Cathy and Clare Play the Blame Game
As mentioned last week, I want to focus on the second way that Jackie magazine presented mental health in what could be considered a problematic way. Similarly, to the representation of anorexia, or dieting disease from last weeks’ blog post, other issues including the red lights for domestic abuse, depression and anxiety were featured heavily in the Cathy & Claire feature. However, when the issues were generic friendship or boyfriend problems the tone of their advice was loaded with blame placing a strong emphasis on these issues being the fault of the girl writing in looking for a solution to the troubling feelings of growing up. This letter “Friends or Crowd?” suggests that the letter was unnecessary and that Thelma clearly knew how to deal with the problem. This tone is evident in all of the letters on this problem page (except the one which I will discuss below) where Cathy & Claire bluntly remind girls that these issues are not the be-all and end-all and will sort themselves out with some common sense solutions.
On the other hand, there are times when Cathy & Claire (it just doesn’t feel right writing Cathy & Claire since finding out they were in fact JUST ONE WOMAN) were kind and took the necessary steps in providing guidance to young people in distress. There is a clear line between what was considered ‘teenage emotions’ as mentioned above and genuine mental distress which needed addressing with guidance provided to the young person.
This letter from 3rd September 1977 “I’ve got to leave home” describes a girl’s issues following her mother’s death. She feels that her father now blames her for this and needing to care for her young sister and do all the housework means she can’t leave for nursing college (p.35). There is also a mention of issues that a variety of girls may be feeling from a two-timing boyfriend to having no money to go out with her friends. What strikes me the most about this particular letter is how at the end she writes “I expect you’ll just tell me to stop feeling sorry for myself” suggesting that the readers were aware of the typical stance the magazine took towards issues and that she was taking an emotional risk pouring her heart out in this way.
Cathy & Claire’s response is vastly different to their other replies writing with kindness and empathy firmly stating that they would never tell her to stop feeling sorry for herself as she’s had some pretty hard times. Their advice suggests she puts herself first as this will result in her happiness and that everyone will be able to cope without her. Throughout their answer, they ask the reader questions including why not think again? And talk it all over, won’t you? Giving her practical ideas to follow to ensure she finds happiness again and can get her life back on track.
The two tones in replies, as well as the physical space and image given to the I’ve Got To Leave Home letter versus the other letters created a dichotomy between issues that were to be taken seriously and issues that weren’t really seen as issues at all.
Help I Need Somebody
Cathy and Claire were very fond of a helpline, as shown in the above letter and on this guide to solving all your problems. This allowed them to seem like they cared about the issues of young people whilst pushing the responsibility onto other organisations. Personally, I do not see the issue with this, as Cathy and Claire as I’ve previously mentioned was just one woman with no medical or psychiatric training. This week I’ve read this article on The Guardian website, whilst researching the proposed mental health education in schools. The article highlights the difficulties of teachers who specialise in one particular subject teaching wellbeing issues including consent and mental health. Schools wouldn’t dream of asking an English teacher to teach rugby so, why is the same expected of PSHE? Therefore, when we criticise Cathy & Claire and in turn Jackie magazine more broadly for not highlighting or attempting to tackle wellbeing problems we must remember that these people were writers and editors, not medical professionals. Why would we expect a writer and a young writer at that to be able to single-handily provide the correct and necessary advice on a multitude of wellbeing needs? In this context, a page of contact this helpline, or we will send you this leaflet out seems a lot safer than ill-informed advice.
(Jackie, June 11th 1977, pp.22-23)
I think the main thing I’ve learnt since starting this internship is how important context is. I have found the personal and intimate things the readers were writing in about to be startling and so out of the ordinary. However, for the time, Cathy & Claire were all these girls had, except for a family doctor who probably was not going to listen to issues of cheating boys, bad friends and bone-idle fathers. This documentary Jackie: A Girl’s Best Friend (I can only find half of on YouTube but the whole thing is on Box of Broadcasts if you have access) explains how important Cathy & Claire were in more detail.
By Rosie Steele.
ljmuarchives.wordpress.com 
I focused on the Eric’s collection and selected a number of tickets and membership cards (Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Clash, Iggy Pop, Prince Far I, Talking Heads and Deaf School to name a few) The club also produced a number of flyers for upcoming events and club nights; as full dates do not always appear it was difficult to narrow down the selection for a representative sample. The collection also contains photographs, both professional promotional photographs for bands and musicians with amateur photographs showing performances and groups of friends at the club. While searching for photographs I found a file of newspaper cuttings, including one from The Daily Post reporting on the closure of this iconic club and featuring photographs of the subsequent protest on the streets of Liverpool City Centre. Finally, from the England’s Dreaming archive, I selected a number of fanzines that were produced in Liverpool in the late 19, particularly
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