Mary has a beautiful collection of crystal and porcelain, collected over many years.

Eve: When did you decide to start collecting them?

Mary: That’s got to be about 30 years ago I think.

Eve: And was it because you just liked beautiful things?

Mary: I don’t know, It just started off and …. I don’t like everything cluttered up but I do like some nice ornaments because where we lived in two rooms with two children, when we come here it was like all our belongings when we moved here come in one room. We never had nothing when the kids were little. We just both worked and bought what we had...

James collects tropical fish and is very knowledgeable about them:

James: Kissing gourami over the back. See the big one out the back? Right over the back.

Mary: That one over there.

Eve: Oh that one at the top.

James: It’s Kissing gourami – that’s what they are.

Mary: We’ve had loads, we’ve had tropical. We’ve had cold water. fish. we’ve had a few.They are soothing tho’ and when the kids come in they love them. All kids love it. Any kids that come in.

James’ shed is also immaculate, reflecting his practical abilities. Both Nicky and her grandfather love cars and driving whilst Lisa and her mother love their dogs. Only Nicky wanted her Blackberry mobile phone to be included in her collection as so important during her childhood.

These photos show us something of the past of the area, as well as its very different population.

James: Our main thing when we was growing up, that was going hop-picking..

Mary: That was like going abroad. That was your holiday.

James: It was like going away for three weeks and we had three weeks hop-picking where it was completely out in the country and there was all away from London and everything else … I’ve been to Colefords a few times since then, that’s where we used to go. He had two big rows of hopping huts that we used to stay in and you used to have your name on the side.

Mary: I couldn’t sleep in it now.

James: And ten years after it all stopped, he still had them. He wouldn’t get rid of them.

James: But it was such a good holiday that you … it was unbelievable… what happened.

Mary: No one had holidays then.

James: The lorry used to take you down there… in the orchards load the fruit with them and then come home.

Later, like most families, Mary and James went camping to a caravan site by the sea.