co.uk/r/ukisbn/0007161220.html+books+OR+bestsellers+1975+OR+1970s&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
Martin Amis had come to people's attention in 1973. His novel "Dead
Babies" came out in 1975.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/books/author/amis_m/index.shtml
"Ian McEwan - his first book, "First Love,Last Rites", published in
1975, won a Somerset Maugham Award in the following year."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/books/author/mcewan/
Best sellers of the 1970s
http://open2.net/readingthedecades/books/browser/book_list.htm
~~~~
"Feminist magazines such as Red Rag, The Shrew and Spare Rib
represented the new radical zeitgeist . ."
http://www.feminist-seventies.net/abkitchen.html
"During the 1970s censorship relaxed and newsagents began to be
flooded with hardcore explicit magazines.
[...] popular men's magazines of the time like "Parade""
http://www.fortunecity.co.uk/amusement/barbecue/125/page7.html
Nova magazine closed
http://media.guardian.co.uk/presspublishing/story/0,7495,482341,00.html
Gay magazines newish - Gay News started 1972
http://www.sbu.ac.uk/stafflag/gaynews.html
Titles of Private Eye front covers (no pics)
http://home.clara.net/sjafn/oldpeyenopics.htm
~~~~
Fawlty Towers
The idea for the series came from a set of training videos ex-Python
Cleese had produced to show various industries how NOT to succeed in
business. Only 12 episodes were ever filmed, but almost all are now
regarded as classics - the most famous being "The Hotel Inspector" and
"The Germans".
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/tv/titles/fawltytowers.shtml
The Sweeney
Hard-drinking Flying Squad coppers Regan (John Thaw) and Carter
(Dennis Waterman) chased villains around London in flash cars,
shouting "Shut it!" a lot. The show became notorious because the cops
were almost as bent as the robbers, and the bad guys quite often got
away with it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/tv.shtml
[Lenny Henry] made a triumphant televisual debut in 1975, when he won
the New Faces talent competition at the age of 18. ...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/profiles/lenny_henry.shtml
~~~~
"London Underground is renowned throughout the world as a leader in
the use of high quality art in its publicity.
[...]
The 1970s saw a general decline in passenger numbers and a period of
national recession. There was a change of emphasis to a more direct
style of message and consequently the number of direct commissions to
artists was cut back."
http://tube.tfl.gov.uk/content/faq/artandpoems.asp?expandAlso=menu1
=======
FASHION
=======
"Women wore their hair long and straight, parted down the middle like
Ali McGraw in Love Story. Or they could opt for Farrah Fawcett flicks
and layers."
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/F/flourbombs/1970s_t.html
"Curly Perms
Men flocked to get their hair frizzed after footballer Kevin Keegan
popularised the cut, and women began to leave the ‘natural look’
behind in favour of more outrageous waved styles."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/fashion2.shtml
A picture of the Keegan hairstyle here:
"Perm-tastic Kevin Keegan suffering hair distress in the 1970s."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/photo_galleries/953693.stm
Aftershave used to excess
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/fashion1.shtml
"The lounge suit reached the height of its popularity with the release
of Warren Beatty’s film, Shampoo. Every man wanted to be a Casanova
lounge lizard.
Resurrected after 200 years in the wilderness in a range of garish
patterns and colours, the lounge suit promised elegance and comfort.
But it soon became synonymous with sleaze."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/fashion3.shtml
"The world was in danger of exploding in a burst of static as
polyester ruled disco fashion."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1975/news.shtml
"a Seventies timewarp, where colour, excessive jewellery and chiffon
are all in vogue.
http://www.cayte.com/celebrity/zandra.html"
". . .in the 1970s fashion became increasingly individualistic for
both men and women. New clothes - chiefly in classic easy-to-wear
styles - were mixed with vintage fashions and with ethnic garments and
accessories from around the world."
From the blurb on the "look inside" feature at Amazon.com's listing
for
The 1970s (Fashion Sourcebooks)
by John Peacock
Click on "look inside" to see the blown-up version of the illustrated
front cover too:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0500279721/qid=1059901386/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-9161616-1259316?v=glance&s=books
Fashion in the suburbs?
http://www.dollsoup.co.uk/abigail.htm
"England
The 1970s was a major dividing point between post-war and late-20th
Century boys' fashions. Boys now were acquainted with jeans and wanted
to wear them even though their parents weren't still sold on the
idea."
http://histclo.hispeed.com/chron/c1970.html
"Recently, a ten-year-old boy was sent home from a London junior
school for turning up for lessons in Long trousers. Only boys of 12
and over were allowed to wear the regulation grey worsted, said the
headmaster in a note to the youngster's parents."
http://histclo.hispeed.com/chron/c19701.html
These comments on 1974 still applied in 1975:
"Among women, chiffon was popular - often being used to create a fluid
layer for capes, ponchos and wraps, worn over evening dresses and
pyjamas.
Bead chokers, handmade out of elastic cord, and knotted to become a
tight necklace, started to find favour with younger women. Wide
clip-on suspenders [braces], began to find their way to England from
the USA."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1974/fashion2.shtml
More on 70s British fashion
http://www.essaybank.co.uk/free_coursework/1112.html
~~~~
"Camden Lock, located in a cobbled yard overlooking Regents Canal, was
established in 1975 and is the pioneer of Camden's shopping
phenomenon."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/1711_Shopping/page4.shtml
"Like other cornerstones of the Seventies' dinner party such as
grilled grapefruit and duck à l'orange, Black Tower has long struggled
to shrug off its close affinity with the decade that taste forgot."
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/food_and_drink/news/story.jsp?story=281373
"1970s [Terence Conran]
Following its success, he spent the next 20 years developing an
international chain of Habitat and Conran stores, which led him to
millionaire status.
A unique source for stylish, practical and affordable design, Habitat
introduced Britain to a range of French cookware, all displayed in a
simple environment of white walls and quarry-tiled floors.
The shop was a huge success in London. The famous, including Beatles
stars John Lennon, and the late George Harrison as well as Julie
Christie bought furniture there.
Mary Quant designed the staff's outfits and bought whole table
settings of linen, crockery and glassware for her dinner parties."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/yourlondon/listedlondoner/conran.shtml
"Oslo Court is, quite simply, a slice of 1970s London, caught in its
own intoxicating cultural aspic.
The first clue is the decor: salmon pink walls, beautifully laundered
pink napery, enough pink-patterned curtain to wrap a battleship. It is
said that when the late Barbara Cartland ate here she all but
disappeared into the decor, like a leopard hiding in African scrub.
But the real signifier is, of course, the menu. At Oslo Court you can
still order grapefruit grilled with brown sugar as a starter. Here
they still serve seafood with cream and brandy sauces. At Oslo Court
they serve a lot of things with cream and brandy sauces. They still do
crisp roast duck with orange sauce, steak Diane flambé, even veal
schnitzel Holstein (with fried egg, anchovies and capers). Then there
is a dessert trolley of the sort you probably thought went out of
production with the half-timbered Morris Minor. It's stacked with
profiteroles and strawberry tarts, artery-bursting mille feuille,
crème caramels, cheesecake and trifle. "
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/foodmonthly/story/0,9950,662934,00.html
McDonalds UK
"1974 First restaurant opens in Woolwich, south-east London in
October.
1975 First advertisement appears on UK cinema screens.
1976 First TV advertisement is broadcast."
http://bized.ac.uk/compfact/mcdonalds/mc6.htm
"By the mid 1970s, the Hard Rock Cafe in London had become an
institution."
(First HRC, which opened in London in 1971.)
http://www.brunel.ac.uk/admin/alumni/link/link_1995/graduate_news/canadians.html
========
PICTURES
========
Try entering "London 1975" into the search box at this photographic
library:
http://pro.corbis.com/
I hope you enjoy poring over the results as much as I did. I find they
help to summon up the mood of the year - but then for me it was a
nostalgic trip down memory lane as well as research.
Some of the pictures that might be relevant are of:
Margaret Thatcher new Conservative party leader Feb 1975
Vidal Sasson with models demonstrating his 1975 hair styles
Christian Dior "sweatshirts"
Prince Edward with his classmates (check teacher's and pupil's
clothes!)
Screaming Osmond fans May 1975
Wimbledon players in the news
Boxers and other sport pics
Other people in the news that year:
Evil Knievel
Haile Selassie (visited London)
Aristotle Onassis (visited London)
David Essex etc.
If there's some particular aspect of London in 1975 you were hoping
for which I haven't covered, please ask (use your clarification
button).
Thanks for asking the question; I enjoyed doing the research.
Best Wishes - Leli
Search strategy:
Google searches and searches of helpful sites like the BBC, then
followed leads.
Started out with combinations of these terms:
1975, 1970s, seventies, London
politics, Wilson, Thatcher
theatre, film, "the arts", music
books, bestsellers, magazines
décor, design, fashion, style |
