The house we lived in had no electricity,  we had a gas cooker,and a large cast iron range for a fireplace, it was a magnificent focal point for the front room, it was in the middle of the gable wall and a set of cupboards on either side of it,it was matt black in colour highlighted with polished  hinges on the oven door and oven door knob, I was chosen to do a weekly polish using a polish called Zebo or black lead, the result was to be proud of ,the same fireplaces are worth a fortune today because they are as rare as hens teeth,         Above the fireplace was a cornice " shelf " and above that were two gas fittings one on each side,and a mantle was placed in the holder made for the purpose to illuminate the living room, the mantle was made of a fine gauze like material and if you were so much as to touch it it would break before your very eyes and you had to go to Mary Ellens" corner shop "for another.       We had a corner shop on every corner,and you could buy any commodity you wished for,and mum used to send one of us with a list of goods to give to  the shop owner," who by the way knew everyone by name,"if your credit was good you came home with the goods,and if not ,you came home with nothing and mum would send one of us to the next shop,and that's how things were then.      Going to bed on cold nights was a nightmare, mum or dad would put a house brick in the range first thing in the morning,and took them out at night really hot they were wrapped up in any old cardigan,or shirt, etc and one put in each bed ,result,bliss,the only downside they had was in the course of the evening and early hours ,one would fall out of bed with a resounding thud and frighten the life out of us,

To be cont;