There are many good books and documentaries about the victorian era, but to hear the words of someone who lived in this period is absolutely priceless.
Yep! i am born here of Caribbean parentage, hearing this woman life experiences, straight from the people that lived in this era for me this is better than any book ...this is priceless .... it's so humbling to listen to thank you !!!
@@MrDaiseymay Not at 96... She was interviewed years previously. She would have lived to be 100 ... Died 1980 4 more years she would have been 100.Smart one she is, left school at 12.
Very true!! There can't have been many people who lived, and saw both Queen Victoria and Margaret Thatcher. Amazing woman Ada Kent must have been, to have lived such a long and full life.
@@MrDaiseymay When you die you WILL live eternally in either heaven or hell depending on whether you are saved and born-again or not! We ARE actually IN the book of Revelations and this world IS winding up! ENDING! Read the Gospel of John and Genesis for truth! Only lies and twisted half-truths in this satanic matrix! Jesus took me to heaven 25 yrs ago 3 months after i was saved! Be blessed!
Same here.... My mum's dad was born in 1891 and i'm totally in awe of the changes he experienced throughout the years of his life.... From being born during the reign of Victoria to his passing in the early 1980's.
I've listened to this about 8 times now and it's one of the most interesting things I've watched for a long time. Ada's accent was definitely a working class London accent, but it seems to vere from sounding like a Dickens character to almost a modern day person. My grandparents spoke with an accent that most British people have trouble locating because it is so different from the stereotypical regional accent and listening to Ada makes me wish that I had the foresight to record their voices, especially since even though I have the same accent as my grandparents, theirs sounded much nicer and easier to listen to than than the modern version of our local accent. My point is, Ada is definitely a cockney, but her particular way of speaking stands out from other London accents for some reason. I don't know if that is because she was from west/north inner London and not east London or south London but it somehow sounds different. It's a real shame that modern London people don't talk like Ada did. I like the way she almost rolls her r's in brother, and how she says 'merrid' for married (similar to how Glaswegians say 'merrit' for married), she also says 'yes' almost as a two syllable word 'yer-ess' and I can hear the sadness in her voice when she talks about her baby brother even though he had died nearly 80 years earlier. Sorry for rambling but this really is one of my favorite videos on RUclips.. 👍👍. I would never replace my own grandparents but if I would love to have had a great aunt like Ada..!
she sounds just like a neighbour we once had who was a central londoner. There is a bit of a forcefullness to the manner of speaking. Im a NW londoner and our accent was always a bit more twangy (like david tennants dr who voice). I worked in west london and theirs has a bit more of a swing to it, softer and slower. Now in kent, there is a similar accent to london but with more elongation to vowels ( maaaawning, instead of morning). I think we all pick up the local accents of the areas in which we live and work all through our lives so she probably sounded different when she was young than she did in the recording.
I'm Irish but I don't think her voice was the most common of the Cockney accents. We've heard much coarser accents, on TV and the odd rare recordings. Her accent seems to have been, the more refined version of the Cockney accents. Anyway, it really doesn't matter what these people, spoke like. I suspect, they were mostly hard working, decent, honest folk. You should record your accent, for your own grandchildren. I am sorry that, I didn't record my father's dad (his wife died when I was about 2) and my mum's parents too. I was in my late teens when they died so, I didn't have the foresight or maturity, to ask them all about their past times. I would have asked the usual, basic questions like what kind of presents did you get for Christmas and your birthdays or how much did such a thing cost etc but I am sorry that, I didn't ask them about the war. I didn't realise that Irish people also had ration books etc because we were neutral in the war. I'm 47 now and if, I could talk to them now, I would have asked them about the war or the emergency as it was called, in Ireland and about life before electricity and what daily life was like as an adult and about their childhoods too. One thing, I do recall my grandmother telling me that "times may have changed but human nature hasn't", she also told me not to be scared of dead people because when I was 15, I said that I was afraid of dead people. She also told me that " the dead can't hurt you, it's the living that you have to watch out for!". God, do I miss them. Stay safe, God bless, from Ireland x
What a wonderful lady, my great grandma was born in 1891. When I was a boy I used to go and stay with her, every weekend the stories she used yo tell me of her when she was a girl I always loved to hear.
What has always amazed me is when viewing pictures of Victorian-era London thinking how strange and often creepy things looked then suddenly being struck with the realization that to the people of the time everything seemed perfectly normal and if the roles reversed, they would be absolutely terrified at the world I live in. I do wish I could hear the words of those alive 200 years in the future discussing my time here on earth. But what scared me and put a lump in my throat at the same time was a recent visit to cracker barrel and looking at all the "tools of the past" hanging on the walls as decoration and realizing that I used to use those tools. There are men who fly in jet airplanes and those who fly in rocket ships but there is nothing that goes faster than the lifespan of the man. Two snaps of the fingers and a couple of clinched fists shaken at the sky and then suddenly I am an old man. It hardly seems fair.
And a difference between Victorian times and now, from what I've read, is that they presumed things would continue to improve in all areas of life, whereas there are various catastrophic shadows over own existence these days and we don't perhaps see the future as a rosey one any longer.
wilf frith How refreshing tp read a comment with some nuance, instead of the usual blind rejection of the past and the rosy view of the present as completely superior in all aspects of life. It is true people are generally living longer, but the elderly daren't go out at night anywhere now; medicine and drug treatment is superior, but casual drug abuse of all kinds (both medicinal and leisure use) is rife, even now in schools; we have more possessions now, but theft and burglary and mugging have shot up statistically along with debt ;we travel more, but increasingly spend hours and hours of our lives sitting in traffic jams or delayed trains or crowded airports; we have better diets but more and more are diabetic and obese through processed food consumption ,; we are more tolerant, but increasingly divided over politics and ideas; we are more connected by our technology, but loneliness and depression is at an all time high and families more dispersed and seperate; we think we are cleverer, but can't even build a decent house that will last more than 40 years and our young can't even spell or speak articulately without uttering a barrage of expletives, we are more liberated sexually but society is saturated with exploitative pornography and perversion, we are less class conscious but the elites still rule and there is still a huge gap between the haves and the have nots in terms of quality of public and private life. We think the Victorians were hypocrites in public life, yet our politicians are increasingly corrupted by ambition, greed and mendacity, as are our media and intelligensia. I could go on..
Maybe, put simply, we are just human beings still with many faults. We see everything through a cloud of views (often not are own) and preferences and prejudices, so we are bound to make errors in judgement, etc, even with the best of intentions. I think it may be best to try to hold onto the fact that all of us are imperfect, all of us make mistakes and do/say/think regrettable things everyday but that can consistently be improved upon with awareness, mindfulness and compassion.....in my imperfect view!
@@wilffrith7768 what a lovely comment. I just wanted to say that I apperiate the sentiments you expressed. And couldn't agree with you more. I know I am just bumbling through my life. Making mistakes along the way. But trying my best to be thoughtful and kind to others. And I'm sure most people are the same. Thank you for posting this recording. I have throughly enjoyed listening to it.
So very true. That's why you need to travel and try new experiences as much as possible. Get as much out of life as you can. As the bible says it passes in the blink of an eye. But it's also fascinating to realize how close we are connected to the past, even of it doesn't seem that way. For instance, my father can remember meeting his great grandfather in 1935. This was a man who, as a teenager, had fought in the Civil War. So, I knew someone, who knew a Civil War soldier.
This is more fascinating than any documentary I've seen. I found the bit about King Edward VII the most fascinating. She said he was alright to talk to as long as he didn't touch me. Everyone knew of his behaviour. This says more than any history book can.
I’m sat here crying the thought of losing a sibling. 😢at 2yrs 10 months. Then to lose a baby yourself. At 7months pregnant😢This lady is just amazing I honestly can’t thank you enough for sharing I feel so grateful to be living now. The hardship is real in this recording. To face all that death poverty, loss and war, and still be living with a smile bless her heart and spirit wherever she may be now 🙏
The odd thing though is that in the earlier parts of her life, I think there was a general expectation that things would improve for all but these days it seems we have fr more fear of the future.
This hard life was somehow how far more accepted and people more robust than today; sadly death was part of life. My Dad's Mum lost three children one as babe, one as toddler and a teenage son in a drowning accident. My Mum's Mum lost three babies between her eldest brother and herself. She was terrified as a child as she heard someone say of her mother 'she's buried three' and Mum thought she meant alive! Remember this was before the NHS and antibiotics............. The average lifespan was 50 in tudor times 35! In tudor times 1 in 3 babies died before the age of 1................... I'm sure they still loved and grieved but death was all around.............................
Back in the early mid 1970s, my old next door neighbour, Mrs George, had lived to be 103. She was born in the early 1870s, and often told us of time when the city was once meadow and field, and the duel carriageway a country lane. She even remembered the horror of "Jack the Ripper", reading about his grusome exploits in the papers of the day (1888). I believe the 1970s and 80s were the decades that saw the very last of the people who lived in a truly different world to our own, and they were exceptional people!
@@philjones6054 my nannan’s next door neighbour would have been in her 80s in the late 60s early 70s when I was quite small. Her house had no bathroom, the loo was at the bottom of the garden, she had gas lights and used a big copper with a dolly peg and was board and a mangel to do her washing. I loved going there and always remember the soft hiss of the lights.
People like her and my great grandmother who passed away when I was 16 yes old are walking history books. They tell the real truth of history because they lived it. This is incredible!
Don't forget that also you are a walking history book, Dawn. I think everyone should write their own life story for their kids. Write it online but do print it out
Her little brother who died was called Albert Leonard Guy , probably known as Bertie, also her son was John William. I have been looking into this amazing ladies life a little .She speaks so lovely for someone that experienced many sorrows
There’s not much on RUclips that’ll keep me listening for 40 minutes. Absolutely fascinating. Because I know most of the streets she talks of it really brought it to life. Thanks.
This is gold. I'm also finding her accent very interesting... there are some notable intonations that are now entrenched in the New Zealand accent. Her pronunciation of "vaccinate em" at 11:04 is a crystal clear rendering of the NZ clipped 'a', along with words like "Camden" and "tram", and at 12:50 "put us back on that". Also manifesting in the 'o' and schwa sounds, like "Taylor's Trotters" at 14:18 - that is the NZ accent to a tee!! Given that so many NZers are descendants of this generation of Brits, it makes complete sense - but it's still so uncanny to hear it!
So glad to see you mention this, I'm a kiwi and I felt the familiarity, she sounds similar to my grandma who was raised by a lady of Ada's generation (my great grandma) who came over from Birmingham around 1906. I could listen to her talk forever, I feel transported, so fascinating the way you can hear the roots our accent and how we've changed it (such a lazy lot of talkers we are haha)
Such a joy to hear Ada's voice and the fascinating insight into the world in which my grandparents lived. My grandmother told me (over 50 years ago)that school was a penny a week, so I was delighted when Ada's recollection confirmed this. My grandparents were from Chelsea, but the way Ada pronounced, yes, reminded me so much of Grandma. A beautiful post, thank you for sharing it.
Fascinating. And just lovely too. Also lovely her old London accent. How thoughtful of you to record this and fortunate you are to have this family treasure :)
The video is just a few slowly scrolling images I could find relatedly directly to the times and places...and never having put a video together for youtube before, it was going to be fairly basic. Glad you liked the audio though, I do like to hear her accent again.
You can hear how proud she is of her father. Being in the same job for 52 years, with evidence of his work still being there and him having bought the house she lives in 💗🌵
What a gem this is. My grandfather was born in 1886 and died 1962 so before I was born but his life must have been on a parallel with this lady..fascinating to hear it
Gosh I loved this!! What an absolutely marvellous memory she had!! So many wonderful details in her stories. It was like being able to listen to my mum once again ❣️🥰
As it was, of course, for me! I knew little of this directly from my Gran, short of often repeated stories of 'clips round the ear' from the local bobby on the beat! She wasn't so mobile when I was growing up but enjoyed reading and watching the wrestling on TV!
@@wilffrith7768 was it common do you think for ladies to enjoy wrestling on TV? My Great aunt (also named Ada) who would be a couple years younger than your Ada absolutely loved to watch wrestling. I remember as a child watching her eat pizza and watch it on TV cheer very loudly! Thank you for sharing this fantastic interview.
How lovely to come across this by accident took me right back to when I lived in London and used to stay with my Nan and grandmother we had nothing no one had nothing and times were so much happier than today, thank you for uploading
Lovely to hear from someone who lived in St Giles, Holborn, Pancras area - I assume when she mentions Denmark Street, she means THE Denmark Street in St Giles. This is the same area all my family were from going all the way back to the early 1800's - I know these streets all too well. My lot were Costers, Market Porters, Printers and News Vendors ...
I think so, it is a street I remember her retelling tales from. My Mum's abbreviated memoirs mention a Peabody Estate in Holborn where she was born and lived. There's mention of living on Herbrand Street too, perhaps later. By the time I was born in the 60s, our home was in Clarence Gate Gardens in St Pancras / Marylebone.
Thank you SO much for sharing your family's history with us..!! Can't tell you how wonderful it's been to listen to LIVING HISTORY - absolutely FANTASTIC...!!
She had such a good memory! She remembered prices of things from before WWII. Just amazing. I also interviewed my great-grandmother back in the 80s for a school project. My father still has that recording but she is resting now.
This is truly priceless and To hear sweet Ada Kent mention streets my family have lived on gives me chills. I wish I could ask so many questions. This is such a great treasure. I wished I did this. Thank you so much. Keep safe everyone!
Amazing listening. Your grandmother is definitely clear of mind. Her memory recall is truly brilliant. These were the days of no social media and closer community connections, which help to avoid dementia .
An absolutly amazing interview capturing the real victorian era with someone who lived through it! No amount of historians or documentarys can record such accuracy like this lady who lived, saw and breathed it! She was of a wealthy family since poverty and disease was rife throughout this time especially since her father actually owned property which was unheard of for working class people of the time. I cannot put into words how amazing this interview is, we today cannot imagine a time like this, she is a true gem and the last of her kind, she lived at the time of Vincent Van Goth and The Wright Brothers! She lived to be the grand old age of 97 and would be 137 now, also outlived all her siblings. This is a true piece and welldone for preserving it for future generations. May this lovely lady rest in eternal peace.
Thank You for sharing. My grandmother was born in Lunenburg County, VIctoria , Virginia USA I, am a decendent of the British Royal Colonies. My family tree connects me to many famous roots of UK. London many generations back. :)
The best 40 minutes I've spent in a long time. I love history and this is brilliant, all that Ada had seen, witnessed and met!(Edward VII). Thoroughly enjoyed it, wish it was longer 🤗
Her accent is so different...it's obviously London but much softer than now. This is so lovely...thank you for sharing. Your Mum is a natural at interviewing....just the right questions at the right time!
She seemed so calm even though things must have been so different. But I suppose, when the change happens gradually, it doesn't shock you. I would have asked her what she thought about the Beatles or Thatcher or jeans or horror films or Jack the Ripper or aeroplanes or pretty much everything!
@@YorickReturns I guess it was all so many decades ago for her. I think she was asked about Thatcher at one point in the interview. She probably didn't pay much attention to modern things latterly, just enjoyed her books and 1970's wrestling on the TV!
Yeah, that's fair enough. It's also crazy to think that, when she was young, she may have met some (very old) people who had been born in the eighteenth century! I would have asked her about them.
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this. Absolutely brilliant. I felt I could touch the history she recalled. God bless you Mrs. Kent. Though RUclips has made you immortal, may you rest in peace.
Thank you for sharing this with us Wilf, such a valuable piece of history!! What a fantastic woman, thank you for your story Ava I hope you're resting peacefully
I have the voices of my great grandparents in my mind who were a little younger than this lady. I want to imitate their accents and this lady sounds a lot like they did. There are elements of a Cockney accent, but much softer like this one. They were servants in America when they first came over in 1924 Lincoln, Nebraska (a maid and butler team), which made me think that purposefully softened it to sound more acceptable to the rich people they served. I knew them for several years when they passed and still miss them.
Thank you for posting this, it was lovely, her accent reminded me so much of my Nan. Also died mid 1980's they would have been contemporaries in London, which wasn't so big then
Her memories are such an important part of world history and especially for your family. A true Londoner. She saw four Monarchs on the English throne. Queen Victoria, King George VI, King George VII and Queen Elizabeth II. I love this.
Oh my goodness what this lady had to do. She didn't need to be in the army she was a real trooper as was every Female of her generation Gawd Bless Ya Darling. Even though you are no longer around us 🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦😒😒😒😒😒😒✝✝✝✝✝✝ Rest in Peace 💕💕💕💕💕💕
That’s amazing! When I read the description. When I got to the part “Prince of Wales” I originally thought of Prince Charles or David (later Edward VIII) but no instead Edward VII. o. o
Thank you so much for this. Do you think an archive should have a copy of this? It's so precious. If you have anything else like this I'd love to hear it! Many thanks again! A
Thanks. I'm not really sure of an archive to offer a copy to, unless you have a suggestion. It was a one-off recording, so I've nothing else unfortunately.
wilf frith could you maybe ask your nearest museum for advice? This is absolutely priceless, bringing history to life so beautifully, thank you for sharing.
We can listen to this lady but how many have actually listened to their mothers stories ? I've only recently started listening to my mum's childhood and teen days😁
All these years later it is nice to know that I mingled with those from the Victorian era, I was born in 1971..of course plenty of WW1/2 vets alive also in my childhood..
Same here! I met some truly fantastic older folk when I was young,just like this lady. That generation were my great grandparents; grandparents era,we,ll never see their like again.
I like the photo taken in Cleverleys, Blackpool. Ada looks like a happy grandmother type. As I child I always took the opportunity to hear what old people said about the past and I was always pleased to see them living comfortably in their old age. They knew hardships that are unheard of in this country nowadays ( but alas not in other parts of the world ). Loved the bit where Ada said she waved to Queen Victoria who smiled and waved back. Priceless !
I appreciate hearing all she had to day now but was too self-absorbed as a teenager to take any interest at the time, sadly. So I'm lucky to at least have this to listen to. What she would make of over 30,000 views of it online, I've no idea! She departed before personal computers were available even.
I am sure all of us have things and people we wish we had taken more notice of when we were young but you are blest to have this wonderful recording and a grandmother with an interesting tale to tell. I am sure that it's true that we all have a story that would interest somebody else - maybe a future generation - but most of us see it as too mundane to write it down. Events described by someone like your nan are so much more interesting in my opinion than what historians, who weren't there , have to say. God bless.
Fantastic bit of oral history. More so because she came from London and the variety of life would have been more changeable than a country woman's life of said time (but im sure that would be equally fascinating) describing zeppelin being shot down and meeting royalty. She sounded ever so young and her recall was amazing. Thanks very much
What i find very interesting it's a femal monarch when she was born and another femal monarch when she past away .She have experienced major changes in her lifespan. It didn't exist radio, telephone, cars, aeroplanes and tv when she was born .Incredible. ☺
Fascinating dialect... my family (maternal side) hail from North Bucks and my Grandad used to say 'clorth' and 'gorn' etc..... Interesting that a London accent, at that time, had such similarities as opposed to 'cloff' and 'gawn' which we accept as a London accent today. I love all this stuff!
fecking hell, god bless her. always seems a world or universe away from us, but to have it documented is beyond belief. let's not forget who went before us so that we could have a comfy life.
I wanted to hear more about how the children were vaccinated with a live sheep! I wanted to hear more about everything though! Such a lovely and interesting woman! Thank you for sharing this.
@@clairefitzpatrick7183 No no no, she clearly states, "I was taking my little ones, (brothers and sisters) to St Thomas's institute to be vaccinated and they used to have a sheep strapped to a table and they used to vaccinate them straight from the sheep." 10.57 in.
There are many good books and documentaries about the victorian era, but to hear the words of someone who lived in this
period is absolutely priceless.
Indeed. Truly amazing feeling.
Oh it is so wonderful to hear this lady. Her memory is amazing 😲
d mardon It really is, live history can’t be purchased. I love this!
Imagine waving to Queen Victoria. .amazing different times different class .
Yep! i am born here of Caribbean parentage, hearing this woman life experiences, straight from the people that lived in this era for me this is better than any book ...this is priceless .... it's so humbling to listen to thank you !!!
This lady has lived through both the world wars she must have seen so much. What a legend may she RIP
such clarity of voice and memory; amazing at age 96.
Yeah, she saw everything from Jack the Ripper to the Beatles to Margaret Thatcher.
@@MrDaiseymay Not at 96... She was interviewed years previously. She would have lived to be 100 ... Died 1980 4 more years she would have been 100.Smart one she is, left school at 12.
Very true!! There can't have been many people who lived, and saw both Queen Victoria and Margaret Thatcher. Amazing woman Ada Kent must have been, to have lived such a long and full life.
@@MrDaiseymay When you die you WILL live eternally in either heaven or hell depending on whether you are saved and born-again or not! We ARE actually IN the book of Revelations and this world IS winding up! ENDING! Read the Gospel of John and Genesis for truth! Only lies and twisted half-truths in this satanic matrix! Jesus took me to heaven 25 yrs ago 3 months after i was saved! Be blessed!
I listened to every word. I took a walk into the past. I closed my eyes and I was there.
I’m 52 and every Christmas I saw my great grandad, he was born in 1885 and was 93 when he died, the changes he had seen, incredible
What did he say
Same here.... My mum's dad was born in 1891 and i'm totally in awe of the changes he experienced throughout the years of his life.... From being born during the reign of Victoria to his passing in the early 1980's.
Crikey my memory’s really bad in my 50’s, there’s so much I cannot recall from my life but this lady is incredible.
I've listened to this about 8 times now and it's one of the most interesting things I've watched for a long time.
Ada's accent was definitely a working class London accent, but it seems to vere from sounding like a Dickens character to almost a modern day person.
My grandparents spoke with an accent that most British people have trouble locating because it is so different from the stereotypical regional accent and listening to Ada makes me wish that I had the foresight to record their voices, especially since even though I have the same accent as my grandparents, theirs sounded much nicer and easier to listen to than than the modern version of our local accent.
My point is, Ada is definitely a cockney, but her particular way of speaking stands out from other London accents for some reason. I don't know if that is because she was from west/north inner London and not east London or south London but it somehow sounds different. It's a real shame that modern London people don't talk like Ada did.
I like the way she almost rolls her r's in brother, and how she says 'merrid' for married (similar to how Glaswegians say 'merrit' for married), she also says 'yes' almost as a two syllable word 'yer-ess' and I can hear the sadness in her voice when she talks about her baby brother even though he had died nearly 80 years earlier.
Sorry for rambling but this really is one of my favorite videos on RUclips.. 👍👍.
I would never replace my own grandparents but if I would love to have had a great aunt like Ada..!
Lovely post, thank you
she sounds just like a neighbour we once had who was a central londoner. There is a bit of a forcefullness to the manner of speaking. Im a NW londoner and our accent was always a bit more twangy (like david tennants dr who voice). I worked in west london and theirs has a bit more of a swing to it, softer and slower. Now in kent, there is a similar accent to london but with more elongation to vowels ( maaaawning, instead of morning). I think we all pick up the local accents of the areas in which we live and work all through our lives so she probably sounded different when she was young than she did in the recording.
I agree about accent - sounds similar to some Romany gypsies I’ve heard speak
I'm Irish but I don't think her voice was the most common of the Cockney accents. We've heard much coarser accents, on TV and the odd rare recordings. Her accent seems to have been, the more refined version of the Cockney accents. Anyway, it really doesn't matter what these people, spoke like. I suspect, they were mostly hard working, decent, honest folk. You should record your accent, for your own grandchildren. I am sorry that, I didn't record my father's dad (his wife died when I was about 2) and my mum's parents too. I was in my late teens when they died so, I didn't have the foresight or maturity, to ask them all about their past times. I would have asked the usual, basic questions like what kind of presents did you get for Christmas and your birthdays or how much did such a thing cost etc but I am sorry that, I didn't ask them about the war. I didn't realise that Irish people also had ration books etc because we were neutral in the war. I'm 47 now and if, I could talk to them now, I would have asked them about the war or the emergency as it was called, in Ireland and about life before electricity and what daily life was like as an adult and about their childhoods too. One thing, I do recall my grandmother telling me that "times may have changed but human nature hasn't", she also told me not to be scared of dead people because when I was 15, I said that I was afraid of dead people. She also told me that " the dead can't hurt you, it's the living that you have to watch out for!". God, do I miss them. Stay safe, God bless, from Ireland x
Simon, I enjoyed your post thank you. I had to say thank you here because, it wouldn't post my edits.
What a wonderful lady, my great grandma was born in 1891. When I was a boy I used to go and stay with her, every weekend the stories she used yo tell me of her when she was a girl I always loved to hear.
Wonder what she would make of London now... Bless her
What has always amazed me is when viewing pictures of Victorian-era London thinking how strange and often creepy things looked then suddenly being struck with the realization that to the people of the time everything seemed perfectly normal and if the roles reversed, they would be absolutely terrified at the world I live in. I do wish I could hear the words of those alive 200 years in the future discussing my time here on earth. But what scared me and put a lump in my throat at the same time was a recent visit to cracker barrel and looking at all the "tools of the past" hanging on the walls as decoration and realizing that I used to use those tools. There are men who fly in jet airplanes and those who fly in rocket ships but there is nothing that goes faster than the lifespan of the man. Two snaps of the fingers and a couple of clinched fists shaken at the sky and then suddenly I am an old man. It hardly seems fair.
And a difference between Victorian times and now, from what I've read, is that they presumed things would continue to improve in all areas of life, whereas there are various catastrophic shadows over own existence these days and we don't perhaps see the future as a rosey one any longer.
wilf frith How refreshing tp read a comment with some nuance, instead of the usual blind rejection of the past and the rosy view of the present as completely superior in all aspects of life. It is true people are generally living longer, but the elderly daren't go out at night anywhere now; medicine and drug treatment is superior, but casual drug abuse of all kinds (both medicinal and leisure use) is rife, even now in schools; we have more possessions now, but theft and burglary and mugging have shot up statistically along with debt ;we travel more, but increasingly spend hours and hours of our lives sitting in traffic jams or delayed trains or crowded airports; we have better diets but more and more are diabetic and obese through processed food consumption ,; we are more tolerant, but increasingly divided over politics and ideas; we are more connected by our technology, but loneliness and depression is at an all time high and families more dispersed and seperate; we think we are cleverer, but can't even build a decent house that will last more than 40 years and our young can't even spell or speak articulately without uttering a barrage of expletives, we are more liberated sexually but society is saturated with exploitative pornography and perversion, we are less class conscious but the elites still rule and there is still a huge gap between the haves and the have nots in terms of quality of public and private life. We think the Victorians were hypocrites in public life, yet our politicians are increasingly corrupted by ambition, greed and mendacity, as are our media and intelligensia. I could go on..
Maybe, put simply, we are just human beings still with many faults. We see everything through a cloud of views (often not are own) and preferences and prejudices, so we are bound to make errors in judgement, etc, even with the best of intentions. I think it may be best to try to hold onto the fact that all of us are imperfect, all of us make mistakes and do/say/think regrettable things everyday but that can consistently be improved upon with awareness, mindfulness and compassion.....in my imperfect view!
@@wilffrith7768 what a lovely comment. I just wanted to say that I apperiate the sentiments you expressed. And couldn't agree with you more. I know I am just bumbling through my life. Making mistakes along the way. But trying my best to be thoughtful and kind to others. And I'm sure most people are the same. Thank you for posting this recording. I have throughly enjoyed listening to it.
So very true. That's why you need to travel and try new experiences as much as possible. Get as much out of life as you can. As the bible says it passes in the blink of an eye. But it's also fascinating to realize how close we are connected to the past, even of it doesn't seem that way. For instance, my father can remember meeting his great grandfather in 1935. This was a man who, as a teenager, had fought in the Civil War. So, I knew someone, who knew a Civil War soldier.
She is so sharp! Being able to recall things from her early childhood is remarkable.
This is more fascinating than any documentary I've seen. I found the bit about King Edward VII the most fascinating. She said he was alright to talk to as long as he didn't touch me. Everyone knew of his behaviour. This says more than any history book can.
Credit to the interviewer, she asked interesting intelligent questions and got answers of a similar quality.
I’m sat here crying the thought of losing a sibling. 😢at 2yrs 10 months. Then to lose a baby yourself. At 7months pregnant😢This lady is just amazing I honestly can’t thank you enough for sharing I feel so grateful to be living now. The hardship is real in this recording. To face all that death poverty, loss and war, and still be living with a smile bless her heart and spirit wherever she may be now 🙏
The odd thing though is that in the earlier parts of her life, I think there was a general expectation that things would improve for all but these days it seems we have fr more fear of the future.
This hard life was somehow how far more accepted and people more robust than today; sadly death was part of life.
My Dad's Mum lost three children one as babe, one as toddler and a teenage son in a drowning accident.
My Mum's Mum lost three babies between her eldest brother and herself. She was terrified as a child as she heard someone say of her mother 'she's buried three' and Mum thought she meant alive!
Remember this was before the NHS and antibiotics.............
The average lifespan was 50 in tudor times 35! In tudor times 1 in 3 babies died before the age of 1...................
I'm sure they still loved and grieved but death was all around.............................
If only i had asked more questions growing up.
Me too. I was just too much of a self-concerned teenager though,
Back in the early mid 1970s, my old next door neighbour, Mrs George, had lived to be 103. She was born in the early 1870s, and often told us of time when the city was once meadow and field, and the duel carriageway a country lane. She even remembered the horror of "Jack the Ripper", reading about his grusome exploits in the papers of the day (1888).
I believe the 1970s and 80s were the decades that saw the very last of the people who lived in a truly different world to our own, and they were exceptional people!
@@philjones6054 my nannan’s next door neighbour would have been in her 80s in the late 60s early 70s when I was quite small. Her house had no bathroom, the loo was at the bottom of the garden, she had gas lights and used a big copper with a dolly peg and was board and a mangel to do her washing. I loved going there and always remember the soft hiss of the lights.
@@yvettemoore1228 what did it sound like, the hiss?
People like her and my great grandmother who passed away when I was 16 yes old are walking history books. They tell the real truth of history because they lived it. This is incredible!
Don't forget that also you are a walking history book, Dawn. I think everyone should write their own life story for their kids. Write it online but do print it out
Well if she passed away when you where 16 she not a history book. She’s just history.
But my grandparents Accent was like this
Her little brother who died was called Albert Leonard Guy , probably known as Bertie, also her son was John William. I have been looking into this amazing ladies life a little .She speaks so lovely for someone that experienced many sorrows
There’s not much on RUclips that’ll keep me listening for 40 minutes. Absolutely fascinating. Because I know most of the streets she talks of it really brought it to life. Thanks.
This is so special. What a delight to hear. 🥰
Wonderful. How fortunate we are. To actually hear the voice of a Victorian. Thank you for sharing.
This is gold. I'm also finding her accent very interesting... there are some notable intonations that are now entrenched in the New Zealand accent. Her pronunciation of "vaccinate em" at 11:04 is a crystal clear rendering of the NZ clipped 'a', along with words like "Camden" and "tram", and at 12:50 "put us back on that". Also manifesting in the 'o' and schwa sounds, like "Taylor's Trotters" at 14:18 - that is the NZ accent to a tee!! Given that so many NZers are descendants of this generation of Brits, it makes complete sense - but it's still so uncanny to hear it!
ye s
To my American ear, her accent sounds very much like an Australian one. Not exactly but many pronunciations are the same.
She was a Londoner.
Agree. When she says the word "that" at 10.59, I just hear New Zealand!
So glad to see you mention this, I'm a kiwi and I felt the familiarity, she sounds similar to my grandma who was raised by a lady of Ada's generation (my great grandma) who came over from Birmingham around 1906. I could listen to her talk forever, I feel transported, so fascinating the way you can hear the roots our accent and how we've changed it (such a lazy lot of talkers we are haha)
What a different life... having to keep the events of two world wars straight.
Absolutely amazing! So love,y how you recorded this. How incredible she waved to Queen Victoria !
Thanks. So lucky it happened and to have a vocal family link to the quite distant past!
Oh, I love hearing older generations telling their remembrances. These recordings are so cool, thank you for sharing
What a brilliant memory Ada had. Thankyou for sharing this she sounds like a lovely lady
Such a joy to hear Ada's voice and the fascinating insight into the world in which my grandparents lived. My grandmother told me (over 50 years ago)that school was a penny a week, so I was delighted when Ada's recollection confirmed this. My grandparents were from Chelsea, but the way Ada pronounced, yes, reminded me so much of Grandma. A beautiful post, thank you for sharing it.
Real real life. Brilliant. You preserved history.
Fascinating. And just lovely too. Also lovely her old London accent. How thoughtful of you to record this and fortunate you are to have this family treasure :)
The video is just a few slowly scrolling images I could find relatedly directly to the times and places...and never having put a video together for youtube before, it was going to be fairly basic. Glad you liked the audio though, I do like to hear her accent again.
You can hear how proud she is of her father. Being in the same job for 52 years, with evidence of his work still being there and him having bought the house she lives in 💗🌵
RIP Ada - wish we had heard even more of you - I could listen for hours.
This is precious ❤️Ada ❤️x
What a gem this is. My grandfather was born in 1886 and died 1962 so before I was born but his life must have been on a parallel with this lady..fascinating to hear it
Gosh I loved this!! What an absolutely marvellous memory she had!! So many wonderful details in her stories. It was like being able to listen to my mum once again ❣️🥰
As it was, of course, for me! I knew little of this directly from my Gran, short of often repeated stories of 'clips round the ear' from the local bobby on the beat! She wasn't so mobile when I was growing up but enjoyed reading and watching the wrestling on TV!
@@wilffrith7768 was it common do you think for ladies to enjoy wrestling on TV? My Great aunt (also named Ada) who would be a couple years younger than your Ada absolutely loved to watch wrestling. I remember as a child watching her eat pizza and watch it on TV cheer very loudly! Thank you for sharing this fantastic interview.
How lovely to come across this by accident took me right back to when I lived in London and used to stay with my Nan and grandmother we had nothing no one had nothing and times were so much happier than today, thank you for uploading
@@clairefitzpatrick7183 oh yer u were posh you had newspaper for the loo.
Lovely to hear from someone who lived in St Giles, Holborn, Pancras area - I assume when she mentions Denmark Street, she means THE Denmark Street in St Giles. This is the same area all my family were from going all the way back to the early 1800's - I know these streets all too well. My lot were Costers, Market Porters, Printers and News Vendors ...
I think so, it is a street I remember her retelling tales from. My Mum's abbreviated memoirs mention a Peabody Estate in Holborn where she was born and lived. There's mention of living on Herbrand Street too, perhaps later.
By the time I was born in the 60s, our home was in Clarence Gate Gardens in St Pancras / Marylebone.
Same, my great grandmother grew up around St.Pancras around the same time. She died before I was born - I wonder if she knew Ada
@@wilffrith7768 Are your mum's memoirs published Wilf?
@@techElephant No, sadly. She got through a few chapters, which were printed for people at the funeral, requiem, etc
My grandad owned the tinpan ally in Denmark street.
Thank you SO much for sharing your family's history with us..!! Can't tell you how wonderful it's been to listen to LIVING HISTORY - absolutely FANTASTIC...!!
Thanks. I can't imagine what my Nan would have thought of now over 3,500 people having listened to her story!
This is so great to hear someone who has lived in a time of Victoria to see still be around for her great great granddaughter’s reign Elizabeth ii
Thanks for putting this diamond of an interview up. Very much appreciated.
She had such a good memory! She remembered prices of things from before WWII. Just amazing. I also interviewed my great-grandmother back in the 80s for a school project. My father still has that recording but she is resting now.
This is truly priceless and To hear sweet Ada Kent mention streets my family have lived on gives me chills. I wish I could ask so many questions. This is such a great treasure. I wished I did this. Thank you so much. Keep safe everyone!
Every generation should pass on culture to the next... roots.. cultural, and familial, are always important... I wish this generation realises this...
That's the curse of Post Modernism and Cultural Marxism ....it seeks to destroy culture and replace it with garbage
what an amazing lady...such courage and such grace. Thank you for posting this.
Amazing listening. Your grandmother is definitely clear of mind. Her memory recall is truly brilliant. These were the days of no social media and closer community connections, which help to avoid dementia .
What an amazing woman. We don't know how good we have it these days !! Great to hear a genuine Victorian voice and life story!!
Love this! Imagine Queen Victoria waving back at you!
An absolutly amazing interview capturing the real victorian era with someone who lived through it! No amount of historians or documentarys can record such accuracy like this lady who lived, saw and breathed it! She was of a wealthy family since poverty and disease was rife throughout this time especially since her father actually owned property which was unheard of for working class people of the time. I cannot put into words how amazing this interview is, we today cannot imagine a time like this, she is a true gem and the last of her kind, she lived at the time of Vincent Van Goth and The Wright Brothers! She lived to be the grand old age of 97 and would be 137 now, also outlived all her siblings. This is a true piece and welldone for preserving it for future generations. May this lovely lady rest in eternal peace.
Thank You for sharing. My grandmother was born in Lunenburg County, VIctoria , Virginia USA I, am a decendent of the British Royal Colonies. My family tree connects me to many famous roots of UK. London many generations back. :)
This is like treasure. Thanks so much for posting it
How fantastic to have something like this to pass down to future generations. Thank you so much for sharing this
Glad you enjoyed it. It is lovely to have this available to listen to long after people have passed on.
Amazing was just how my Nan sounded when she spoke
Thanks for sharing such an interesting life. Priceless.
The best 40 minutes I've spent in a long time. I love history and this is brilliant, all that Ada had seen, witnessed and met!(Edward VII). Thoroughly enjoyed it, wish it was longer 🤗
Her accent is so different...it's obviously London but much softer than now. This is so lovely...thank you for sharing. Your Mum is a natural at interviewing....just the right questions at the right time!
Thanks for the upload! I wish I could have interviewed a Victorian! There are so many questions I would have asked.
Wish I'd asked her when I could but was too young and immature to take an interest back then.
She seemed so calm even though things must have been so different. But I suppose, when the change happens gradually, it doesn't shock you. I would have asked her what she thought about the Beatles or Thatcher or jeans or horror films or Jack the Ripper or aeroplanes or pretty much everything!
@@YorickReturns I guess it was all so many decades ago for her. I think she was asked about Thatcher at one point in the interview. She probably didn't pay much attention to modern things latterly, just enjoyed her books and 1970's wrestling on the TV!
Yeah, that's fair enough. It's also crazy to think that, when she was young, she may have met some (very old) people who had been born in the eighteenth century! I would have asked her about them.
Belinda Babette ... this amazing 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Great historical testimonial.... Thank-you so much for sharing....
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this. Absolutely brilliant. I felt I could touch the history she recalled. God bless you Mrs. Kent. Though RUclips has made you immortal, may you rest in peace.
How absolutely amazing! I was glued to it - thank you!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. I'm lucky to have it at all, as we were never the most communicative of families!
Absolutely adored this. Thank you so much for sharing your nan with us. She's so articulate.
Thank you for sharing this with us Wilf, such a valuable piece of history!! What a fantastic woman, thank you for your story Ava I hope you're resting peacefully
Wow what an amazing memory Miss Ada had of her younger years and such a wealth of history ! Thank you for sharing ♥️
I would have loved to have met this wonderful woman
What a legend with so much history and love 😍 xxxx
What an AMAZING LADY 💗 LOVED THAT PRAYERS BE WITH YOU MY BEAUTIFUL GODBLESS XX
I have the voices of my great grandparents in my mind who were a little younger than this lady. I want to imitate their accents and this lady sounds a lot like they did. There are elements of a Cockney accent, but much softer like this one. They were servants in America when they first came over in 1924 Lincoln, Nebraska (a maid and butler team), which made me think that purposefully softened it to sound more acceptable to the rich people they served. I knew them for several years when they passed and still miss them.
Thank you for posting this, it was lovely, her accent reminded me so much of my Nan. Also died mid 1980's they would have been contemporaries in London, which wasn't so big then
🥰
Thank you.Wonderful account of a life well lived.She is a remarkable woman who showed a strength of character that very few possess today.
Well done you for recording this. Was fascinating to listen to. Thank you!
What a wonderful interview. So glad I came across this. So interesting, reminds me of sitting with my Nan amd listening to stories 😊
Absolutely brilliant. Thanks for posting this.
Thankyou SO much for uploading this. It is beyond priceless! 😍
Really enjoyed hearing Ada's story ❤
Her memories are such an important part of world history and especially for your family. A true Londoner. She saw four Monarchs on the English throne. Queen Victoria, King George VI, King George VII and Queen Elizabeth II. I love this.
Oh my goodness what this lady had to do. She didn't need to be in the army she was a real trooper as was every Female of her generation Gawd Bless Ya Darling. Even though you are no longer around us 🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦😒😒😒😒😒😒✝✝✝✝✝✝ Rest in Peace 💕💕💕💕💕💕
Fascinating recording. This lady can remember more details and names etc from her long years than I have forgotten about mine and I'm half her age!
That’s amazing! When I read the description. When I got to the part “Prince of Wales” I originally thought of Prince Charles or David (later Edward VIII) but no instead Edward VII. o. o
I enjoyed that.Great upload, old in itself, now
Thank you so much for this.
Do you think an archive should have a copy of this? It's so precious. If you have anything else like this I'd love to hear it!
Many thanks again!
A
Thanks. I'm not really sure of an archive to offer a copy to, unless you have a suggestion. It was a one-off recording, so I've nothing else unfortunately.
wilf frith could you maybe ask your nearest museum for advice? This is absolutely priceless, bringing history to life so beautifully, thank you for sharing.
@@Ditto463 I live in Spain now but I'll do some searching online for a facility that might welcome a copy. Thanks.
@@wilffrith7768 Keep a backup and keep it uploaded. Thanks for sharing. History is priceless.
Love listening to the love from Ireland 🇮🇪
Totally love it - a 'living' time capsule!
We can listen to this lady but how many have actually listened to their mothers stories ? I've only recently started listening to my mum's childhood and teen days😁
All these years later it is nice to know that I mingled with those from the Victorian era, I was born in 1971..of course plenty of WW1/2 vets alive also in my childhood..
Same here! I met some truly fantastic older folk when I was young,just like this lady. That generation were my great grandparents; grandparents era,we,ll never see their like again.
I like the photo taken in Cleverleys, Blackpool. Ada looks like a happy grandmother type. As I child I always took the opportunity to hear what old people said about the past and I was always pleased to see them living comfortably in their old age. They knew hardships that are unheard of in this country nowadays ( but alas not in other parts of the world ). Loved the bit where Ada said she waved to Queen Victoria who smiled and waved back. Priceless !
I appreciate hearing all she had to day now but was too self-absorbed as a teenager to take any interest at the time, sadly. So I'm lucky to at least have this to listen to. What she would make of over 30,000 views of it online, I've no idea! She departed before personal computers were available even.
I am sure all of us have things and people we wish we had taken more notice of when we were young but you are blest to have this wonderful recording and a grandmother with an interesting tale to tell. I am sure that it's true that we all have a story that would interest somebody else - maybe a future generation - but most of us see it as too mundane to write it down. Events described by someone like your nan are so much more interesting in my opinion than what historians, who weren't there , have to say. God bless.
Fantastic bit of oral history. More so because she came from London and the variety of life would have been more changeable than a country woman's life of said time (but im sure that would be equally fascinating) describing zeppelin being shot down and meeting royalty. She sounded ever so young and her recall was amazing. Thanks very much
Thank you for uploading this 👍🏻
What i find very interesting it's a femal monarch when she was born and another femal monarch when she past away .She have experienced major changes in her lifespan. It didn't exist radio, telephone, cars, aeroplanes and tv when she was born .Incredible. ☺
Fascinating dialect... my family (maternal side) hail from North Bucks and my Grandad used to say 'clorth' and 'gorn' etc..... Interesting that a London accent, at that time, had such similarities as opposed to 'cloff' and 'gawn' which we accept as a London accent today. I love all this stuff!
Loved her story about the Prince of Wales.
What a interesting recording, Would be lovely to add some personal photos of her from that erea!
fecking hell, god bless her. always seems a world or universe away from us, but to have it documented is beyond belief. let's not forget who went before us so that we could have a comfy life.
Thankyou for sharing amazing to listen to
Oh how lovely to hear this
This is marvellous. She talks just like my Gt Aunt Clare who was born about that time !
Fantastic posting, thank you
Fantastic! Thank you.
EJ T k
Thanks for sharing this fascinating recording ! 🙏🙏🙏🙏..... Full of love and extremely dignified. Better than a hundred books ❤️
This is a very precious piece of history, thank you.
Absolutely fantastic. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for posting this.
God bless this lady. My Great Grandmothers generation xxx.
I wanted to hear more about how the children were vaccinated with a live sheep! I wanted to hear more about everything though! Such a lovely and interesting woman! Thank you for sharing this.
@@clairefitzpatrick7183 No no no, she clearly states, "I was taking my little ones, (brothers and sisters) to St Thomas's institute to be vaccinated and they used to have a sheep strapped to a table and they used to vaccinate them straight from the sheep." 10.57 in.
What a wonderful recording and what an interesting accent. That's what native Londoners used to sound like. I imagine it's probably a lost accent now.
Love her story and love her soothing voice.
Great stuff, thank you for sharing