Nella Last in the 1950s: Further diaries of Housewife, 49
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By Patricia Malcolmson, and and, Robert Malcolmson
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‘I can never understand how the scribbles of such an ordinary person … can possibly have value.’
So wrote Nella Last in her diary on 2 September 1949. Sixty years on, tens of thousands of people have read and enjoyed the first two volumes of her uniquely detailed and moving diaries, written during World War II and its aftermath as part of the Mass Observation project, and the basis for BAFTA-winning drama Housewife 49 starring Victoria Wood.
This third compelling volume sees Nella, now in her sixties, writing of what ordinary people felt during those years of growing prosperity in a modernising Britain. Her diary offers a detailed, moving and humorous narrative of daily life at a time that shaped the society we live in today. It is an account that’s full of surprises as we learn more about her relationship with ‘my husband’ (never ‘Will’) and her fears of nuclear war. Outwardly Nella’s life was commonplace; but behind this mask were a penetrating mind and a lively pen.
As David Kynaston said on Radio 4, Nella Last ‘will come to be seen as one of the major twentieth century English diarists.’
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This is the final book in a series based on the observation of the daily life of a housewife from Barrow in Furness through WW2 to the 1950s. Her diaries were extensive so these books represent a heavily edited account from her writings. This very ordinary housewife was observant, answering the call to be part of a Mass Observation survey and we share her experiences through difficult times. Her two young sons grow up and leave home, Clive becoming an artist in Australia. She supports her husband through his mental trials and her own health difficulties. Her short car drives to the near by Lake District provide a measure of relif and a safety valve, however short, from daily troubles. These books open a window into the ordinary. A massive archive exists which, although not readily accessible to us all, has been skilfully distilled into this series of books. They will bring back many memories to those who lived through these times and make interesting comments on a time for which we would otherwise have no memory.
