The big Freeze of 1963 channel 5 thursday 9pm

I was in London during that time. Working, have very few memories, it obviously had little impact on my life then. Do remember, the snow on New Years Eve. Fiancee and I went into central London - so few revellers in Trafalgar square that year, and then our long walk home to where we lived afterwards. I can vaguely remember that the snow was piled up in the kerbs and along the hedges for many w0weeks, before it finally de-froze and disappeared. But, honestly, no other memories. Went to work, came home, no interruptions in any supplies to my parents council flat in Hackney. Always pretty cold in there - nothing different to any other winter.
Have recorded this programme and will watch over the weekend.

I don't remember it, as I was born in the March, but I do remember my mother telling me how they had to take her into hospital early as she was booked in for a Caesarean and they couldn't risk her going into labour and not being able to get to the hospital. If that happened, we would both have died.

Yes I remember the Big freeze; I was 10 at the time. And I also recall that my mum and dad never drove anywhere when there was snow around without a shovel in the boot, to dig us out if we got stuck. How many people do that these days?

I was 10 in 1963 so remember it fairly well. We had a long drive and dad had to clear the snow from it. I have some amazing photos of the Thames in Reading completely frozen and my siblings and I playing on it. I also have photos of enormous snow drifts near Woodcote where my grandparents lived. The roads must have been open as Dad managed to drive the 5 miles over there. We had no central heating. My bedroom was on the second floor and there was ice in the inside of my bedroom windows every morning. I remember building an igloo on the front lawn. I was a skinny little thing and felt the cold!

I also remember the harsh winter if 1947, when I was six. The snow came over the tops of my wellies. I was at a little private schoolin a Victorian house. The head mistress heated our milk on her kitchen stove. Sometimes it boiled over, and the smell of boiling milk still takes me back to those days.

I was a student in London, living on the top floor of a huge Georgian house. The pipes froze and we had no water. There was a standpipe in the road below where we could fill buckets and carry them back up all those stairs - no lifts!

I felt very sorry for our cleaner, who had just come from the Caribbean. The cold terrified her.

The park keepers broke the ice in the lake every day, for the poor ducks.

I remember being allowed to wear extra clothes with school uniform - and early in the following spring, going to see if my two tortoises - hibernating in a box of hay in the shed - were waking up.
They were both dead.?

all those cars, houses with central heating. Not in my neck of the woods

In the film shown there was a part which informed us that the schools didn’t closed. Following that, about 20 before the end, a clip was shown of a class of children with, what looked like the girls wearing summer uniform, short sleeved dresses, wasn’t there?

I was 18 and started my student nurse training. We were in Preliminary Training School or first three months.We walked through deep snow from the nurses home to the PTS training classroom which was in a hut heated by storage heaters.All of us sat wrapped in our wool cloaks over full uniforms.One of the girls was from Nigeria and this was the first time she had seen snow.She sat right next to one of the heaters all the time complaining of the cold.

I was newly married and living in a flat up 68 steps with a coal fire the only form of heating, so I remember it well. The water main in the road froze and water had to be carted upstairs too - but we were young and fit and coped with it quite cheerfully. Can’t imagine how awful it would seem now, spoiled as I am with central heating!

9pm channel 5 tonight the big freeze of 1963....... showing some black and white film from back then

My cousin got married and we (I was 8 and my sister nearly 6) were bridesmaids. We set off for Slough from Newmarket, already wearing out bridesmaids dresses with little capes and little muffs made of fake fur. Although my DF was an experienced driver we slithered into a ditch.

Somehow the farmer was nearby and pulled us out with his tractor. I only vaguely remember it all. I don't remember the wedding at all, but I do remember the delicious spread at my aunt's house afterwards.

I remember not having any water, taking the washing down the road to a neighbour who had water and a working washing machine. We have photos of us all wrapped up in woolly mittens and bobble hats, pulling the toboggan with a huge basket of washing on it.

Then, of course, there are photos of frozen washing - shirts and school blouses with arms all stiff, sheets that couldn't be folded, and towels like boards!

I was 13 and going by bus (they always ran) to the next town and then half a mile on foot to school every day. I always had porridge, egg and toast for breakfast and wore school uniform with a vest underneath, a gabardine coat, Clark’s lace ups and béret.
We lived in a very old end of terrasse house with one coal fire burning, depending on which of the 2 rooms we were sitting in. Ice was on the inside of the bedroom window and I had a stone hot water bottle. Fortunately, my parents had just had an extension built to do away with the outside loo.

I was 5, nearly 6, went to School everyday. Like other posters, the only heat we had was from the coal fire, and hot water bottles at night, along with piles of blankets.

I was 6. My brother was being christened and I remember my parents carried the pram to the church over the snow.

I'm worried,I was 20 and don't remember a thing about it.I was working 20 miles away and can't remember missing work.I had just met the man who was to be my first husband, I wish I'd forgotten him and remembered the snow .!!

I was 3. I remember it rather well in a vague way. My mum had sat me in the living room with colouring books and crayons. I sat there as she told me I had to stay very still until she got back. There was a roaring fire in the grate.

She then proceeds to take my sister to school in the car. Wellington boots and shovel in the back. I think we'd probably have a snow day today!

But I sat there, totally rigid and absolutely petrified until she came back.

My first memory I think. Not the happiest of memories!

I was 11 and we lived in Kent. I just remember the huge piles of snow next to the roads that stayed there for so long.

My sister, 8 years older than me, had gone to America for a year a missed it all.

I remember one bitter February afternoon in 1963, I was waiting for my boyfriend in a blinding snowstorm, after an hour he still hadn`t turned up, so I caught a bus to his house, his mum opened the door and said he was still in bed! When he came down I said, lamely, "I`ve come for my records"! But we made up and were married for over 53 years.

There was a similar programme before Christmas with Chris Packham, which was very interesting, I certainly don’t remember how bad it appeared to be, we were in Surrey then. After watching, I emailed my 4 secondary school friends (we were 12 or 13 that winter). Recollections did vary - but we all remembered waiting for the buses, sometimes walking all the way to school some days and when we eventually got there, being sent home because the outside toilets had frozen! School uniform was very strict then, but I wore long johns under my skirt, teamed with American Tan tights and long white socks! Will definitely watch and record on Thursday. Thanks for reminder.

I was 16 and still at school. I remember going to our local park which had a boating lake full of enormous carp. There was thick ice all over the pond and the fish were all buried in the ice. Gulls were walking across the ice and eating the fish.

I can't remember what we did about getting to school, I suppose we managed somehow.

Same age as me GrandmaBatty

I remember walking to school through snow and having to sit in the classroom feeling very uncomfortable wearing wet shoes. I wasn’t aware of the year but it could have been this one.

I was five. I had just started school but I don't remember any of it!

Thanks lemsip for posting about this documentary. It's definitely something that I will watch - although I think I will wrap myself up in a blanket ....... the thought of all that snow is making me feel cold now.