crookesey

There was a programme on TV the other night comparing current day prices with those of the 1950's. It was stated that circa 40% of net family income was spent on food in the 1950's against the current day's 10%.

I don't believe the current percentage and can't comment on the 1950's percentage. So a family on say £30K net annual income spend £57.69 per week on food, god only knows what they live on.

Any comments guys?

Dick Dasterdly

I imagine the numbers have changed quite a bit, but I wouldn't have thought to that extent.
Many more families are now eating out, some at exorbitant prices, maybe they haven't included that in their figures.

jimenato

It seems low but a quick google search more or less confirms it.

I guess if you say that a monthly supermarket shop is £350 and £100 of that is non-food, it looks a bit more likely. We don't spend that much (only 2 of us) but we eat out a fair bit. I'm sure figures quoted don't include eating out.

crookesey

Try this out, fish and chips were circa two shillings when I used to fetch them circa 1958. Multiple this be 4 and you obviously have eight shillings which is 40 pence. I know that my grandfather was paid £16.00 gross per week as a skilled man when he retired in 1964, inflation was next to nothing in those days so let's say £14.00 net in 1958, so 2.85%. This order would cost around £16.00 these days, so let's assume £450.00 net per week, where we get 3.55%, so not a million miles away.

Fredbargate

You must have lived somewhere very expensive.

I heard the news of Kennedy's assassination after walking home from an evening in town stopping for a 9d cod and 3d of chips on the way home i.e. 1 shilling.

crookesey

They have always varied from area to area, if I went to our local chippy they would cost circa £6.00 and would be crap. However 3 miles away in the lad's pub run area, they are £3.20 and wonderful.

Dick Dasterdly

Yours were a bit pricey as well. Ours were 8d for a cod and 3d for chips for quite a long time.
Time for the Hovis song methinks,....again.

crookesey

Capstick Comes Home is a zillion times better, Hovis song indeed.

Domino

so the stories of taking the girlfriend out for the night, having a fish and chips supper each and still having enough copper in your pocket for the bus fare home and all for a shilling, must be true

next we will start believing it all went downhill after Wilson devalued the Pound.
.

crookesey

With my compliments.

www.epicure.me.uk/capstick.html

agoreira

They must be talking about Spain, €3 MDD, food cheap as chips, easily achievable.

Dick Dasterdly

Correct and correct.

According to my old man anyway.

HBG

20 years ago, a coffee and brandy in Eduardos in the Avenida Mediteraneo in Benidorm cost 100 Pesetas (40 Pence).

Yesterday, I went into an English bar in Playa Flamenca (Orihuela Costa) where you could have a coffee and brandy for 1.50 Euros.

My arithmetic has never been good, but I venture to suggest that in 20 years in Spain prices have quadrupled, while in the UK they have increased by - (I'm struggling, I was already in Spain 20 years ago, I'm sorry I have to give up).

(My pocket money in Scotland was a shilling. A bag of chips was fourpence. But lots of things were free, the fire escape doors at the cinema were open for us, and we never spent money on condoms - we didn't know what they were).

jackytoo

Sounds like the road to bankruptcy, figures don't stack up.

Dick Dasterdly

Last time I was in Benidorm there were Spanish bars on the prom doing a coffee and a brandy for a euro up till mid-day.

I think the idea was for such places to look busy which they usually were and attract more punters for breakfasts and other drinks, while bars which were almost empty tended to be viewed with a degree of suspicion,