Working on the land | Poverty | farm labourer | Poverty in the countryside | This Week | 1969

my dad was from thetford norfolk farrier by trade, joined kings troop in 1936 has a farrier grandad went back to farming, after 1914 1918 war, loved there way of life bless them RIP xx

My dad chose to move to the country in the 60s. We lived in a tied cottage with it's own meadow, woods and a stream for fishing. We had a huge vegetable garden and kept ducks, hens and geese. Firewood was supplied for free. There were no bills to worry about apart from electricity and deliveries from the baker's van. He could have made twice as much in the town but didn't want to live like rats in a tenement slum.

My Father was a shepherd for a farmer in Nettleham, Lincs in the 1950s, my parents were newly married, they lived in a tied cottage and the farmer was a gentleman living in a big country house. My Grandfather, also a farmer, passed away unexpectedly, my Grandmother sent my Father a telegram to come back right away as the cows needed milking, so my Great Uncle had to travel down in a cattle wagon to load up & bring my Parents and all their belongings back to Cheshire just like that, and they carried on farming the home farm, not what they'd planned as then, as a sheep farmer, they didn't get 'paid' until they sold sheep at market, their 'paycheck' came once a year on market day.

We were a herdsmans family in West Cornwall. We were not given free food, tied cottage to small for us all. We boys lived in a mobile home at the back which we had pay a pound a week. We had to keep, goats for milk, Hens, rabbitts and pigs for food. Life was hand to mouth in tbe 1960s, 70s and early 80s We we're unlucky we had a unpleasant family who were well to do. Dad and mammy were left a small bungalow and when dad put his notice in they though dad and mammy were going to homeless they got a shock. It depended on who your boss was some good , some bad. It was a very hard life forget the myths it was very tough. Im.60 not 90 but cheap food was part is part of tbe problem

I worked as a carpenter for a very successful farmer building a robotic milking parlour as I rented a cottage off him, he told me he would never pay any man more than £12 an hour. I didn’t have work at the time so swallowed it but the farmers dons both went to Stowe school while his workers lived in poverty

(4:00) Thames interviewer : Why don't you get another job. Bob's wife : Why don't you get another job. Great money and incentives at the cigarette factory. The (lead) paint factory. Manufacturing, coal mines - they're the future, Bob! Switch on the radio. "All you need is love", Bob. Sung by some fellas driving around in a hand painted Rolls Royce. Yeah, just drop everything, Bob.

farmer doesn't look like he is starving. I remember tater-picking as a child , got hardly a penny for back-breaking work trawling through mud all day with no breaks. Slavery really, treated us like peasants. Us and them.

A magnificent report by Llew Gardner, such a professional journalist.

I wish I could go back in time to when they’re plowing the fields. I bet you would find some great treasures.

We ran a very successful farming (& Graziers ) business. The boys and or families that lived in the “tied” cottages were not charged a rent, we also paid their heating bills & supplied them with coal for their open fires. And fresh milk. I think we treated the men with respect.

Ronald Blythe book Akenfield a must read account of the hardships of rural life for farmworkers.

“Farmers never admit they are rich and rarely look poor”

Reading the acclaimed book ‘Ackenfield’ by Ronald Blyth. This book is great complement to this video here.

From 1946 till late 1980s the British Farmers NEVER had it so good, Government subsidies after the war, the marketing boards, i.e Milk & potatoes made sure prices were good and steady.. If a farmer couldn't make great money between.those years 46 - 89.. then they were inept..

Ey up hope you're well. We will always have hard times as we did back then and now chin up carry on. Keep in work no matter what you do be lucky 😊👍

Same old story, the rich get rich, and the poor get children.

Twelve pounds eight shillings for a forty hour week! Pigging luxury I had to work 30 hors a day down pit for a penny a year Twelve of us lived in shoe box int middle of road but we were happy 😅

I was on a county council farm and they have killed all of us

Farmers now have it easy Big expensive machines. Best of cars. 4x4 vehicles. Which they never seem to look after. Quad bikes etc etc. in the good old days farmers had to walk the roads and fields to tend and feed the animals.in all kinds of weather. Now they are all wrapped up and drive in the fields. Never seen a poor farmer in this day and age.

The farmer saying he might make no money this year while having a neck of meat ion him like an Aberdeen Angus bull 😂😂😂