Leisure and Transport

• Spectator sports


  Sports that are watched by an audience
• Spectator sports in Britain 1918-1979


  • Played an important social function and became central to British life, culture and identity
  • Reason for growth: all classes (esp. working classes) had more leisure time
  • Teams came out of local communities and built links with the area
  • Introduction of TV changed how people experienced spectator sports
• During 1918-1939, many major sporting events were free or very cheap
• Football audiences during 1918-1939 were huge, reaching 22 million people a year
• After football, the second biggest spectator sport was greyhound racing, with up to 100,000 people going to watch the races at one London greyhound track
• During the Great Depression, sports watched by the middle classes (such as tennis and golf) continued to thrive, while football, rugby, and cricket teams in the hardest hit areas struggled to survive
• In 1936, the BBC radio began to broadcast live from football matches, which increased the sport's popularity and gave it a national audience
• At the start of WWII, sports stadiums were closed, but public demand and a belief it would help morale led to them reopening
• During WWII, more and more charity matches took place made up from volunteers and teams from the armed forces
• After WWII, sport became a bigger and bigger part of the newspapers, helping spread its popularity
• Cricket


  The biggest sport in Britain in the 1950s, but by the 1960s it was less popular due to the growth of football and television taking up people's leisure time
• The number of football teams affiliated to the FA increased from just below 18,000 in 1948 to just over 30,000 by 1938
• The cost to watch a football match increased from 5p in the 1930s-40s to 25p in 1968 and £1 in 1981
• By the 1960s, big business started to play a bigger role in football, with the introduction of sponsorship
• Football attendance was healthy immediately after WWII, with 41 million tickets sold in 1948, but by the 1960s it was declining, mainly due to competition from other leisure activities and people watching football on TV
• Match of the Day started on TV in 1964
• During the 1966 World Cup in England, 32 million viewers watched on TV as England beat West Germany
• Football hooliganism seems to have been going on from the 1950s onwards, with more of the older fans starting to stay at home and watch football on TV
• Before 1961, a professional football player's wage was capped at £20 a week, but by the 1970s, footballers were earning large wages, with Kevin Keegan earning £250,000 in 1978 from a mix of wages and advertising
• The 1948 Olympics in London was the first to be televised, but TV ownership was rare at the time and the signal only stretched 25 miles from north London
• In 1972, the government set up the Sports Council of Great Britain to promote sport for everyone from elite athlete to the normal public, and also invested in sporting facilities such as community football pitches and swimming baths
• In the 1960s, 60-70% of those who watched sport were men, and less than 20% of women participated in sport
• Women were banned from joining leading golf clubs or sport governing bodies, and sport helped reinforce the role of women
• With new sports centres being built in the 1970s (from 27 in England in 1970 to over 500 by 1979), more and more women started to participate in sports like swimming
• Tourism


  Travelling for leisure and recreation
• Before WWI, most tourist facilities were geared towards the wealthy, with expensive seaside spa resorts and golf resorts
• The 1938 Holidays with Pay Act made paid holidays a right, not a privilege, even though most holidays in the UK were still just a few days at the seaside
• Car ownership grew, reaching 2 million cars on the roads by 1939, leading to a boom in caravanning, camping, and hiking
• Tourist resorts like the Lake District became more popular in the 1930s, with 72,000 visitors, helped by the appeal of books such as the Swallow and Amazon novels
• Seaside resorts were also popular in the 1930s, with Blackpool having 7 million visitors a year
• The birth of holiday camps in the 1930s, such as Billy Butlin's first camp in 1936, made holidays easier for working-class families
• During WWII, holidays became difficult due to travel restrictions and petrol rationing, but many still tried to have an annual trip to the seaside
• By the 1950s, most families had an annual holiday, with 27 million holidays and 2 million holidays abroad in 1951, increasing to 49 million holidays and 8 million abroad by 1973
• The 1960s saw the start of holiday apartment blocks springing up on seaside resorts in Spain and Portugal, becoming more attractive with cheap accommodation, cheap flights, and good weather
• Butlin's tried to change its market in the late 1960's 70's and appeal to young adults but it was a disaster as the tabloids were full of stories of how the camps had become overrun by sex, drinking and anti-social behaviour
• Tourism in the 1930's


  One approach for everyone
• Tourism in the 1960's


  More personalised, hotels offered choice on their menu and more up to date facilities
• During 2WW holidays became difficult – travelling was restricted and petrol was rationed. But many did still try to have an annual trip to the seaside
• Tourism and holidays 1945-79


  • The big change after WW2 was whether to stay at home or go abroad
  • By the 1950's most families had an annual holiday
  • It was a way to escape the stress of day to day life
• In 1951 there were 27 million holidays with 2 million holidays abroad. By 1973 this had increased to 49 million with 8 million abroad