Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
With no mains drainage, the small Scottish village of Auchmithie is a place where residents don’t have their own private toilets. For years, anyone without a home-made "thunderbox" on their property, relied on a dark, drafty communal privy, where buckets were used to flush.
Now, a brand-new public convenience has been built, that includes flushing toilets, separate sections for men and women, and individual keys so the villagers can do their business in peace and comfort.
Nationwide's Jack Pizzey visits to find out what the locals make of their new loo, and to discover what life is like when spending a penny also means going for a walk.
Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 26 March, 1970.
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With no mains drainage, the small Scottish village of Auchmithie is a place where residents don’t have their own private toilets. For years, anyone without a home-made "thunderbox" on their property, relied on a dark, drafty communal privy, where buckets were used to flush.
Now, a brand-new public convenience has been built, that includes flushing toilets, separate sections for men and women, and individual keys so the villagers can do their business in peace and comfort.
Nationwide's Jack Pizzey visits to find out what the locals make of their new loo, and to discover what life is like when spending a penny also means going for a walk.
Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 26 March, 1970.
You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults.
Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1
You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - bbc.co.uk/archive
