Sitting down to write this post, I am sharply reminded that as a British ex-pat living in the United States, I will forever have a foot in both countries, so to speak, as far as my memories go.
I remember when I moved here around a quarter-century ago being impressed by the convenience afforded to shoppers. The vast majority of shops were open seven days a week, often for twelve or more hours a day. Quite different from the situation in Britain at the time, where Sunday trading had only recently been allowed.
Whilst today in both the UK and the US we are very used to the notion of 24-hour (or close to it) supermarkets and the like, it is easy to forget that, in the UK at least, it was not always like that. Shops would usually be open until 5:00 or 6:00 pm Monday to Saturday, with late-night shopping on Thursday until 8:00 in some shopping centres. On Sundays, most larger shops were closed.
A series of Acts of Parliament from 1904 to 1950 laid out the rules for trading in the United Kingdom, notably prohibiting most Sunday trading and mandating a half-day closing during the week, to be determined by local authorities (often a Wednesday afternoon was chosen). The aim of these restrictions was in part to protect shop workers from having to work an excessive number of hours per week.
The mandatory half-day closing was abolished in 1965, though I can vaguely remember from my childhood some shops still opting to close on a Wednesday afternoon. The Sunday closing, however, is firmly in my memory from childhood days and beyond.
When I was a young child, Sunday mornings followed the same routine. We would go to Mass, and then afterwards walk to the newsagent on the corner where my mother would buy a copy of the Sunday Post. I remember that we had to be prompt in getting to the newsagent, because it would close for the day at lunchtime. It was the only one of the shops on the corner that would be open at all on a Sunday.
It would be a similar story everywhere. Some small convenience stores might be open (there were some exemptions to the regulations) but mostly the shops would be shuttered for the day. Pubs would similarly be open restricted hours (12:00 noon – 2:00 pm, then 7:00 pm – 10:30 pm) and restaurants would either be closed or open similarly limited hours. Sunday bus and other public transport services would also run on a much-reduced schedule. As a result, Sunday afternoon would be a very quiet time in most British towns.
I remember when I was young, my friend and I would sometimes ride our bikes to Hebburn Newtown shopping centre on a Sunday afternoon, taking the smaller streets to avoid both traffic and the prying eyes of neighbours who may have told our parents and got us into trouble for straying too far from home.
The shopping centre would usually be deserted, and we would look through the windows of the closed shops and talk about what we would buy if we had the money. We particularly enjoyed the Toy Fayre and Richies, which sold bicycles and other toys, There were, of course, no metal shutters to obscure our view in those days.
I don’t remember exactly how old we were when we used to do this; my guess is around 10 years old. It is a mark of our innocence and how easily entertained we were in those days that we used to refer to these excursions as “having a Day to Remember” (It certainly seemed to have those capital letters in my young mind). However, I do still remember them fifty-plus years later, so clearly we were doing something right!
During Margaret Thatcher’s tenure as Prime Minister, attempts were made to expand Sunday trading, leading to the formation of the Keep Sunday Special Campaign in 1985 to protest against these plans. The campaign maintained that Sunday trading was harmful to small businesses, shop workers and their families and communities in general.
The Shops Bill of 1986 attempted to ease the restrictions on Sunday trading, but was defeated in the House of Commons. It was not until 1994 that the Sunday Trading Act passed and allowed businesses greater freedom to trade on Sundays, though still with some restrictions: most shops with a floor area exceeding 280 square metres (3,000 square feet) are limited to six hours of trading on Sunday. The Keep Sunday Special Campaign still exists, and seeks to stop further extension of Sunday trading hours.
As an example of how the Sunday trading hours might work in practice for a large retailer wishing to offer round-the-clock shopping, (what was) my local Asda Superstore opens on Monday morning at 6:00 am and is open 24 hours a day through the week until it closes on Saturday at 10:00 pm. It then opens on Sunday from 10:00 am until 4:00 pm, staying within the six hour limit. So while weekday trading has vastly expanded since my youth, Sunday trading remains relatively restricted.
I do remember when Sunday trading first started that it felt quite exciting or exotic to be able to shop on a Sunday afternoon. There was also a feeling of doing something slightly naughty or improper, at least for a while!
In a blog like this, which so often concerns itself with the past, it is easy to come off as saying that things were better “back in the day”, that life was simpler or some similar sentiment, but that is not my intention. Sunday trading, just like other extended opening hours, has offered people greater convenience and increased employment, albeit with the downside that the times when life has the chance to slow down and take a breath are now fewer.
Rather, looking at the example of Sunday trading illustrates how much and sometimes how quickly times do change, and possibly to remind ourselves that, despite the lack of some modern conveniences, by and large back then we did just fine.
Once again I am reminded of the famous opening line of The Go-Between by L.P. Hartley, “The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.”
Do you remember when the shops were closed on Sundays? What was it like the first time you went shopping on a Sunday? I would love to hear your memories. Please get in touch via the Comments section or, if you’d prefer to send a private message, via the Contact Me page.
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