Which Prologue would entice you to buy?

I've shown both of these to a number of my fabulous team, and so far it's a tie.
Which one do you prefer? Add a comment below. Ta xxx


Prologue 1 - 1940.

“Neighbours, you are tedious.” Leonato attempted to sidestep the deranged constable, but he blocked the path.
“If I were as tedious as a king, I would bestow it all on your worship.” His solemn delivery raised chuckles.
“All thy tediousness on me, ha?”
Despite exquisite comic timing, completely unexpected from men with such serious day-jobs, the interplay couldn’t hold Clive’s attention as he ran through his lines for the next scene. The one he dreaded most. Not just the thirteen-line speech which tied his tongue in knots, but the thought of laying into the girl he’d grown dangerously fond of. Hettie, the object of his concern, whispered in his ear. “He’s remarkably good for a scientist. Should be on a West End stage.”
Trying to ignore the effect of her proximity, he whispered back. “We could all learn from his timing.” Even as his body responded to the fresh apple notes emanating from her glossy hair, his mind pondered on the slip-up. What would a girl like her know about London’s West End? Unless, as he suspected, she was playing him.
A stern glare from the director had them both zipping lips and he found himself recalling her ingenious solutions to the war-time shortages. The blush he found irresistibly endearing had accompanied her explanation of using cider vinegar to wash her hair and beetroot and Vaseline instead of lipstick. But that just drew his attention to her lips.
The call for act four curtailed his musings, and somehow he made it all the way to the end of his long speech without stumbling. A moment later, her face crumpled as he delivered the line denouncing her as “… an approved wanton.”
But that was just the start. The director’s notes to increase the physicality had her clinging to his arm as she pleaded and, when he flung her off, she stumbled, landing awkwardly on the floor. Hettie was a game girl, but he could tell she’d hurt herself, and could do nothing about it.
Finally, his part was done and he exited the stage area, oblivious to the rest of the scene except for her winces revealing the potential damage at his hands. But not for the right reasons.
The frisson he’d experienced at having her helpless at his feet had shocked and excited him in equal measure. Appalled by the powerful images running through his mind, he made a note to assess these inappropriate reactions threatening to blow his cover. And, more worryingly, to reveal a potential cruel streak.


Prologue 2 - 1966.

In many ways, Kev’s entire life had been leading up to this moment.
Admittedly, not exactly here in this less-than-salubrious pub, 22 years before he was actually born. But to a similar situation where all the life hacks resulting from his upbringing, education, and experiences coalesced. Even the parts he’d played in school productions – thanks to a sympathetic drama teacher recognising his talent for slipping into a skin other than his own – came in handy.
He adopted the confidence and sleaze of a 60s spiv, made easier by Georgie’s assurance that he rocked the trench coat, fedora and slicked back hair. He’d had a teeny tiny tremor about the etiquette of wearing a hat indoors, and quite what you were supposed to do with the damned thing when you took it off. But Ben’s golden advice saw him in good stead – watch what the people around you do, and blend in. He sipped the pale ale with a grimace.
Prickles at the back of his neck and the odd snatched phrase alerted him to the increasing interest of a nearby table of thugs. He’d clocked them as the power centre in the room while at the bar, the mirror behind it being perfectly placed for that function. He mused that its original purpose was to make the mean selection of spirits appear twice the size. Also, given some of the seedy clientele, to give the landlord eyes in the back of his head.
Part of Kev's training involved augmenting his senses to lessen his chances of being taken by surprise, and they were ganging up to inform him now would be a good time to bug out. He’d learnt as much as he could from this particular watering hole, and was unlikely to gain any further information about his prey by sticking around. Several bruises and the odd cracked rib, perhaps, but they’d have to catch him first.
He made his move and, by the time they entered the alley, he was ready for them.

1950s Fashions

Clothes rationing had ended by 1949 and by the early 1950s women in particular wanted dresses and skirts made with a huge amount of fabric to make up for the meagre amounts they had endured during the war. At the opposite extreme, pencil skirts and three-quarter-length trousers meant women's profiles were either skinny or voluminous with no middle ground.

Men's suits became narrower, straighter and less fussy. Most men opted for conservative grey suits and did little to stand out in terms of fashion. Instead of wearing three piece suits all day long, men would dress for business in the morning and later change into something more comfortable.

Hats and Hairstyles

You simply weren't properly dressed without a hat (and gloves for women). Anyone who's watched Mrs Maisel will know no outfit was complete without the matching hat, and these ranged from something we might class as a fascinator all the way up to floppy, wide-brimmed sun hats. More decorative than functional, few of them would protect the wearer from even the lightest shower, so an umbrella was another essential accessory.
For men it was normally a trilby, or the wider-brimmed fedora, with the occasional flat cap - usually in tweed aong the hunting, shooting and fishing brigade. At the beginning of the decade, hair for both men and women was mostly short and easy to take care of. Long hair was almost exclusibely for teenage girls, invariably swept up in a ponytail.
Only at the end of the decade did men's hair become more bouffant thanks to the influence of film and pop stars like Elvis and Tony Curtis.

	Teenage fashion emerged, with girls wearing poodle skirts, swing skirts with petticoats, pencil skirts or pleated skirts. Button down blouses with a cardigan or a preppy twin set were commonly seen on young girls.
Boys wore bomber jackets, Hawaiian shirts, varsity cardigans and blue denim jeans.

Thanks so much to the following sites for their awesome research.
https://revivalvintage.co.uk/blogs/news/guide-to-vintage-1950s
http://bloshka.info/2019/04/07/1950s-of-fashion/

1959 Top Thirteen

1. Bobby Darin - Mack The Knife - 09-59 – Atco
2. Neil Sedaka - Oh! Carol - 11-59 – RCA
3. The Everly Brothers - ('Til) I Kissed You - 09-59 – Cadence
4. Dion & The Belmonts - A Teenager In Love - 05-59 – Laurie
5. Paul Anka - Put Your Head On My Shoulder - 09-59 - ABC Paramount
6. Frankie Avalon - Why - 12-59 – Chancellor
7. The Coasters - Charlie Brown - 02-59 – Atco
8. The Drifters - There Goes My Baby - 07-59 – Atlantic
9. Paul Evans & The Curls - Seven Little Girls Sitting In The Back Seat - 11-59 – Guaranteed
10. Connie Francis - Lipstick On Your Collar - 05-59 – MGM
11. Johnny & The Hurricanes - Red River Rock - 09-59 – Warwick
12. Ricky Nelson - Never Be Anyone Else But You - 03-59 – Imperial
13. Elvis Presley - A Fool Such As I - 04-59 - RCA

And here's the bubbling unders.
Lloyd Price - Personality - 06-59 - ABC Paramount
The Flamingos - I Only Have Eyes For You - 07-59 -End
Wink Martindale - Deck Of Cards - 10-59 - Dot

Britain in the 1950s

A typical 1950s household saw mothers not working outside the home, instead concentrating on providing a safe and cosy environment for the family. Fathers were sole earners, with the average weekly wage in 1957 being £10 (compare to £420 in 2007 or £629 in 2022).

Work time to pay for a weekly basket of basic food items such as milk, butter and bread was around 3 hours 40 minutes. 1950s saw the introduction of fish fingers, electric fires, washing machine, ink and toilet paper.

Unemployment was very low in the 1950s and it was a long period of prosperity with living standards in Britain rising considerably. In the early 1950s, many homes in Britain still did not have bathrooms and only had outside lavatories. In the 1950s, a typical home had a cooker, vacuum cleaner and a plug-in radio. Only 33 per cent of households had a washing machine. Most people were still doing their washing by hand. Only 15 per cent had a fridge and freezers and tumble dryers were scarcely heard of.

Only 10 per cent of the population had a telephone.
TV first became common in the 1950s. A lot of people bought a TV set to watch the coronation of Elizabeth II and a survey at the end of that year showed that about one-quarter of households had one. By 1959 about two-thirds of homes had a TV. At first, there was only one TV channel but between 1955 and 1957 the ITV companies began broadcasting.

In Britain, the health of ordinary people greatly improved when the National Health Service was founded in 1948. In the 1950s Dr. Jonas Salk invented a vaccine for poliomyelitis. The first kidney transplant was performed in 1950 by Richard Lawler.
There was growing opposition to the death penalty. In 1957 the Homicide Act abolished hanging for certain kinds of murder. It was still allowed for murder during a theft, by shooting or explosion, and for the murder of a police officer or prison officer while on duty. A person who was convicted of more than one murder could also be hanged. There were several firsts for women in the 1950s. Barbara Mandell became the first woman newsreader on British TV In 1956. Rose Heilbron became the first woman judge in Britain and in 1958 Hilda Harding became the first woman bank manager in Britain.

Transport: Cars increased in number after World War II, and car ownership more than doubled in the 1950's. By 1955 there were over three million cars on Britain's roads. By 1959 32% of households owned a car.
The first zebra crossing was introduced in 1949. Lollipop men and women followed in 1953. The first parking meters in Britain were installed in London in 1958.

Following the 1944 Education Act all children had to sit an exam called the 11 plus. Those who passed went to grammar schools while those who failed went to secondary modern schools. Meanwhile, new sweets were introduced, Bounty (1951), Munchies (1957), and Picnic (1958). Also, in the 1950s young people had significant disposable income for the first time. A distinct ‘youth culture’ emerged, with teddy boys. A revolution in music was led by Elvis Presley and Bill Haley, and it was the decade of jive, skiffle and rock'n'roll.

Leisure: People spent most of their leisure time at home – reading, listening to the radio/gramophone records, watching television or pursuing hobbies. The most popular hobbies were knitting and needle-work for women, and gardening for men. Children spent a lot of time playing with other children outdoors, and enjoyed a range of hobbies such as stamp collecting. Families enjoyed playing board games such as Monopoly, Ludo, and Snakes and Ladders. In the 1950s Lego became a popular toy. Mr. Potato Head was invented in 1952. Skateboards were first sold in 1958. Barbie dolls were invented in 1959. There was a craze for yo-yos, 3D-spectacles, I-Spy books and hoola hoops in the late 1950s.
Pop Art started in London in the mid-1950's depicting images from popular culture, including comics, advertising images, and celebrity portraits. The best known artist of Pop Art is undoubtedly the American artist Andy Warhol.

1958 Top Thirteen

This is the first of the 50s years where I actually knew enough songs for it to warrent a top 13 on its own merit.

A lot of these classics have stood the test and time and are still played on the radio six decades later.
Others featured in movies like "That'll Be the Day" and appear again and again in any show set in the fifties.


1. Peggy Lee - Fever - 08-58 – Capitol
2. Big Bopper - Chantilly Lace - 10-58 – Mercury
3. Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode - 05-58 – Chess
4. The Platters - Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - 12-58 – Mercury
5. Perry Como - Catch A Falling Star/Magic Moments - 02-58 – RCA
6. The Everly Brothers - All I Have To Do Is Dream - 05-58 – Cadence
7. The Teddy Bears - To Know Him Is To Love Him - 10-58 – Dore
8. Tommy Edwards - It's All In The Game - 09-58 – MGM
9. The Champs - Tequila - 03-58 – Challenge
10. The Coasters - Yakety Yak - 06-58 – Atco
11. Eddie Cochran - Summertime Blues - 09-58 – Liberty
12. The Crickets [with Buddy Holly] - Oh Boy! - 01-58 – Brunswick
13. Connie Francis - Who's Sorry Now - 03-58 – MGM


And a few bubbling under:
Elvis Presley - One Night - 11-58 - RCA
Ricky Nelson - Poor Little Fool - 07-58 - Imperial
Conway Twitty - It's Only Make Believe - 10-58 - MGM
Little Richard - Good Golly, Miss Molly - 03-58 - Specialty
The McGuire Sisters - Sugartime - 01-58 - Coral