A HISTORY OF CORNER
Going Back In Time across a century, a family finds there has always been far more to running a shop than stacking shelves
The corner shop has always been a staple of the community, a vital part of life. But what was it like to run one in Victorian times compared to now? By the miracle of modern television a family from Sheffield is about to find out.
The Arderns – dad Dave, mum Jo and their children Sam, 21, Olivia, 16, and Ben, 13 – take over a disused shop in the Meersbrook area of the city for the fascinating documentary Back In Time For The Corner Shop.
Presented by Sara Cox, each of the six episodes is set in a different era and the premises are filled with items on sale at the time. So late19th-century wares – from pickled eggs to hair-raising health tonics – are on display in week one which begins in 1897 and runs through to just after the First World War.
Conspicuous by their absence are labour-saving devices. Dave, a care home deputy manager, who’s appointed the head shopkeeper, has to slice a large cheese using a blunt knife. Jo and Olivia churn butter by hand and use a rudimentary instrument to weigh up. Soon, exasperated Jo, a charity worker, cries, ‘I want my digital scales!’
Towards the end of the episode, the Arderns face a different challenge – a chronic lack of stock. As Sara explains, this was how it would have been towards the end of the war. ‘German U-boats sank almost 7,000 supply ships bound for these shores and by spring 1917 we had only three weeks of food left. The empty spaces on the shelves of Ardern & Son reflect that,’ she says.
Each episode has a guest customer. Olympian Kelly Holmes puts the family through an Edwardianstyle workout, while Eat Well For
Less co-host Chris Bavin appears later in the series to teach them how to blend tea. The last episode is set in the present day and shows the difficulties corner shops face against the allure of their great rival, the mini supermarket.
The Arderns reckon the experience of running a corner shop was extremely positive.
‘As a family, we spent time together, we talked and played games which is something we don’t do enough of,’ says Jo. ‘And we’ve continued to do those things after filming.’