50 WAYS women’s lives have changed

For better... and worse

WHEN Femail launched in 1968, times were very different for women. Here ALICE SMELLIE reveals 50 extraordinary ways in which things have moved on . . .

GENDER POLITICS

THEN: fewer than 5 per cent of MPs were female in 1968. the proportion grew to 18 per cent following the 1997 General election — 120 women were elected. NOW: We may have a second female PM, but women hold just 208 out of 650 seats in the Commons.

MAKING MONEY

THEN: Women were not allowed to take out credit or loans without a male guarantor, such as their husband or father. NOW: that was outlawed by the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975.

UNIVERSITY

THEN: 16,851 men but only 5,575 women obtained university degrees in 1960.

NOW: the gap is barely there. in 2016, slightly more women (46.4 per cent) than men (45.5 per cent) had completed tertiary education.

FILM FAVOURITES

THEN: Barbra Streisand starred in funny Girl (1968), about the rise of musical star fanny Brice and her relationship with her damaged husband.

NOW: Lady Gaga tops the charts in a remake of Barbra Streisand’s 1976 film A Star is Born, about a musical star and her damaged husband.

THE ART OF THE CUPPA

THEN: Loose leaf tea was still drunk — tea bags did not take off until the Seventies. NOW: We’re still drinking 165million cups daily, and there are about 1,500 varieties.

THE DAILY GRIND . . .

THEN: Women were likely to be clerks, typists or shop assistants, earning an average of £10 a week.

NOW: the public sector is the most popular career choice among young women; doctors, nurses, teachers and police officers — weekly average, £530.

. . . AND DAILY BREAD

THEN: Average consumption of bread was 1,000g (2lb 3oz) a week by 1974.

NOW: Carbohydrates are the enemy. it’s almost half that — 600g (1lb 5oz) per week as we turn to low-carb diets.

EQUAL PAY

THEN: Women’s work was considered less skilled (even if exactly the same as men’s). A strike by 187 female workers at ford’s Dagenham car factory in 1968 was instrumental in the passing of the 1970 equal Pay Act. NOW: the maths still doesn’t add up. eight out of ten firms pay men more. Women’s average earnings are £25,303, and men’s £30,524.

HEART-THROBS

THEN: A classically handsome line-up of Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Sean Connery.

NOW: Chiselled is still in. We love idris elba, Ryan Reynolds, Bradley Cooper and a selection of brawny Chrises: Pine, Pratt and hemsworth.

EATING OUT

THEN: Welcome to the era of ‘Britalian’ restaurants, serving such exotic foods as spaghetti bolognaise with chips, with candles in Chianti bottles.

NOW: Girls’ nights out are at top chains — Nando’s, Wagamama and itsu sushi. We eat out twice a week, spending £288,000 in our lifetimes.

CHEERS!

THEN: Wine’s fine. in the late Sixties wine was for everyone, rather than just the upper classes. By the early Seventies, Mateus Rose was the most popular wine in the world. NOW: top alcohol brands in the UK this year are Stella Artois and Smirnoff, with Gordon’s gin at No 6. in 2017, 57 per cent of over 16s drank alcohol — that’s 29.2million. But young people are drinking less — 23 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds are teetotal.

RING RING

THEN: even by 1970, only 35 per cent of homes had a fixed-line telephone, and mobiles were unheard of.

NOW: in 2017, only 89 per cent of homes still had a landline — of course, now we all have mobiles. home phones peaked at 95 per cent in 1998-2000.

WHAT’S COOKING?

THEN: Julia Child was the celebrity chef of 1968 — with her the french Chef Cookbook released that year. NOW: hemsley and hemsley, Deliciously ella and Amelia freer, lead the emphasis on healthy, fresh food.

HOUSE PRICES

THEN: Looking to buy? the average UK house price was £3,903, and the average annual salary around £1,488. NOW: Average property £232,554. Average salary — spot the gap — is £27,600.

CINEMA STARS

THEN: to the moon and back. the top grossing film of 1968 was Arthur C. Clarke’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. NOW: Marvel/DC comic heroes rule top grossing film for 2018 is Black Panther and then Avengers, infinity War.

KITCHEN GADGETS

THEN: The Kenwood Chef food processor was the aspirational object. NOW: Juicers. What is a home without a Vitamix or a Nutribullet?

LITTLE HELPERS

THEN: Diet pills containing ampheta-mines caused an epidemic of addiction in the U.S. NOW: Weight loss aids such as Alli available over the counter. Claims to lock absorption of 25 per cent of fat.

CLEANING UP

THEN: Pears was the top-selling soap; and your make-up was removed with soap and a flannel. NOW: Sonic cleansing. This year, we're more likely to choose such gadgets as the Foreo Luna Fbfo (f79, foreo.com), which analyses skin to ensure person-alised cleansing.

CONTRACEPTION

THEN: In 1961 the contraceptive Pill became available on the NHS. It could be prescribed only to married women. NOW: Sixty-five per cent of under 35s rely on 'user dependent' contraception such as condoms, diaphragms, caps, the contraceptive Pill and natural family planning.

VITAL STATISTICS

THEN: Women were smaller: 5ft 2in, 34B busts, 27.8in waists, 39in hips, weighing 9st 10lb with size 3 shoes.

NOW: A 2017 survey reveals we’re 5ft 5in, 11st, with 34in waists, 40.5in hips and bra size 36DD. Feet are size 6.

GROWING OLD

THEN: From the mid-Sixties to midSeventies the main cause of death in women over 55 was heart disease.

NOW: The most common single cause of death for females is dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (15.5 per cent). Next is heart disease (8.8 per cent). The various cancers are together responsible for 24.8 per cent of deaths.

COST OF LIVING

THEN: We paid just 17p for a pint of milk and 8p for a loaf of bread. NOW: About 50p and £1.

DOCTOR, DOCTOR

THEN: In 1968, six per cent of consultants were female.

NOW: Progress but still a discrepancy; 36 per cent of NHS consultants are women according to NHS Digital.

THE GOOD WIFE

THEN: When your husband arrives home from work, a home economics book advised: ‘Have him lean back in a comfortable chair . . . speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.’ NOW: Publications targeted at girls are Goodnight Stories For Rebel Girls, The Gutsy Girl or Molly Rogers, Pirate Girl. Women are the ones in charge.

SUPERMARKET SWEEP

THEN: Moving away from the butcher and baker, the concept of supermarket shopping took off. A 110,000ft store — GEM — was opened in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, in 1964. NOW: Death of the High Street. Vast supermarkets are commonplace and up to 14 per cent of Brits do all of their grocery shopping online.

TIDE OF PLASTIC

THEN: We avidly bought the newly developed plastics, which protected food and brightened the kitchen.

NOW: Plastic is the scourge of the modern world; everyone is looking to reduce consumption.

HOT COOKERS

THEN: The Belling was market leader in electric cookers.

NOW: Staying away from the heat. According to Which? the top three most reliable built-in oven brands are Zanussi, AEG and Electrolux.

WHITE GOODS

THEN: 50 per cent of kitchens had a fridge, but freezers were a rarity. NOW: A refrigerator, freezer and cooker are basics — 46 per cent own a dishwasher and 93 per cent a microwave.

CHORE WARS

THEN: Women’s place was in the kitchen (and cleaning the rest of the house). NOW: In 2016, the Office For National Statistics found women were doing 40 per cent more housework than men.

NOT SO BROODY

THEN: According to the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, women had 4.92 children on average. NOW: Global average has decreased to 2.47. Women who turned 45 in 2016 had an average of 1.90 children, down from 2.21 for their mothers’ generation.

COME FLY WITH ME

THEN: Family holidays were Famous Five style, and likely to be in the UK. 64 per cent of over 50s polled said they hadn’t travelled abroad until at least their 16th birthday. NOW: The average age of first air travel is five, and 37 per cent spend their first holiday abroad.

LICENSING LAWS

THEN: Pubs closed at 10.30pm and women commonly wouldn’t go into a pub by themselves in 1968 — even in London. There were pubs with men only snug bars. NOW: Open all hours. We’re the second worst binge drinkers in Europe, according to a report in the European Journal of Public Health.

HEN PARTIES

THEN: Unheard of. The stag would have a drink with friends the night before the wedding. NOW: The average spend on a hen do is over £500.

TOP TUCKER

THEN: Time savers for busy ladies. Women were able to serve up such joys as Angel Delight, Vesta curries, Fray Bentos pies and Smash instant mash. NOW: Gut-friendly fermented food, as well as locally sourced fresh produce and the rise of veganism.

SLIMMING DOWN

THEN: Between 1966 and 1970, Woman’s Own magazine offered 40 approaches to weight loss, including the Banana Only Diet, and the 350 calorie air hostess diet.

NOW: 5:2 is still popular as is the DASH diet; lots of fruit, vegetables, lean meat and fish. Fifty seven per cent of women diet every year.

STYLE SAVVY

THEN: The mini-skirt was the look of the mid to late Sixties for the young, as well as hot pants, coloured tights and plastic macs. NOW: Eco-friendly fabrics and ethical fashion, epitomised by Meghan Markle and designer Stella McCartney.

DREAM DESIGNERS

THEN: Top of the tree were ground breakers such as Emilio Pucci, Mary Quant and Zandra Rhodes.

NOW: Vogue reports that the top three brands this summer were Gucci, OffWhite and Balenciaga. Puzzlingly, Nike came in at number nine.

BRIT FASHION ICONS

THEN: Jean Shrimpton, Marianne Faithfull, Jane Birkin, and Twiggy.

NOW: Alexa Chung, Kate Moss, Tilda Swinton, the Duchesses of Cambridge and Sussex.

FACES OF BEAUTY

THEN: In 1968 Naomi Sims was the first black model to appear on the cover of Ladies Home Journal. NOW: Forbes Rich List has Kendall Jenner as this year’s highest paid model, earning £17 million.

LIFE SPAN

THEN: Life expectancy for women in 1968 was 74.9 years. NOW: We may be larger, but we’re living longer, at 80.96 years.

WRINKLE TREATMENT

THEN: A pot of Nivea or Pond’s Cold Cream. Moisturiser was just that — giving dry skin a boost of moisture. NOW: Retinol is the buzz word; exfoliating dead skin cells and stimulating turnover.

BIG BUSINESS BEAUTY

THEN: Beauty giant Clinique was launched in 1968 by Estee Lauder, with the revolutionary concept of cleanse, exfoliate and moisturise.

NOW: The biggest beauty launches of this year have been inexpensive and functional products by such companies as The Inkey List.

LASH LOVERS

THEN: DIY cake mascara still in use.

NOW: High-tech lashes are in. Chanel has launched the first ever mascara with a 3D printed brush.

RAINBOW LIPS

THEN: Pale pink lipstick. NOW: Shades of orange and nude. (Though really, anything goes).

TECHIE TIGHTS

THEN: Mini-skirts heralded the revolution of tights, and in 1968 Pretty Polly developed one-piece tights. NOW: Thousands of styles.

HAIR HEROES

THEN: The Afro sported by Marsha Hunt in the musical Hair, which opened in 1968, became iconic — she was on the front of Vogue the following year. Or the Vidal Sassoon bob. NOW: The side bun. Less exciting, but the most searched for look this year on Pinterest — up 164 per cent.

PEARLY WHITES

THEN: Take them out. Many older women had all their teeth removed and replaced with false teeth.

NOW: The addition of fluoride to toothpaste in the early Seventies saw a huge difference in oral health. More than 10,000 dental implants carried out a year — 25 per cent say they have had their teeth whitened.

WORKING OUT

THEN: The Trim Twist was a portable exercise gadget made from a square of pressed board mounted on top of a metal turning mechanism. NOW: Gym tech is all about tracking our personal fitness.

SUN WORSHIP

THEN: We all wanted to be bronzed Bardots, far more likely to slather on the olive oil and stay in the shade.

NOW: Unthinkable not to protect our skin from the sun’s damaging rays — it’s suggested that we wear at least SPF15 on our faces every day.

MOTORWAY MUNCH

THEN: The motorway service station revolutionised journeys — no more picnics to be packed by Mum. People went on dates to service stations. NOW: Visited only because we have no option on long journeys with starving children who are desperate for the loo.