Housewife of the Year

It was a different time! The female contestants on an Irish TV show with an iconic gentleman host look back on a beige-coloured chapter in TV history. More than entertaining kitsch, and with some delightfully quick-witted ladies in the winning role.

How do you feel about motherhood? How old were you when you got married? What is your favourite food? These were some of the golden questions that gentleman host Gay Byrne asked his female guests on the TV show ‘Housewife of the Year’, held annually in Ireland between 1968 and 1995. Ultra-Catholic and conservative women with permed hairstyles and wearing sacrament dresses were judged on their skills in cooking, caring and basic household management. Then came parameters such as personality, humour, interests, community spirit and, last but not least: looks. The winner, typically in their 30s, could go home to their 12 children with £300 in their pocket and enough kitchenware to make their neighbours jealous. ‘Housewife of the Year’ is a surreal piece of television history that, along with some of the previous contestants, explores the shocking gap between what was once celebrated on TV and the reality of women’s lives in Ireland at the time.

源自：https://cphdox.dk/film/housewife-of-the-year/