Sporting pastimes, such as cycling, rowing and horseracing were also popular, and large crowds would often attend sailing events like the Henley Regatta and famous horse races such as the Epsom Derby. One of the largest events of the Victorian calendar was the famous Great Exhibition, held in 1851.
In an age before television, Victorians relied on indoor games for their entertainment. Favourites included card games such as Happy Families, word games, and jigsaw puzzles.
Music and singing formed a large part of the Victorian woman's entertainment. Young ladies were expected to perform at social gatherings and music evenings, whilst having a piano in your home was seen as a status symbol.
Poor children often made their own toys such as rag balls or, if they were lucky, bought cheap penny toys. Wealthier children played with dolls with wax or china faces, toy soldiers and train sets.
The middle class had the means and the time for evenings out and hobbies in the home. Families spent many hours at home in the drawing room, where they received guests and gathered to play music, read, enjoy games, and talk.
Theatre Halls were numerous and performances were regularly given by theatre troupes, ventriloquists, hypnotists, poets, comedians, choirs and orchestras. Circuses came to town and set up in parks and public places. There were fêtes, carnivals, art exhibitions and lessons in singing, dancing and cooking to attend.
Children would save their pocket money to buy marbles, a spinning top, skipping ropes, kites or cheap wooden toys. Girls played with dolls and tea sets whilst boys played with toy soldiers and marbles. During Victorian times, people became fascinated by toys that made pictures move.
Children worked on farms, in homes as servants, and in factories. Children provided a variety of skills and would do jobs that were as varied as needing to be small and work as a scavenger in a cotton mill to having to push heavy coal trucks along tunnels in coal mines. There were so many different jobs!
Although rich Victorian children would have had plenty of toys in their nurseries, children from poorer families would have had very few. They were often hand-made and children would share toys like marbles, whip and tops, skipping ropes and dolls with their brothers and sisters and friends.
Dropping your handkerchief or fan means “We will be friends,” but dropping your parasol means “I love you.” Tapping the chin with a glove or a parasol means “I love another.” but placing your forefinger of your left hand on your chin while sitting in the window means “I desire an acquaintance.”
Obvious makeup was taboo in Victorian times
It was believed that cheeks painted with blush had to look flushed, and lips had to look bitten rather than painted. Eyebrows were lightly plucked and darkened with natural ingredients, and eyeliner all but disappeared in the Victorian era.
The entertainment at a Victorian dinner party was generally just the conversation. However, after the meal, card games, smoking and drinks might form part of the evening's entertainment.
Victorians would typically sleep for around five hours then wake back up and use their time for cleaning, reading or relaxing before settling down for the second round of sleep, otherwise known as a biphasic sleep pattern.
Amusement parks, penny arcades, dance halls, and other commercial amusements flourished. As early as 1910, when there were 10,000 movie theaters, the movies had become the nation's most popular form of commercial entertainment.
Rich Victorian children would have gone to school, or been taught at home, and they would have had lots of time to play. You might recognise some of the toys Victorian children played with and you might even have your own versions! Rich Victorian children usually had a variety of wooden or metal toys to play with.
Victorian social norms directed the ways in which Victorian people were expected to interact with each other. People of a higher social class expected a greater level of respect. Women were treated as delicate, though frail, and children were expected to learn from their parents and superiors.
Sporting pastimes, such as cycling, rowing and horseracing were also popular, and large crowds would often attend sailing events like the Henley Regatta and famous horse races such as the Epsom Derby. One of the largest events of the Victorian calendar was the famous Great Exhibition, held in 1851.
In Victorian Britain, cars were scarce, which meant the country's streets were a place for play – despite the fact that many children spent most of their time working. Children would share toys such as hoops, marbles and skipping ropes.
If you browse through turn-of-the-century newspapers around December, or seasonal catalogs, you could find many kinds of toys – bicycles, dolls, wagons, toy trains, teddy bears, rocking horses, games, children's books, and more.
People would entertain themselves with song, dance, music and stories. Wandering entertainers, called minstrels or troubadours, would travel from village to village providing such entertainment – particularly music – for the local people. They were paid in food and sometimes coins.
For those who preferred and could afford a more aristocratic way of life, pursuits such as fox hunting, yacht racing, billiards, theatergoing, and other forms of recreation remained popular. Public Spectacles.
For fun, children would make rag dolls and corn husk dolls to play with, wrap rocks in yarn to make balls, and even use vines or seaweed strips for jump ropes. They played games such as hide-and-seek and tug-of-war. Foot races, hopscotch, marbles, and spinning tops were also popular.
Music hall songs became very popular and people enjoyed singing along to the well- known tunes. Richer people also went to the theatre to watch ballet, opera or classical concerts. These theatres were much grander than those used for music hall. Families also enjoyed going to pantomimes.