Dear LPG,

During the year 2020 many of us brits had to get used to payment holidays although, as pensioners, I think that we were the group of British Citizens whose finances were least affected.  Another sort of holiday that really did suffer was that habit that so many of us have taken for granted over the years; I am talking about the good old fashioned annual summer holiday.

What is it they say; a change is as good as a rest and when I was young fruit picking holidays were popular, there was the B & B get-away and I remember the annual one-week stay that our family spent at the same establishment every year during my teens.  The sea was just around the corner and so were the amusements, but I remember it best for the full English breakfast which we so looked forward to at the beginning of the week, but that most of my family never wanted to see again by the end of it. There was also the caravan that we visited for years at a time when the beach, bucket and spade were most important components of the week, but the week I spent in a holiday camp was pretty special too.

The one thing that a British person of a certain age can’t ignore is the effect that British Holiday camps had on the UK annual get-away.  I only ever went to one, but being on holiday there was every bit as demanding as being at school or work because of all the attractions, organised activities and competitions that were on offer, and I often wonder if I might have met one of the many celebrities that learned their craft while working at such places back in the day.

They are still around, although I think that they are now regarded as more of an extra holiday venue rather than the main holiday destination that they once were for so many. In the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, they were at the height of popularity and, I can’t help it, but thinking of a holiday camp without the word “Butlin’s” coming to mind is quite impossible for me even though there are so many others.

As I have already said, I think that 2020 will go down in history as the year that passed us by, but even though so much was missing from it for so many people, the memories will always be there. It is worth noting that the first such holiday camp opened 85 years ago today and, while holidays to any destination are still looking iffy at the moment, perhaps the memories should be celebrated on such an anniversary.

YF, Plumstead

YF found us some memories…

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