| Description | Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger talk to a group of women:
Tracks 1-4: A woman described being moved on by the police. She says that the police were rough with her and damaged her caravan. She says that she would like to have a house so she can bring her children up properly and they can go to school. The others try and persuade a woman called Susie to talk and say that she would like a house. A woman says that her husband's family lives in prefabs. She says that she used to have a prefab, but it was knocked down while she was away.
Tracks 5-7: A woman talks about her travels - she is one of 22 children. She says that in the past they were happy in old-fashioned wagons with horses because they were able to do the washing but they are thrown off if they stop now. She talks about stopping on the A2, where conditions were very bad. A woman says that a horse was killed on the A2 road and a caravan was smashed. A woman talks about camping in Durrant Woods and being near a pond where she could do her washing. She says that gypsies nearby who lived in prefabs bought caravans and came to live in Durrant Woods, which meant that there were too many people so they were turned out.
Track 8: A woman talks about going hawking, selling wooden flowers and clothes pegs. She says that people don't want their flowers and pegs any more so they need jobs and a settled place to stay. She says that she would like to be a cleaner in a hospital.
Track 9: Mrs Bignell says she does not want to leave her children, so she would not work, 0.57 mins
Track 10: A woman talks about people buying her goods and inviting her in for a cup of tea. She says that she would like to settle down in the winter and go away in the summer, 1.57 mins
Track 11: A woman talks about people being nice to her when she 'goes round' selling pegs and flowers, 1.03 mins
Track 12: A woman tells Peggy Seeger what she says when she goes hawking, 0.40 mins
Track 13: Inaudible, 0.22 mins
Charles Parker talks to a parish priest about 'gypsies'.
Track 14: He says that most people are content to see gypsies moved on and that they are not worried about what they will do when they leave their own locality. They discuss whether his work helping gypsies has made him unpopular with his parishioners. He says that people should not push 'gypsies' out of sight and that there should be a 'constructive, Christian approach', 2.39 mins
Track 15: He says that 'our way of life' is on trial and that this 'moral problem' is focused in this particular place. Charles Parker asks him whether he sees parallels between these problems and 'problems of colour', 1.26 mins
Track 16: They discuss whether the situation can be an opportunity, whether there is enough money and land, whether the district council has any suitable land for a gypsy site - it should be remote from a settled community, 2.00 mins
Track 17: Charles Parker asks whether separation from a settled community is inevitable. He says that there should be integration with settled society, but it should be done gradually, 0.54 mins
Track 18: They discuss whether the local area has benefitted from gypsies coming in, 1.27 mins
Track 19: He says that the local pub will not serve 'gypsies', 0.42 mins
Track 20: He talks about 'points of friction' between 'gypsies' and the settled community, but says that the longer they stay the less people talk about them, and children going to the local schools, 2.15 mins
Track 21: Short clip, 0.10 mins
Track 22: They discuss religion among 'gypsies', whether they are Christian, 1.22 mins
Track 23: They talk about 'gypsies' being ostracised, and say that they are a reminder of a past way of life that we don't want to remember, they talk about the romantic idea of the Romany who is thought to be different from local 'gypsies', 2.09 mins
Track 24: continues Track 23, 0.57 mins
Track 25: He talks about providing mobile facilities, 0.24 mins
William Cole, a scrap metal dealer, talks to Charles Parker.
Track 26: William Cole talks about working in the scrap trade. He says he does it because he likes it. He says he likes being his own boss and doesn't care about money, 1.43 mins
Track 27: He explains that he likes the scrap trade because it is a challenge. He says he would like to become a gentleman and own his own house, 1.37 mins
Track 28: They agree that you can't conduct a scrap business from a house. He says he wouldn't live in a council house. He talks about the scrap trade, 1.45 mins
Track 29: Charles Parker asks how much his car would be worth as scrap and how long it would take to break it down. They talk about the scrap metal trade, 2.03 mins
Track 30: He says his people don't go hawking any more, that the people who deal with him like him, and that the scrap trade creates employment. He talks about dealing with gentlemen and being friends with gentlemen, 2.42 mins
Track 31: He says that gypsies are different in feelings, spirit, and temper and that his people have lost their pride, they swear, and they don't like being told what to do, 1.35 mins
Track 32: He talks about living in a tent as a child and says that he will not accept National Assistance, 1.10 mins
Track 33: He talks about differences between gypsies and settled people, he says that both people know how they would like to live, but do not like to be told how they should live. He says that people need to read and write to get a good job now. He says he would like to buy a house of his own and pay it off but he would not have a council house, 2.20 mins
Track 34: They talk about what 'proper gypsy' is - he says that a true gypsy gets you talking and then tells your fortune, 1.36 mins
Total: 49.29 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA KF549C0337480 |