More than 50 years ago, a Scottish newspaper called The Sunday Post started a little column where readers, usually women, could write in with tips for running a household. We recently rediscovered these in our archives, and have been republishing them as a series of books; the tips are often funny, sometimes delightfully dated and dubious, occasionally even useful! But they’re always fascinating, as a capsule of social history, forgotten knowledge, gender expectations and more.

Welcome, then, to the Pass It On podcast, where we really dig into all that! Connie is the host – the modern equivalent of the generation who wrote into Pass It On – and she’s joined by the author of the books, Steve, who’s of a generation to remember these tips in use. Between them in age is Chris, and though the tips themselves are our starting point, they're just an excuse to explore changing attitudes to housekeeping, gender equality, privilege, thrift, throwaway culture, and more – we hope you enjoy it whatever age you are or wherever in the world you live, and that you subscribe now to join us as we discover, talk and learn! 

As a special thank you for listening to the podcast, you can get 20% off the Pass It On books themselves – stuffed with thousand of tips! – at dcthomsonshop.co.uk, using the discount code ‘podcast’ at checkout; that code is valid till 28 August 2019. Let us know what you think of the show at twitter.com/ThePassItOnPod or facebook.com/PassItOnTips, and if you know anyone who’d enjoy the podcast as much as you do – pass it on!