49 Up Page #2

and that's what's she doing.

Postman Pel.

That's our postman Pel.

She loves it, you know.

She works hard.

She's up at four

in the morning.

She's got a lovely boyfriend.

He loves her more

than you can imagine,

and he's certainly

got my blessing.

Big lad, very nice guy,

loves his football.

You know, typical East End kid.

Go. Aah!

Head up, son.

That's too quick.

We are the backbone

for the kids, aren't we?

Yeah, but I think your parents

are anyway, you know.

Your parents are -

You never visualize anything ever

happening to your parents, do you?

You think they are there forever.

Toni's five, Harry's

four, nearly five,

and little Pru, she's nearly two.

No, three.

She's three.

I'm an hands-on granddad.

I love my grandchildren

more, if you can imagine,

I'd say not my own kids,

but in a different way.

It's an obsession

of love, you know.

You see these grandchildren,

and they're part of you.

No, granddad. No.

They're hard work at times.

We don't mind, though,

Michael. I mean -

'cause you slow down and you don't

realize you're slowing down.

All I understand is dogs' prices,

girls, knowledge,

roads, streets, squares

and mum and dad and love.

That's all I understand,

that's all I want to understand.

By the time he was 35,

both Tony's parents had died.

I'm at the graveside.

I'm talking to her, little things.

I've got all images

running through me mind,

sayin' like, "Tony, go downstairs,

get me fine weights."

You know, "one and a penny."

And I used to go in the shop.

She used to throw the cotton

in an hair curler

over the landing,

and I used to tie the cigarettes

on this bit of cotton.

She used to pull 'em up,

and she goes -

See her in the end -

(inhales)

"Thanks, Tone. See you

after school. Be good."

And that's the way it was.

We knew my dad

was terminally ill,

although having said that,

still didn't make it

any easier for us.

When my dad died,

I took it really hard.

I can't.

Nellie Rose is - my mum,

'cause her name is Nell,

and her mother's name's Rose,

so my Jody and all the family

were conjuring up some names

that we could name it.

Jody at the finish

said "Nellie Rose",

the name of our mums.

Sometimes on a Saturday morning

I go to the pictures,

sometimes with my friends

and sometimes with him.

You don't.

I do.

She don't.

(Michael) And why did

you fall in love with him?

Don't know.

I don't know how you put up

with me for so long.

I don't know how. Sometimes

I don't know how I stand him.

Who's to say

in another ten years

me and him might have split up.

Quite possible, you know.

You don't know.

When we filmed

Debbie and Tony at 42,

the marriage seemed

to be in trouble.

I'm not proud at all to say this,

but situations arise that -

I have - have had regretful

behaviour various times,

but through...

You got caught, and that was it.

That's, you know -

I'm not lying about

the fact, you know.

You could always cover it up

and suggest other things,

but, you know, it's true

and let it be true.

You caught him?

Yeah.

What happened?

Well, you know, it was touch and go

whether we carried

on from it or not.

I did feel, you know, I wish

things that were said then

was never said.

I mean, Perri wouldn't go

to school for three weeks.

She wouldn't go out

the door, you know.

She was quite upset

about it all, and, you know.

I think it was a big shock,

because, you know,

you are their mum and dad.

They're tangerines, ain't they?

We got on from there.

It's sort of seven years

down the line,

and we are happy as can be now.

Karen told me

to get me knickers here.

She said they're better

than Marks & Spencer's.

(laughs)

(laughs)

Well, let's hope

they're easy to get off.

There's 96% English here

who bought all their houses in Spain,

and this is where they

shop every Saturday.

It's just like an old petticoat

lane market, sort of years ago.

How much are they, darling?

(speaks Spanish)

What I like - it's so relaxing

down here, Michael.

You just walk along, and things

are happening, the music's playing.

There's an English pub there

you can just go in,

and it's really home from

home but with the weather.

From here - it's

about 200 yards along -

There's going to be

all commercial units here.

My intentions would be to turn one

of these units into a sports bar.

We're putting all tellies

round in a sports sort of way,

football shirts and

all that memorabilia.

This is tomorrow for me.

This is my future here.

If I happen to get

some sort of business

and I was to bring my Nicky

or bring my Jody

and my Perri out here,

then I'll have

the best of both worlds.

I'll have my family here,

plus, the kids could be schooled.

Well, they can get what

they want, can't they?

If you have got to work for it,

and it's them who can just

ask for money and get it,

and they can buy what they want.

I feel that the economy

will bust within five years

because people like myself have been

giving and giving all the time.

We're hardworking,

family type of people

who have contributed everything

under this Tony Blair's government.

We have to work, we have

to maintain the mortgage,

we have to bring up

the families,

and I feel that I've had enough.

I've had enough of

working all these hours.

Congestion charges,

40 a week now.

Zero tolerance with the police

with parking tickets.

We're paying.

Now someone's gettin'

it at our expense.

Does it make you sad

that you're going to have to

leave your roots, your country?

I can't even go out in the

East End now to have a drink.

The pubs are literally

closing down.

It's - other cultures are buyin'

all my old tradition up.

Everyone likes their own culture,

and I'm no different

from anybody else,

but being in England,

if you suggest this,

you are targeted as,

you know, an oddball.

"Oh, you mustn't say that."

Safety by numbers, eh,

is that what they call it?

On the contrary,

I would say, I'm sorry.

If you don't like it,

it's not to be offensive,

it's just to let you know

that my way of being brought up

was all my own people,

and I like being with me own people,

and I'm a traditionalist.

How much do you want

play for? Fiver?

10 pesetas.

Whoa!

(Michael) What's the dream now?

It is to be happy, which I am.

I am happy now being healthy

with all my family.

We all want happy and health for our

family. Anything else will be a bonus.

And that's all I really want.

And that's all I'm really after.

I don't want no more

or less than that.

Ohh.

Unlucky Tony.

Unlucky.

Some people from Africa come here,

but they - when they go,

they put their clothes on.

Jackie, Lynn and Sue

all grew up in the

East End of London

and were friends in

the same junior school.

With this school, we do

metalwork and woodwork,

and the boys do cookery.

We had a teacher at school

that his favourite ploy was,

"All you girls want

to do is walk out,

get married, have babies

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