[emeritus]

When I was a child in post-war East London, the upstairs flat next door only had gas lights in the living room and the windowless passage between the living room and the bedrooms. The kitchen, WC ( unusually inside, considering the 1880's construction date), and the two bedrooms were lit by free-standing oil lamps or candles. Apparently the old lady who had been the tenant in the 1930's, when the local council still owned the power station they had built, and were wiring up for free anyone who wanted an electricity supply, had declined their offer. If mum knew she wouldn't be in when school finished, I used to stay with the neighbour (the daughter of the long-deceased old lady) until mum got home. She had a radio, but I don't remember any details. I remember dad telling me that there used to be gas-powered HT battery eliminators, no doubt using rows of bimetallic strips.