Modernity Britain: Opening the Box, 1957-59

Modernity Britain (Tales of a New Jerusalem) #1

by David Kynaston

The late 1950s was an action-packed, often dramatic time in which the contours of modern Britain began to take shape. These were the 'never had it so good' years, when the Carry On film series and the TV soap Emergency Ward 10 got going, and films like Room at the Top and plays like A Taste of Honey brought the working class to the centre of the national frame; when the urban skyline began irresistibly to go high-rise; when CND galvanised the progressive middle class; when 'youth' emerged as a cultural force; when the Notting Hill riots made race and immigration an inescapable reality; and when 'meritocracy' became the buzz word of the day. The consequences of this 'modernity' zeitgeist, David Kynaston argues, still affect us today.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, British Literature, Sociology, Politics

432 pages, Hardcover

First published June 20, 2013

About the author

David Kynaston was born in Aldershot in 1951. He has been a professional historian since 1973 and has written eighteen books, including The City of London (1994-2001), a widely acclaimed four-volume history, and W.G.'s Birthday Party, an account of the Gentleman vs. the Players at Lord's in July 1898. He is the author of Austerity Britain, 1945-51, the first title in a series of books covering the history of post-war Britain (1945-1979) under the collective title "Tales of a New Jerusalem".

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continuing David Kynaston continues his history of post-war Britain, moving on to the mid-fifties and looking intensively at the years 1957-59.

The country is changing in many ways by this time. Architects have decided that people should live in flats, despite most wishing to live in houses. New estates are springing up and Labour's influence is still strong in the number of industrial disputes, with those 'representing the workers,' in Ford, at Dagenham, inspiring Fred Kite in, "I'm all Right, Jack," released a year or two later. National Service was planned to end in 1961, race riots explode in Notting Hill, CND march, Carry On films are released and working class novels and plays continue, to mixed receptions.

On the other hand, much remains the same. Hand wringing over education and grammar schools already becoming unpopular with many politicians, even if they remained popular with parents. With the country being constantly told that it should wish to live in a high rise block and send their children to a comprehensive school, it's no wonder that they turned to television and retreated to home and hearth, wherever it was. Also, despite the changing times, homosexual men were still targeted and a twenty two year old Brian Epstein was arrested for 'persistent importuning,' at Swiss Cottage tube station. His time at RADA ending in disgrace, he was set to return to Liverpool and try to settle at the family business, which was undoubtedly a good decision in the long run. Although he was yet to see The Beatles (still The Quarrymen at that point) on the 6th July, 1957, at St Peter's Church fete, Paul McCartney would be introduced to John Lennon and a musical revolution sparked which would change not only the country, but the world. Still, in this book it is still, "Six-Five Special," and the quickly becoming respectable Cliff Richard (seamlessly moving from 'Move It," to "Living Doll"), while Buddy Holly died in a plane crash and music said to have died.

The end of this book discuses a rather lacklustre election. Macmillan, telling the country they had, 'never had it so good,' won, with a notable new MP being Margaret Thatcher, warning the electorate they should not shirk their duty as any vote not for the Conservatives, was a vote for Socialism. I look forward to reading on and think this is an excellent, detailed and well written history of a post-war Britain and the many challenges it faced.

[John Ollerton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book for dipping into or for full immersion.

[Bookthesp1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Kynaston has set himself the task of writing a new micro History of Britain-Tales of a New Jerusalem in volumes from 1945 to 1979 or possibly now? The first two doorstep size books (Austerity Britain & Family Britain) both covered periods of five and six years respectively and were marketed as double volume editions each consisting of two books. So far so eccentric but they did offer good value in the expensive hardback market and were beautifully constructed. Modernity Britain was originally advertised on websites such as Amazon and Goodreads as a book covering the years 1957-1962 with a similar length and double volume format. At some point Bloomsbury seem to have lost their nerve and the resultant book is a mere 300 plus pages covering only a two year period from 1957-59 but pretty much for the same price as previous more weighty volumes. So what has happened, considering initial adverts showed a longer book. Has Kynaston simply not finished writing it? Or has Bloomsbury decided to cash-in on the success of the earlier books rushing the unfinished hardback into the shops? Waffle about launching in a variety of formats/platforms is obfuscation. This is effectively half a book and seems to constrain Kynaston's fluent and anecdotal style. A weak start, seemingly random with a quote from Enoch Powell on housing doesn't bode well and in truth Kynaston seems both less confident and less assured in this volume sometimes launching on lists (oddly punctuated with brackets and little clear linking or point) and less memorable anecdotes and coverage. The joy of previous volumes was the drip drip effect of diarists and stories that was possible in a long book. This is both less possible and less evident in this volume. Still, there are good sections on Racism and Education in the period covered and some successful elegies as Kynaston gets into his stride.
A pity then that something has gone awry and Bloomsbury have decided to put profit before quality. This is still a good read (though less fluent and less confident) but undercuts the achievement of previous volumes by being half a book. Ironically, in this new age of austerity one might expect publishers to make more effort to provide consistent value for money. Readers enjoy but beware before you buy this anorexic volume- half a book isn't always better than the whole story.

[carl theaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

'The Man Who Saved Britain' -- might make you think of
a statesman such as Churchill, but in 1957 it referred to
Bond, James Bond.

With the Empire shrinking, the recent Suez debacle, and
world influence flagging, Ian Fleming's super spy lifted
the country's spirits on the international front.

Meanwhile at home, the economy was going great. Appliances
sprouted for the first time in many homes, especially the TV,
which everyone seemed to watch, worried about what others
were watching, and have an opinion about.

Author Kynaston continues his fascinating series on postwar
Britain, however in this edition he spends a stifling amount
of time on exchange rates and especially housing projects.

The original publication date of this edition slipped several
months, and it was reduced to only cover '57-'59, so
can't help but wonder if the success of this series is
making too many demands on his writing time. The story
is all there, it just doesn't seem to be mixed as well
as in the previous books.

The pace does pick up in the last chapter or two, and
I know life isn't all The Quarry Men (soon to be Beatles)
and Bond, so I still look forward to the next edition.

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

You’ll often hear thoughtful people quote that line about learning from history or being forced to repeat it. If these books do nothing more (and they do a great deal more) then they make the observation (in subtext) that we do an awful less learning and an awful lot more repeating.

[Ade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Covering half the span of previous books in this series, and arguably less momentous times, Modernity Britain feels like a rather quick and slightly less enthralling read by Kynaston's standards (although the speed may be partly due to the reader's hunger to devour as much as possible in a sitting). Rising prosperity and an end (for many) to the deprivations of the post-war period, coupled with the gradual encroachment of 'modern' Britain on a rather hidebound island, all presided over by a benevolent, 'respectable' establishment with only the first stirrings of the cultural battles that would be waged in the subsequent decade ... it's hard not to feel that the author is seeking to despatch this short period as briskly as possible so that the decks are clear to dive into the turbulent Sixties, most imminently Profumo (who isn't yet on the horizon here) and the dismissal of the governing aristocracy. We see Gaitskell's honourable but ultimately doomed attempt to bring the Socialists back to power, against Macmillan's comforting certainties about the established order. There is plenty of coverage of the developing built environment and the clear, fatal signs that much of it was being developed without reference to those to whom it was intended to cater, by well-meaning architects in thrall to Le Corbusier who nevertheless would never consent to live in their own creations. Most of all, there is a working class gradually adjusting to what would come to be considered a middle class lifestyle (at the expense of their collectivism), and a population - particularly the older part represented by diarists like Gladys Langford - feeling torn loose from familiar, longstanding customs and surroundings and adrift in a new, often alienating world. (Gladys, of course, is well-balanced by the likes of Judy Haines, the consummate fifties happy housewife and mother - and I mean that without malice or disdain.)

A transitional volume then, setting the stage for what should be a rivetting set of follow-ups - though not without its own appeal via the laudable elán that Kynaston has brought to his task.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I was born in 1958, this one proved irrresistibly interesting. As it's part of a series tracking modern Britain from 1945 into the early 1970s, there's not a lot of background or build up, just a rapid kaleidoscope of TV shows, political issues (redevelopment, education, meritocracy and race being big ones), sports, theater and name dropping (new names appearing in this period including Judi Dench, Margaret Thatcher and Vanessa Redgrave). Bogs down a bit in part, but overall a good picture (about a 3.5 rather than a 3)

[Les Dangerfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read his earlier books in this series, ‘Austerity Britain’ and ‘ Family Britain’, covering the period from 1945 to 1956, at least ten years ago, so this was an overdue return to his writing. This is social history at its best, covering a broad sweep of the various aspects of people’s lives - the homes they were living in ( the advance of the post war high-rise and the debates that raged around them), the debate about the role of the 11+ test in the school system, what people were reading and listening to/watching on radio and during a period during which TVs became a standard part of the living room for most. He also gives an impression of the range of opinions on changes by quoting from published diaries and other material - of politicians such as MacMillan and Benn, but also of public figures like Kingsley Amis, Evelyn Waugh, Keith Waterhouse, Kenneth Williams and more specialist diarists such as Nella Last and Mollie Panter-Downes.

If you’ve lived through the period as I did (though only 5 to 7 years old) it conjures up lots of memories and more broadly the general feel of the period.

[Roger Woods · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part of David Kynaston's series on the modern history of Britain this volume covers 1957 to 1959, the period when Britain was finally starting to recover from the effects of the Second World War and began a time of relative prosperity. The book is heavy going at times particularly when it comes to the arguments about town planning. The country was not quite ready to move on from the patrician rule of the Conservative government led by Harold Macmillan so the Conservatives won the 1959 general election although signs of modernity were beginning to appear. More washing machines, more cars and more televisions (only two channels though) were signs of this growth.

[Adam Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

A historical buffet of British life in the late 50s, with dishes provided by diarists, surveys, newspapers, radio and TV programmes, adverts and speeches. Kynaston weaves things together in an intriguing way and offers valuable everyday glimpses into some major changes and events. Like a buffet, you end up passing over some of the offerings, and it was difficult keeping up with Kynaston right to the end. But an enjoyable read nonetheless.

[Brian Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another terrific and erudite instalment of his detailed post-war history of Britain.

[Bevan Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Kynaston's richly textured story of Modernity Britain is a great read. Although some of the name dropping needed more explanation for those who didn't live through the era, and perhaps urban redevelopment might have been a tad overdone, this book stands as a model. It is a model of popular history, deftly combining social and narrative history.
The lense is always in closeup, but Kynaston avoids myopia by swiftly moving from subject to subject. The result contrasts between tantalising blur and detailed exposition. We never disappear into the authoritative third person narrator, staying closely attuned to the voices of the time.
Even the politics is told through the thoughts of those at the time giving a genuine flavour of the challenges of the time untainted by hindsight. As a New Zealander the climatic election campaign where relative prosperity, an accomplished Prime Minister and general political apathy sounded eerily familiar.
The sense of Modernity, of a fulcrum of change in these years is clear, mainly through expanding consumerism and arrogant urban redevelopment. The book sets up themes of progress, of ridding society of the ugly cluttered old and replacing it with the clear clean lines of the present. Kynaston's text (and the photo selection) perhaps could have evoked slightly more clearly the appeal of clean right angled white concrete over what was then old, dirty and tired gothic architecture.
Also a few other significant changes could have received more attention- the freedom excitement and appeal of the motor car over rattling old buses and belatedly modernising railways, changing fashions, popular music, and the continuity of old hobbies and habits.
This is only a question of balance - all these elements are present, as are a healthy dose of sport, literature, theatre, television and radio and solid material on the questioning of the post 1944 education system.
Kynaston's book is evocative and perhaps that is its greatest gift. Fun to read alongside and in contrast to Sandbrook and Hennersey's efforts. We have some wonderful balanced views of this period. Now into the sixties ...

[Adrian]

Author's third volume on British social history. Britain finally begins to come out of the shadow of the war. Everything is about progress. Some progress they like some they don't. Housing developments, some built before 1900, are torn down but the high rise flats put up in their place aren't to the people's taste. Television opens up and game shows and variety hours are popular. So are all the mod con's- tv's, cameras, washing machines, dish washers and vacuum cleaners all sell at record pace. There is much worry about education- but a major study shows even Labour is not willing to scrap public schools. Nasty race riots mar 1957-58 supposedly provoked by teddy boys. The book ends with an excellent recounting of the fall '59 election- the first covered by tv- and a well satisfied public elects the Conservatives once again.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Kynaston's continuation of his history of post-war Britain continues to report on the lives and experiences of all classes of people. It is amazing how different this world is to today in many ways.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent as always from David Kynaston, a good mix of political and social history at a fascinating point in our story.

[Ipswichblade · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series of books and this is no exception. Really well written history

[!Tæmbuŝu]

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