Letter, Lorna to her mother (Mrs V. Stockton), 12 October 1961
Title
Letter, Lorna to her mother (Mrs V. Stockton), 12 October 1961
Description
Letter (3 leaves with envelope). The letter is dated a day earlier than the post-mark.
Lorna writes to her mother from her digs in Durham at the beginning of her first year at university. She describes settling in, the fellow students "some dreadfully snobbish" and the fresher's dance "a pretty wretched affair."
Lorna and Vic expect to return to see Sausage (their daughter Sharon) at half-term. She includes a photograph of her and Vic from the Newcastle Journal "we are famous (or is it notorious) already."
***
'This letter to my grandmother marks the beginning of Lorna's life as a student in Durham. She was exhilarated and excited to be there, but she keeps her letters to Valma as grounded as she could make them, and establishes a line of communication that she kept up constantly throughout her degree.
After my grandmother's death, Lorna discovered that Valma had carefully preserved the letters, along with curiosities such as the newspaper reports around Lorna having gone to Durham with my father.'
[STS]
Lorna writes to her mother from her digs in Durham at the beginning of her first year at university. She describes settling in, the fellow students "some dreadfully snobbish" and the fresher's dance "a pretty wretched affair."
Lorna and Vic expect to return to see Sausage (their daughter Sharon) at half-term. She includes a photograph of her and Vic from the Newcastle Journal "we are famous (or is it notorious) already."
***
'This letter to my grandmother marks the beginning of Lorna's life as a student in Durham. She was exhilarated and excited to be there, but she keeps her letters to Valma as grounded as she could make them, and establishes a line of communication that she kept up constantly throughout her degree.
After my grandmother's death, Lorna discovered that Valma had carefully preserved the letters, along with curiosities such as the newspaper reports around Lorna having gone to Durham with my father.'
[STS]
Creator
Lorna Sage
Source
Sharon Tolaini-Sage Private Collection
Publisher
University of East Anglia Archives
Date
12 October 1961
Rights
Sharon Tolaini-Sage. All rights reserved.
Format
jpeg image file
Type
Text
Text
47, Claypath, Durham. 10.12.61 [12 October 1961]
Dear Mummy
We have now moved in here completely, trunk & all, so that life is a little easier. I’ve had an interview with Miss Scott, who was very nice, and she suggested that we might like to take a weekend off in mid-term to come & see Sausage [Sharon], so that you’ll probably see us sooner than you expected. The financial situation is somewhat better than we had thought. Our rent is £3 not £4, and there are pots & pans, blankets and electric iron provided. We aren’t sharing with another married couple but with 3 other separate people, only 2 of whom have arrived. The one Is a research student in his twenties, who seems v. nice, and the other, strangely enough is someone from Whitchurch, Jenny Rowlands, whom you’ve probably heard me mention. We were astounded when we saw each other. She’s teaching here. The girls at [St] Aidan’s [College] are a pretty poor lot generally – the only one whom I like at all is a German? girl, who is older than the rest – she’s living in digs as well. There are one or two good bookshops here, and there is a fabulous market on Saturday where we are hoping to get some pictures on the cheap. Otherwise Durham is pretty dead – the University provides about 10th of the population.
I include a press cutting from the Newcastle journal about us: you see – we are famous (or is it notorious?) already! We were very surprised to find ourselves in the paper. When they took our photographs we thought it was for some University thing.
The fresher’s dance was a pretty wretched affair because there are about 7 boys to 3 girls, and all the poor little lads were in a huddle in the corner.
There are some dreadfully snobbish people here who are frightfully superior, but they aren’t very popular – the girls are worse than the boys in that respect.
Vic’s tutor who ‘helps’ him with his work is Mr Lever, whose daughter Constance was mixed up in race riots in America – it was in all the papers weeks ago. Mine is Mr Brooker, whom I saw at my interview in January.
The University is quite cosmopolitan, there are French, German, Indian, West-Indian, Nigerian and Japanese students here – although of course they are in a minority.
We have lunch & dinner in college every day except Saturday & Sunday – I’ve arranged it with Miss Scott. She’s really very nice to me and seems anxious that we should settle in well.
If you haven’t thrown them away could we have our passport photographs please, and if my wool has come let me know & I’ll send you a P.O. [postal order]. I think that’s all, except love to Sausage of course & to everyone, and I hope she isn’t too much of a handful, Lorna.
P.S. isn’t the newspaper photo awful!!
Dear Mummy
We have now moved in here completely, trunk & all, so that life is a little easier. I’ve had an interview with Miss Scott, who was very nice, and she suggested that we might like to take a weekend off in mid-term to come & see Sausage [Sharon], so that you’ll probably see us sooner than you expected. The financial situation is somewhat better than we had thought. Our rent is £3 not £4, and there are pots & pans, blankets and electric iron provided. We aren’t sharing with another married couple but with 3 other separate people, only 2 of whom have arrived. The one Is a research student in his twenties, who seems v. nice, and the other, strangely enough is someone from Whitchurch, Jenny Rowlands, whom you’ve probably heard me mention. We were astounded when we saw each other. She’s teaching here. The girls at [St] Aidan’s [College] are a pretty poor lot generally – the only one whom I like at all is a German? girl, who is older than the rest – she’s living in digs as well. There are one or two good bookshops here, and there is a fabulous market on Saturday where we are hoping to get some pictures on the cheap. Otherwise Durham is pretty dead – the University provides about 10th of the population.
I include a press cutting from the Newcastle journal about us: you see – we are famous (or is it notorious?) already! We were very surprised to find ourselves in the paper. When they took our photographs we thought it was for some University thing.
The fresher’s dance was a pretty wretched affair because there are about 7 boys to 3 girls, and all the poor little lads were in a huddle in the corner.
There are some dreadfully snobbish people here who are frightfully superior, but they aren’t very popular – the girls are worse than the boys in that respect.
Vic’s tutor who ‘helps’ him with his work is Mr Lever, whose daughter Constance was mixed up in race riots in America – it was in all the papers weeks ago. Mine is Mr Brooker, whom I saw at my interview in January.
The University is quite cosmopolitan, there are French, German, Indian, West-Indian, Nigerian and Japanese students here – although of course they are in a minority.
We have lunch & dinner in college every day except Saturday & Sunday – I’ve arranged it with Miss Scott. She’s really very nice to me and seems anxious that we should settle in well.
If you haven’t thrown them away could we have our passport photographs please, and if my wool has come let me know & I’ll send you a P.O. [postal order]. I think that’s all, except love to Sausage of course & to everyone, and I hope she isn’t too much of a handful, Lorna.
P.S. isn’t the newspaper photo awful!!
Original Format
paper
Collection
Citation
Lorna Sage, “Letter, Lorna to her mother (Mrs V. Stockton), 12 October 1961,” HOME, accessed January 15, 2025, https://lornasagearchives.omeka.net/items/show/5.