Childrens parties in the 1950s and 1960s

Who remembers childrens parties in the days before sophistication set in and kids were satisfied with jelly/ice cream and a goodie bag?

Me... and we enjoyed ourselves just as much.

Yep, sandwiches, Mum's home-make cake and buns, and party games (when parents were in the room) and rolling around on the floor having play-fights (when they weren't.) I hasten to add that the attendees would all be boys - what boy of eight or ten would ever invite cissy girls to his party?

I particularly remember one of my birthday parties when I was about eight. My parents had bought, for the first time, a string of lights to put on the Christmas tree (my birthday was, and indeed still is, on December 22nd). half way through the party, one bulb blew and the tree caught fire. As it was standing on top of the television, Dad couldn't throw water on it even when he'd unplugged the lights from the wall socket, so he beat it out with his bare hands or maybe a newspaper. The other boys thought this was a wonderful cabaret, though requests for a repeat performance the following year were gruffly dismissed by Dad.

---------- Post added 24-03-2017 at 09:28 ----------

...and another memory has surfaced: at another of my birthday parties, Mum was conducting a game of I-Spy, with edible prizes for each winner. Now, you have to understand that my Mum was immensely house-proud; like most of our mothers in those days, she was a full-time housewife and prided herself in keeping 13 Gleadless Avenue spick and span.

Anyway, so we got as far as "I spy with my little eye something beginning with C". Up piped one boy (I think it was my classmate Rodney Ellis): "Cobweb!"

Mum bristled and drew herself up to her full 5'6". "You won't find a cobweb in MY house, Rodney!" she shrilled.

"Yes, Mrs. Atherton. Look, up there in the corner above the picture rail".

Mum turned very red and left the room abruptly. I don't think that I was allowed to invite Rodney to our house again. I don't think he got an edible prize either.

I remember trying to make a Jane Asher cake for a party. It involved putting chocolate finger biscuits all round it which wouldn't stick and kept falling off. I gave it up as a bad job and bought a cake from Fletchers!!

Remember going to village hall parties for all the kids in the village. We took our own cutlery and Mum's tied cotton round the handles so we knew which was ours!! Often thought since what a waste of time as most households only had black or white reels of cotton - so all the cutlery was much the same!!

Who remembers childrens parties in the days before sophistication set in and kids were satisfied with jelly/ice cream and a goodie bag?

I'm afraid goodie bags came well after my childhood parties in the '40s & '50s. Food was basic, like potted meat/egg/cheese sandwiches with buns and, as you mention GO, jelly/ ice cream to finish. All the invitees took home was a slice of birthday cake.

Entertainment consisted of Pass the Parcel, Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Naming from memory items on a tray and Musical Chairs if we were lucky and there was enough room.

Wrinkly67 I also recall taking plates, bowls and cutlery to school Christmas parties and your Mum had to stick your name on them for identification!

echo.

Echo, I'm going off at a bit of a tangent, but you hav ebrought back another memory with your mention of bowls. Who remembers going to the fish & chip shop and having to take a bowl for your portion of peas because little plastic take-away containers had not yet been introduced? On Saturdays Dad and I used to go down to Furness' on Hollinsend Road to get fish & chips, to give Mum a day's break from doing the cooking, and we always took a ceramic bowl for what would now be called "mushy peas". I can't remember how we used to cover it to prevent the peas from spilling out in the car on the journey back home, though. Perhaps Mrs. Furness just wrapped it in a sheet of newspaper (the bowl, I mean, not the car).

Also taking a jug to the pub to be filled with beer to take home!