I remember when

Fifty years ago, long before mobile phones, 24 hour supermarkets and budget airlines, life in Britain would have seemed like an entirely foreign country to today's internet generation.

Rationing was still in force for sugar, butter, cheese, margarine and meat. Most homes didn't have fridges or washing machines and cinema performances would end with a rousing rendition of God Save the Queen.

So what was Britain like to live in during the coronation year? What were people wearing, eating and spending their hard-earned shillings on? Was it really so different?

Terry Charan, a historian at the Imperial War Museum in London, says one of the most noticeable differences between 1953 and 2003 was the stricter, less morally permissive society that prevailed in Britain.

"To have been living with someone out of marriage would have been very shocking. Divorce was still pretty risque and people would have thought a divorcee was probably a bit of a rogue and someone to keep an eye on.

"To have a child out of marriage was also pretty shocking stuff and would have been very embarrassing for the woman's family. Abortions were of course still illegal in 1953.

"There was also a feeling that people knew their place in 1953. Children should be seen and not heard and there wasn't the social mobility that you have now - working class people usually stayed in manual jobs and middle class children would walk into professional careers."

Sherri Steel, curator of social history at York Castle Museum, says women experienced a far more limited role than they do today: "After the war women who had been working in industry returned to the home and became stereotypical housewives who prepared nice meals and looked after the children.

"Big efforts were made to build up the role of the housewife and adverts and magazines promoted the idea that women should be making a home for their family."

For women who did work, job opportunities were usually limited to typing, secretarial and cleaning jobs.

Barbara Blakeson, curator of the New Elizabethans exhibition in Harrogate, says being a housewife in the austerity of post war Britain was a full-time job in itself.

"There were no supermarkets in 1953 and rationing for many items was still in force. Women would have to visit the butcher's, greengrocer's and the bakery in the local high street for their provisions."

The way in which food was sold was also rather different to today. Pre-packaged foods were something of a rarity. If you wanted some butter it would be sliced off an enormous block at the corner shop. Things like biscuits, sugar and flour were all loose and packed into the shop's bags.

The choice and range of food was still rather limited after the war, as Blakeson explains.

"Meat and two veg was traditionally served up for dinner and was often followed by a steam pudding, or if you were lucky jam roly-poly or spotted dick. Spam fritters, bubble and squeak and semolina were all considered something of a treat."

Few houses had fridges, Charan adds, so the housewife would have to go out on an almost daily basis to buy the goods for that night's supper. Washing machines were also a rarity, so clothes would be washed by hand and then fed through a mangle to squeeze the laundry dry.

In contrast to today, food and non-alcoholic drink took up a hefty chunk of the household's weekly budget. In 1950, a third of spending went on food and non-alcoholic drink, compared with only one sixth in 2000-01, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures.

Television was still in its infancy in the coronation year and the radio remained the most popular form of entertainment. Hit shows included The Archers and Hancock's Half Hour.

At 5pm every week day children waited eagerly to listen to Children's Hour, whilst younger children had Listen With Mother. Those lucky enough to have a black and white television set enjoyed shows such as The Lone Ranger, Dixon Of Dock Green and Muffin The Mule and The Goon Show.

Breaks between programmes were filled by interludes where you could watch, for example, a pot being moulded on a potter's wheel or a meandering stream. And at the end of the day, programmes on television and radio would finish with a daily rendition of God Save the Queen.

Cinema was also very popular in 1953, and was one of the few places courting couples could spend time away from the prying eyes of their parents.

Home-grown comedies like The Titfield Thunderbolt and Norman Wisdom's Trouble In Store were packing out cinemas, whilst movies about daring prisoner of war escapes continued to catch the public's imagination.

As for holidays, most families could only afford one trip away a year and most would flock to seaside resorts like Skegness, Blackpool, Brighton... and Bournemouth, of course.

This was also the golden age of the holiday camp and hundreds of thousands of families descended on Butlins for a week of games, entertainment and competitions.

Foreign holidays were the preserve of the wealthy and the package tourism industry was still very much in its infancy.

The annual trip to the seaside was usually made by train or coach, rather than by car. In 1952, only 15 per cent of households had access to a car, compared with 73 per cent today (according to ONS figures) and the country's first motorway had yet to be built.

Fashion styles were also radically different to today and were a lot more formal, as fashion historian Valerie Mendes explains.

"Young women used to dress like their mothers and boys used to dress like miniature versions of their fathers.

"Long skirts were in fashion but were controversial because they used masses of material which many people felt could be better used."

At the weekends men threw off their suits and would often wear sweaters and flannel trousers - it was, the fashion expert says, "dressing down but it was still smart.

"Clothes then had to last - you were careful about what you bought. It was a totally different society."