The 1890s

S1 E4: The slum dwellers have moved into the 1890s, when Britain was slowly recovering from an economic depression. Cheap foodstuffs and mass manufactured goods have found their way into the slum’s shop, but only some of the residents can afford them. The Howarths are the lucky ones, they now have a bespoke tailor’s shop and tailor Russell can make good money catering to middle class Londoners who couldn’t afford Saville Row suits. Their relative prosperity means Mandy can turn her attention to being a respectable Victorian house wife. The Potter family’s experience reflects the lives of countless Victorian poor who struggled with low wages and irregular work, but they are offered a lifeline by their neighbour Maria who needs help with her laundry business. But a water shortage during the 1890s makes life even harder and it forces Maria and her brother John to leave the Slum. Finally it seems that the wider world was taking notice of the plight of the Victorian poor when the slum dwellers are introduced to Charles Booth’s great poverty survey. The residents experience a wave of Victorian social reform including slum clearance, and there’s much excitement when there’s a visit to see the new council housing that would have been on offer. But it’s bittersweet when they learn the reality of what happened to their forebears.