Join historian Pam Fox, as she talks about her latest book, Jews by the Seaside, which describes the rise and decline of Bournemouth’s Jewish hotels and guest houses within the context of Anglo-Jewry history, the growth of Bournemouth as a premier resort and the evolution of its Jewish community.
Pam will be in conversation with Francine Wolfisz, former features editor at the Jewish News.
Commencing with the appearance of the first small Jewish boarding houses in the late nineteenth century, which gradually became larger and more comfortable guest houses, it charts the emergence of ever-more luxurious hotels during the inter-war years. The book captures both the heady atmosphere and glamour of the ‘Big Eight’ hotels and the more intimate environments of the smaller establishments when they were in their heyday following the Second World War.
It also explores the decline and changing nature of Bournemouth’s Jewish holiday trade before examining different aspects of hotel and guest house life – the food, religious activities and entertainment. It concludes with a detailed analysis of the historical significance and many legacies of the kosher establishments, illuminating the hopes, achievements and sorrows of generations of British Jews as they attempted to balance the goal of assimilation with the desire for a world of their own.
Throughout the book, the focus is on those who ran, staffed and stayed in the kosher establishments, shedding light on the dynamics of the mainly family-run businesses. Based largely on interviews, the text is replete with humorous and poignant memories and stories that enliven the text. This history of a small but very important aspect of Jewish life in Britain is a model of its genre and will appeal to Jewish and non-Jewish audiences alike.
Pam Fox is a social historian, who for the last twelve years has been researching and writing Anglo-Jewish history. She has published six books, including her most recent book on the Jewish hotels and guest houses of Bournemouth, Jews by the Seaside. Pam has developed a specialism in writing Jewish history based largely on memories derived from oral history interviews. She is dedicated to making Anglo-Jewish history accessible and exposing the underlying meaning of hitherto neglected aspects of Jewish life in the UK.
