Margaret remembers moving from Copnor to a three-bedroom council house in Portchester before starting junior school.

Margaret meets Denise, the confident girl from two doors down who becomes her first friend in Portchester.

Margaret starts at Castle Lane Junior School and relies on Denise while she learns the unfamiliar routines.

Margaret remembers Decimal Day through the conversion card on the kitchen table and her family’s different responses to the new money.

Margaret and Denise spend Saturday mornings considering records they can rarely afford, while Peter treats musical taste as a test.

A reconstructed diary entry about Margaret’s final day at secondary school and the uncertain gap before her first job begins.

Margaret buys a second-hand portable typewriter so she can practise for her RSA typing qualification at home.

Joan continues using buses on her own terms while Margaret notices the practical adjustments her mother refuses to call help.