The CBB :: View topic - The Bubble bath

#1: The Bubble bath Author: Elle,

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 9:00 am

Having read the thread about the mornings I suddenly remembered jack Lambert putting bubble bath in the staff bathroom. At the moment I can't remember which members of staff were involved, but I do rememeber that one of them said something along mthe lines of "Surely you havn't taken to having bubble baths?". Why was this not acceptable? Or was it that bubble bath was rare/ expensive in the 50s (or 60s - sorry my ear ache is making my brain not work!)

Shocked

#2: Author: Róisín, Location: Dublin

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 9:02 am

*screws up memory and tries to wring details out of it*

Isn't it that she puts Epsom salts or some kind of frothing salts on the rim of the bathtub to make it bubble up when the water rises up around Miss (Ferrars? Wilmot?)? It was right before she pulled the stunt with the cobblers wax as I recall.

#3: Author: catherine, Location: Newcastle upon Tyne

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 11:32 am

It was Peggy Burnett it happened to. Miss Ferrars and Miss Wilmot heard her shrieks and came out to see what was happening.

Not very sure why bubble baths weren't acceptable though.

#4: Author: Jennie, Location: Cambridgeshire

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 11:34 am

It may have been that EBD disapproved of bubble baths on principle. In the Fifties and Sixties, the newspaper and magazines sometimes had 'risque' photographs of glamorous young starlets lying in their bubble baths. EBD would definitely not have approved.

Anyone else remember the furore over Diana Dors' mink bikini?

#5: Author: Ally, Location: Jack Maynard's Dressing Room!!

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 11:35 am

Perhaps it was because bubble baths suggest long hot baths, and therefore lazy, whilst the only acceptable CS baths were short cold ones?

I dont think its fair that the staff couldnt relax that way if they wanted to though.

#6: Author: Vashti,

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 11:48 am

I have a feeling that a large part of the paranoia about hot baths was to do with the energy crisis in wartime and in the 1950s.

Energy (possibly in coal form) was rationed, so hot water was in short supply and hot, deep baths became a thing of the past. People were encouraged to paint a line around the bath to mark 5 inches of depth, and not to go over that line. I remember a story where a First Lady (possibly Eleanor Roosevelt) stays at Buckingham Palace and is curtly told not to run her bath any deeper than the line around the bath. This is often quoted as an example of the famous thrift of the royals, when in fact it was something done across the country to conserve energy.

Certainly expecting young, strapping examples of womanhood to take cold baths would contribute to saving energy, and get rid of all those nasty common urges at the same time! And given this background for the rule, it becomes clear why mistresses also would be strongly discouraged from taking hot or otherwise luxurious wallowy baths.

The part where my theory falls down is the "no hot baths except at night" rule - but then, given the Chalet's concern for the health of their pupils, sending them to bed chilled from an icy bath wouldn't be flavour of the month. And in a dormitory with all the windows thrown open, even in winter...

*shudders*

#7: Author: catherine, Location: Newcastle upon Tyne

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 11:49 am

But doesn't Peggy run herself what she thinks will be a hot bath because she's hot and sticky or something from all her work that day?

The staff don't seem to have hot baths as a general rule though.

#8: Author: Ann, Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, England

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 12:29 pm

I suppose bath tubs take more cleaning when bubble bath has been used than they would otherwise.

#9: Author: KB, Location: Melbourne, Australia

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 12:37 pm

I don't think evening bathing was cold. Remember Lavender was having a hot bath when she forgot it was filling and nearly burned her fingers trying to pull the pipe out.

#10: Author: Dawn, Location: Leeds, West Yorks

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 12:57 pm

As a child in the sixties having a bubble bath was seen as quite a luxurious thing to do and a special treat. Mum had some bubble bath and I was allowed to use some very occasionally (and how much I put in was very carefully supervised Very Happy

)

I always felt that Peggy yelled mainly from shock at seeing bubbles when she hadn't put any in. Also wasn't there some comment about Jack's mother knowing how many sachets of BB she had and would therefore miss the one Jack had taken - they were obviouisly a fairly treasured item as they weren't out for general use, but kept in a drawer

By the 70's I can remember getting and recieving bubble bath from my friends at school as an acceptable birthday/Christmas present, so suspect it was still seen as a bit on the luxury side then.

#11: Author: LizB, Location: Oxon, England

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 1:01 pm

Bubble bath was a treat when I was a child.

I was also told that if I had one too often my skin would dry out. Possibly the mixtures were harsher then than they are these days.

Liz

#12: Author: Susan, Location: Carlisle

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 3:42 pm

I remember being told that about bubble baths too Liz.

I wonder, given EBD's aversion to make up and perms if she thought bubble bath common.

Vashti it was Eleanor Roosevelt - the story was quoted on TV here over the weekend during the programmes to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II.

#13: Author: Lottie, Location: Humphrey's Corner

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 1:47 pm

Ann wrote:

I suppose bath tubs take more cleaning when bubble bath has been used than they would otherwise.

I have never found that - in fact the reverse seems to be true - we never seemed to get tidemarks with bubble bath like you do with soap.

I am sure it was just to do with them being a luxury - I remember getting bubble bath mix for Christmas presents as a child, and being very excited, although it was always disappointing when the bubbles vanished as I had to use the soap for washing myself. Our daughters just progressed from baby bath to children's bubble bath, and since they had one every day I never insisted on the soap - I am sure they got quite clean enough from the detergent in the mixture!

#14: Author: Chair, Location: Kent, England

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 9:26 pm

Which book was this in?

#15: Author: patmac, Location: Yorkshire England

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 9:33 pm

Jennie wrote:

Anyone else remember the furore over Diana Dors' mink bikini?

Yep!

I think you hit the nail on the head over 'risque'. Jennie. The connotations were definitely s*x.

'Nice girls didn't'

#16: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 9:53 pm

Chair wrote:

Which book was this in?

A Leader in the Chalet School - which I found in a charity shop in SE London today for 75p incidentally Very Happy

#17: Author: Chair, Location: Kent, England

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 9:55 pm

Thanks. I read this book years ago. I can remember Jack asking a lot of questions, the incident of the plastic snake and Len waking up to find all the heaterss were not working but that is about all.

#18: Author: Mia, Location: London

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 9:59 pm

I read it from the library when I was little but not since and that was all I remembered too, Chair. Been looking at in on ebay for ages but it goes up too high.

Looking through it now, not even sure it was worth the 75p! I loathe Jack - she's just a second rate Tom Gay and I love Tom. I wonder if she's a better character in the hb?

#19: Author: KB, Location: Melbourne, Australia

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 11:22 pm

Having just read the hardback, I didn't notice many differences between that and the pb in terms of characterisation.

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