Whilst I'm continuing to write the story I entered into a competition recently, I'm busy researching a few things at the same time, including what food was like in the late 1950s.
The answer is 'pretty bland' by the looks of things.
Salmon (tinned) sandwiches, Spam Fritters and Evaporated Milk were top of every household's menu, with very little spices or herbs available - with any flavouring coming from bottles of ketchup, brown sauce and mayonnaise, and that's about it.
I travelled to Cuba about 18 years ago when Castro was still in charge, and I ended up staying in people's homes, rather than lapping it up in luxury in five-star hotels (I was a student at the time). But that gave me a bit of a taste of what it must have been like in the 50s because it was pretty much the same over in Cuba. None of the local shops had any kind of spices or flavourings, just the basics like... ketchup, brown sauce and mayonnaise. And when you ate out in local restaurants, none of the food was spiced.
By the end of two weeks there, I was gagging for some flavours to stimulate my palate - but I guess the difference between then, and the 1950s, was that those born in the 50s wouldn't have known what they were missing. But I did. And I sooo missed flavours!
Still, it's hard to imagine a life here in the UK where the only takeaway at the time was pretty much the humble fish and chip shop, and that the invention of cheese and onion crisps didn't come until nine years after the end of the Second World War. Before that it was all about plain, or salted. But Cheese and Onion crisps were invented in 1954, followed by Salt and Vinegar in 1967, and Prawn Cocktail in the 70s.
Knowing all of that, I'm definitely going to have to write a scene where one of my main characters, an old lady who revisits the 50s as part of the storyline, tries Cheese and Onion crisps for the first time as a teenager.
That moment must have been priceless.
It's hard to imagine a life without flavours. We are so lucky to have access to such an amazing array of foods and flavours from so many different cultures here in the UK.
But as much as I'm enjoying researching all this, you still can't beat having someone to interview in person about a subject.
When I worked in telly, the majority of my interviews were carried out over the phone. I would interview guests then write up their notes for the presenter ahead of the interview. So I'm fine with interviewing people over the phone - but I always prefer having someone to interview in whichever way I can, rather than just relying on notes and pages that other people have put together.
People, to me, bring a subject alive.
So you can imagine my excitement when G told me he might have someone for me to interview about this.
I'm going to have to ask them to describe their very first taste of chocolate to me. Or a banana. Or Cheese and Onion crisps, and curry. Imagine that! How glamorous all these new flavours must have seemed back then - and how yummy!
For me, Cuba was an interesting experience because (excuse the pun) it gave me a bit of a taste of what life is like without flavours and spices, and how bland and boring food must have seemed in the 50s.
But now I have someone I can ask all about it, it makes me very happy. Because when it comes to research, you can't beat a real life person to ask questions of!
#Givemearealpersoneverytime #facetofaceinterviews #interviews #interviewskills #writing #amwriting #writingcommunity #researching #food #flavours #flavouring #spices #herbs #1950s
Comments