10 pound pom

[Ina]

Hi All,

Here is an interesting story about the 10 pound pom.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7217889.stm

Ina

[Tracey]

My uncle and aunt was one of these and they sailed from Tilbury Docks, 5 mins from here. Interesting to read about the bit about the "racist law" as my aunt was mixed race.
Must find out why they came back.

Tracey

[emanday]

Two of my maternal uncles went on the "Ten pound pom" system to NZ, only about five years apart. They never came back!

One of their children visitied Scotland in the 80's and declared that she'd love to live there as the people were far more open and friendly, but that the weather wasn't quite what she'd got used to

[wini]

We were 10 pound scots, who came to Australia in January 1963.
We have never regretted it.
So what, Perth was a small backwater and in comparison to British cities it still is.
Australia on the whole is a vibrant country without many of the U.K prejudices, although it does have some of its own.
Some of those who returned did so because they mixed only with other Brits.
My children, two born in Scotland and one in Australia, have all had a trip back to Scotland and none of them had any inclination to stay there.
So, some places suit some people and other places suit others.
I love Australia although of course I will always have an affinity with Scotland.
We have lived many places and found that it ias up to the individual to make what they will of it.

wini

[Ina]

I couldn't agree more with you Wini. We bloom where we are planted.

I came to the USA in 1960 and wouldn't live anywhere else. I go home (yes I still call it home) every year to visit my sister, but I could never live there again.

regards,

Ina

[StewL]

We came here in 1963 as ten pound tourists
I havent been back yet but maybe one day, I was only 11 when we came over to Perth. Yes! Perth back then was like a big country town, hard to believe it was the capital of Western Australia (most isolated capital city in world ) We sent our parents back for a holiday in the 80's, funniest thing ws my mother still had a real broad accent, but her brothers and sisters said Agnes! you've got a right Aussie accent, my brother in law nearly died laughing as he could never understand her

[Muriel]

The £10 Pom programme is on BBC 2 tonight. The BBC now have an Iplayer feature on their website so anyone with the technology should be able to watch it.

Muriel

[wini]

Stewie,
I wonder if you followed us through the Suez Canal?
We arrived Fremantle 2nd January 1963 to some very hot weather.
After being fog bound in Tilbury for 3 days it was quite a shock.
On the "Strathmore" in Tilbury the heating didn't work and I had on a red woollen dress that I didn't take off for three days.
Haven't worn a woollen dress since then

wini

[StewL]

Hi Wini
We came a bit later in April on the Fairsea. We hit very heavy seas in the Bay of Biscay, I think they lost a lot of the crockery within days of sailing A wonderful introduction to the joys of sea travel. Still that never did match my time in the navy when we were in a typhoon for 10 days near the Phillipines, in comparison the the Bay of Biscay was a millpond, come to think of it the Great Australian Bight was closest thing to the experience of a typhoon We nearly lost my youngest brother in the Mediterranean when he went chasing a balloon, luckily a man grabbed him before he went over the side, he was only 3-4.
If I recall correctly we took six weeks to get to Fremantle, there was a delay of some sorts along the way, probably some middle east strife.

[joette]

I hope that all you Poms are recording all these details for your descendants.


"I wonder when GGGGGreat Granny Winni came over" can't find her crossing on ancestry anywhere!