Downton Abbey electrical curling tongs.

Cora’s hair was awful, as I recall.

(Sorry, Shirley McLaine, I assume it was a wig).

A lot of things were different for different people in different parts of the country. I remember in a trip to a living museum as a parent helper, one of the older teachers saying there were never electric hair dryers just after the war as the postwar house had.
But apparently it was an original very old hairdryer from that period, so some people had them. The teacher was probably correct in that many families wouldn't have had them, they would have been expensive for a family just scraping by.
Now sure how far back were going with socks, but as a small child in the 50s always has white (to start with) socks, but the boys had grey or fawn ones
I don't know if the display is still there but the science museum has some amazing early electrical items, some were plugged into a light socket, I remember some sort of tablecloth that you could plug small lights into, I guess first time someone spilt their drink at tablethat idea was shelved
I enjoy both factual programmes and actually Downton, although a very romantic used version of life at the time, was something I could watch to take my mind off some of the difficulties I was having at the time, my daughter and I would sit and watch it I'd and escape the stuff happening in my personal life for a short time each week

grandtanteJE65

Even if the Americans did have electric curling tongs in the early 20th century, they probably had not made their way to England!

Even as late as my childhood (1950s) voltage varied from one country to another, which made using electic appliances made abroad either difficult or dangerous.

I’m not so sure.
Cora, being a wealthy American would presumably have had all the latest gadgets.
(pS I know it’s not real )

I am obviously extremely shallow, I watch Downton Abbey for relaxing entertainment not for social history education…

🤔

Come this thread for goodness sake before it starts up again.

and lit, i hope !

Well we never even had a hair dryer during my childhood my Mum or nan used to dry my hair sitting in front of the open door of the gas oven (turned on of course)

Just found a terrific paper about curling irons and Downton:

"Curling Irons and the Role of the New Woman"
Dana Hilton (Spring 2014)

www.k-state.edu/english/westmank/downton/curlingiron.hilton.html#:~:text=It%20was%20primarily%20warmed%20over,plated%20handles%20and%20floral%20embellishments.

Even if the Americans did have electric curling tongs in the early 20th century, they probably had not made their way to England!

Even as late as my childhood (1950s) voltage varied from one country to another, which made using electic appliances made abroad either difficult or dangerous.

Wow is this a competition to see ‘How many posts you can get taken down’ We have a winner 🏆

I m now getting behind the sofa I ve never watched Downton Abbey or Game of thrones or Dr Who or The Crown
none appeal to me

Thank you re the white socks replies.

The curling tongs - who knows, or cares by now 🤔

I have been watching the re runs of ‘Upstairs Downstairs’ and am really enjoying it again! Not quite as beautifully dressed as Downton (and no superstars like Maggie Smith!) but the scripts are so much better! I always thought that Downton was written from too much of a modern perspective and failed to show the often miserable lives of the downstairs staff. Hugh Bonneville was brilliant, though; a fine actor who is as at home playing comedy as drama.

Dillonsgranma

Unbelievable that certain people haven’t watched downton abbey. It was wonderful and won awards. How small minded not to watch their series “on principle “

Crikey!
I have never watched Downton Abbey, no big reason and I am certainly not 'small minded'

Actually here are photos taken during that period and now at the ImperialWar Museum JdotJ - some definitely have "white-looking" socks

www.iwm.org.uk/history/growing-up-in-the-second-world-war

Obviously may not have been completely white as not colour photos.

Interesting though.

Re white socks in WW11
someone called Christopher Wagner had white socks aged about 10 as he was "mortified".
histclo.com/country/eng/co-eng-19402war.html

Dillonsgranma

Unbelievable that certain people haven’t watched downton abbey. It was wonderful and won awards. How small minded not to watch their series “on principle “

Unbelievable?
Surely TV is a matter of choice - or is there some new diktat that decrees programmes you find wonderful and which have won awards are compulsory?

Wow, Dillonsgran that’s a sweeping and IMO entirely unjustifiable comment. Pretty toxic too.
Come the Revolution and you are elected thread monitor you may make such decisions if you please but many of us not only appreciate GSM’’s brand of common sense but have had reason to be grateful for her legal expertise.
Not sure what you find to object to in her door however? 🚪

I thought we'd established that there were (at least some) electric curling tongs in this period?

Germanshepherdsmum

Thank goodness I have never watched Downtown Abbey!

I have watched the whole series and films at least 3 times. Each to their own eh?

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

Some of these comments are so very childish, triggered by someone who always chooses to be controversial. 🤷🏻‍♀️
I’m a fan of the fictitious ‘Downton Abbey’ too, although don’t recall the curling tongs episode. Two of my very trendy granddaughters use curling tongs sometimes, another one has beautiful, naturally curly hair, so doesn’t need them. 😊

My late mum, bless her, was a great one for pointing out inconsistencies in period dramas.
As an evacuee in WWII she was very scathing with any family war time mistakes on TV.
Her pet peeve was war time dramas showing children wearing white socks, which, she said, never would have happened , grey or navy socks, never white.
No doubt someone will post that my mum was wrong but would be nice to have anothers opinion.

Unbelievable that certain people haven’t watched downton abbey. It was wonderful and won awards. How small minded not to watch their series “on principle “

I don’t like inconsistencies in period drama either. My pet hate is the style of curls in some of them, obviously created with hair straighteners or large barrelled tongs or wands. Also some of the prams in Call The Midwife, I used to be obsessed with prams as a child in the late sixties and early seventies so I know some of them didn’t exist in the time period of the show.