A good hiding and Straight to Bed

A Good Hiding and Straight to Bed.

Part 1

It was commonplace when I was growing up to hear children being threatened in public with a good hiding.

The most widely used terms, and usually shouted by my mother were,

“When I get you home you are getting a good hiding,” and “you are going to get a good hiding and then you are going straight to bed.”

These sorts of threats were used by almost everyone in my area.

The term good hiding is a particularly British term and from what I gather seems to be most common in the north of England and Scotland.

There are many of you who will have heard this and will still hear it, but I know that some of you will have no idea what it means or consists of.

The term a good hiding is essentially another way of saying you are going to get a good spanking.

It was considered more socially acceptable to heard to threaten a good hiding than a spanking.

The threat usually happened after much provocation or naughtiness and was widely used in public places.

It was especially common to hear it in school holidays or weekends. In fact quite often onlookers would join in sometimes saying things like

“What he needs is a good hiding.”

“If mine did that I’d take them home for a good hiding and send them straight to bed.”

Onlookers were never shocked; never felt the need to voice their disapproval. It was just such an everyday thing to hear. I still hear it now.

So what does a good hiding mean in practice. Well it’s quite a severe spanking. Often with a carpet slipper or hairbrush. The carpet slipper is a particularly British implement to use. I suppose one reason is that most people wear them and perhaps it’s just not quite a severe as a cane, switch or paddle.

The good hiding usually occurred after mum had been embarrassed in public by their children, usually given over the knee with pants or pyjamas pulled down.

Usually the recipient if not already in pyjamas was made to put them on and then go straight to bed.

The punishment often happened quite early in the day, so the child would be allowed to get up later, but almost always staying in their pyjamas and slippers and possibly a dressing gown if they owned one.

Also there were quite often other people in the house when it happened. Especially aunties, uncles, and their children too as it often happened after a family day out in the holidays or at weekends.

My mother often threatened me with a good hiding and being put straight to bed in public when out with relatives.

It was always over her knee, usually already in pyjamas and with the bottoms pulled down. She usually used one of her slippers. I always got sent to bed after straight after. Sometimes I was allowed up later but I always stayed dressed in my pyjamas and slippers and then went back to bed much earlier than usual.

The punishment often happened with mum’s sisters and my cousins in the house. They frequently visited at the weekend and during school holidays. My aunts never

Disapproved of my punishment, in fact the often encouraged it. My cousins seemed to particularly enjoy my spankings, getting involved. They would offer to fetch my pyjamas or get my mothers slippers. She had a special pair of slippers that she used to spank me with if I was particularly naughty. The sole of the slipper was very hard and boy did they hurt. Also we stayed quite a lot at my aunties, but this never prevented mum from dishing out the good hiding and all that came with it. Mum was particularly strict about naughtiness and bad behaviour in public. She viewed it as a reflection of her inability to control me and believed that when I was naughty she was seen to be a bad parent. There were a number of times I went over her knee and was put into my pyjamas then sent to bed or sat embarrassed in a roomful of my aunts. I was kept in my pyjamas and slippers sometimes all day with my cousins clearly enjoying my humiliation. They knew better than to openly tease me for fear of getting the same. They would stare at me wearing my pyjamas as of course when everyone else is fully clothed you tend to be the centre of attention.

So that’s part one over and the term a good hiding explained, and the wholes process outlined.

This whole approach to discipline was just standard practice in those days. In fact mums who didn’t discipline everyone like this were certainly in a tiny minority.

Today things do seem different, but perhaps years ago families were more open and honest and uninhibited about it all.

In part two I will give a good example of my good hiding and pyjama punishment.