Mass Observation Archive

@massobsarchive.bsky.social

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An archive of everyday life, thought and feeling in the UK. Based at The Keep in East Sussex. Find out more at massobs.org.uk Find out more: massobs.org.uk Sign up to our mailing list: https://subscribe.emailblaster.cloud/MjEyMjQ/122.html

A photograph of a page in a 1950s magazine. On the page is a black and white photograph of a woman making direct eye contact with the camera. Under the photo a caption reads, 'For a woman, as youth begins to fade, the shadow of the future looms ahead'
An open page of a large book displaying illustrations of New Look style dresses
a brown envelope with a red wax seal.
A fairly standard office swivel chair by a desk. Someone is gesturing towards the chair.
Multiple handwritten and typed documents in two piles side by side.
A vintage copy of Woman's Own magazine. It's on a grey cushion. There is an advert for cosmetics on the left hand page, on the right is an advice column
A stack of letters and envelopes from the 1950s are piled inside of a yellow folder
Archive rolling racks with brown boxes on the shelves
A group of students srtand with their backs to the camera. They are listening to an archivist describe his work.
A photograph of a table in a library. The table has various promotional materials for Mass Observation's national diary day
A hand holds a flyer in front of Blackpool central library, an Edwardian building made of red brick. The flyer has a photograph of a garden on it and reads '12th May'
A series of short clips showing scenes of nature. On top of all the clips it says '12th May'.
A poster advertising a creative writing workshop. It includes writing prompt questions and information about the event.
An advert for bananas? A man is photographed peeling, or as the advert states 'unzipping' a banana. The advert extolls the virtues of bananas as a snack accompanied by the tagline 'the foodiest fruit of all'
A screenshot of the mass observation project online resource
A muscular man in y-front trousers and a vest propels himself gleefully into the air as part of a 1950s illustrated advery for y-fronts.
Typed questions about the use of public libraries. Next to the text is a clip art image of a blue-ish human-like creature using a computer.
Text asking questions about your relationship to the NHS and medical professionals. There is a clip art image of a faceless doctor holding what could be a stethoscope on the back of an also faceless patient
Typed text asking questions about gardening next to a clip art image of pink and green flowers
A film photograph of a very plastic deckchair facing outwards a very neatly mown lawn surrounded by flower beds
a scan of a brown envelope. Drawn in red pen is a little smiley face with a speech bubble saying 'Keep up the good work'
A scan of a yellow flyer advertising the National Lesbian and Gay Survey. It has a collage of different photographs of people and in the middle it reads 'so who will write the lesbian and gay history of the nineties..?' the bottom of the flyer has further information about how to take part.
Two pages from a sketchbook side by side. On the left are line drawings of faceless bodies wearing loose nightwear, on the left is what appears to be a self portrait drawn in blue ink. The subject is sat hunched on a chair looking forwards with a pen in hand.
A line drawing of a woman looking at the covers of magazine, it has the caption 'isn't it human nature to copy...yearn for "brighter things"'
A photo album filled with pictures of Ali. Most have been taken in photobooths and show her at various stages of growing out her hair.
A stack of brown envelopes under some very harsh office lighting
Suzanne, Ellie and Kirsty are stood behind a stall covered in leaflets. They look thrilled to be there.
Banner image advertising 'Christmas with Nella'
A black and white photograph taken in the early 1970s. There are shelves to the left of the photo. They reach from the floor to the ceiling and are filled with stacks and stacks and stacks of paper....To the right a white man in shirt and tie (Tom Harrisson) is stood at a table looking at something.
a scan of handwritten writing it reads 'I mentioned to an old lady how people like a kitchen where they can chat to their guests while they are cooking. The lady said 'I couldn't have that, I don't want people to know that I have to sieve my gravy.'
A black and white photo of what looks like a ferret at the bottom of some stairs
a black and white photograph of a bedroom with a bed and a television mounted on the wall
a black and white photo of what looks like stone fingurine of a seal
A typed piece of paper from the 1940s. It is summarising from research about what people should do with their pets during war. It talks about how dogs cannot go in public shelters but a scheme has been set up where people put a notice in their window which tells pet owners that should there be a air raid and they can't get home they can shelter in this house.
The writer writes that she didn't think this news was good enough to share and that it was also her late Grandad's birthday and that despite her atheism perhaps this has something to do with her luck. She then talks about her experiences of working at her local polling station which she enjoys doing. As she works at dual poll there is a friendly competition between the two to see who ends up with the most voters
A piece of handwritten text by a 20 year old writer. She talks about the fact it is two years since her last brain surgery and as a result she has stopped having seizures. She speaks about how lucky she is to be too healthy to have to be in hospital anymore and that she might grow her hair again, something she had held off doing as part of her felt she might have to cut it again. She also talks about how lucky she is to be older than she ever thought she might be and how recounting her experiences in therapy make her feel strong and powerful.
A typed piece of paper. The writer is answering questions on the ups and downs of friendship. Across the three pieces of paper he talks about missing his friend who he met when he was 19.
A collage of photos and ripped paper. In the middle it says '12th May'
A typed VE day diary in which the author rises, goes to the shops, listens to the wireless and then goes to bed.
A typed piece of text with dialogue expressing someone's hesitancy about whether or not there will actually be piece .
A white woman stands behind a table covered in leaflets. A table cloth hangs over the table and says Mass Observation
A scan of a handwritten document. It is written by a retired shop keeper who is 91. She is writing about the good news she has received recently. It includes her great grandson passing his driving test, two great-grand daughters becoming sports captains and also being provided a wheelchair by her daughters so that she can now go outside in the sunshine.
An quote from a piece of writing from the archive. It reads: 'When I think about how my concept of time is changing now that lockdown is easing, and how it will change in the future, it’s very hard to envisage it now that I am expecting a baby. Society is opening up again, but because I am pregnant I still can’t do a lot of things I used to do with my free time. Even though cinemas, museums and restaurants are re-opening again I am supposed to avoid social contact because I am pregnant and therefore categorised as ‘vulnerable’, so I think I am best avoiding these activities for the time being. My local gym and pool is still closed. A lot of my friends are still nervous about meeting up and using public transport so I haven’t seen much of them. I’m quite bored of lockdown routine, but I can’t do a lot of things I used to do because I need to avoid too many people. Thankfully my boredom is offset by all the things I need to do before the baby is born. In this respect I feel that there is not enough time! During my pregnancy my partner hasn’t been able to come with me to my scans. I have seen the baby three times, and he only saw him once, at 12 weeks, when we went for a private scan. He wasn’t able to be there when I found out the gender of the baby at my 20 week scan. It was a shame but we are both quite pragmatic about these things.'
A poem written by a child in 1938 it reads: 'In spring the slimy frog comes out The spotted toad as well And all the little toads come out Then change to frogs as well The black tree with its shining buds The thrushes in there nest the young birds learning all to fly and trying all there best In spring the people get there hampirs and go to sunny meadows and have there upon the grass then play and roll about'
a printed piece of typed text. The writer is talking about their opinions on the word courtship and their experiences of dating. They say they don't use the word courtship but are more likely to say 'going out with somebody'. They also say they think there are lots of different types of love. Talking about her experiences of dating she says this was a bit 'confused' because she is a lesbian. She knew this by the time she was 16 but did not start dating until she moved to Manchester at 18. She talks about meeting various girlfriends in gay bars and how they would share the cost of drinks. After three years of short term relationships she started going out with her current girlfriend. They were already friends and shared a flat
A page of typed text. The writer talks about their great aunt, aged 72, who was ostracised from her family after refusing to get married because she was not attracted to men. The aunt eventually started working at a dog kennels where she began a relationship with the female owner who she fell in love with and was in a relationship with for fifty years. The writer, who is also a lesbian, was curious about her Great Aunt who was rarely spoken about by the family. She reached out to her Aunt and was one of the first people from the family to contact her in a number of years. They are tentatively building a relationship of trust between the two of them. The writer says their relationship with their aunt has made her completely rethink her idea of family.
Participant information flyer. The text on the flyer reads 'Did you have a baby in 2020? Would you like to take part in a small workshop exploring your unique experiences of early parenting during the pandemic? This will be a friendly, informal and welcoming space with tea and cake! The workshop will use materials from the Mass Observation Archive's Covid-19 collection based at The Keep in Falmer. For more information please contact Katie White via email KW410@sussex.ac.uk'