Clocks, Cows & Constant Notifications

This week on Cockney & Son, we’re diving headfirst into the chaos of the clocks going forward… and asking the real question — does anyone actually benefit from it anymore? 

From the origins of daylight saving (cheers, William Willett) to whether it still makes any sense in 2026, we’re combining Bit of a Natter and Adam & Eve It into one big chat-and-moan session — because let’s be honest, staying positive about losing an hour is a stretch.

We also get into a proper debate with this week’s Say It Like Steve:

“Technology was meant to save time… not fill it.”

Has tech made life easier, or has it completely taken over? From phones running our lives to work following us home, it’s old school vs modern life — and neither side is holding back.

Plus, we round things off with a few questionable Bleedin’ Dad Jokes that may (or may not) leave you laughing.

So whether you love the lighter evenings, hate the clock changes, or just fancy a good old moan — stick the kettle on, you don’t wanna miss this one.

Don’t forget to follow, leave a review, and share it with someone who loves a rant as much as you do.

🎧 Cockney & Son: Two Generations, One London

New episodes every week – unfiltered chat, real opinions, and a proper bit of banter between father and son.

Got a question or topic you want my dad’s take on?

Send it over on Instagram: @twodadsinlondon 

Thanks for listening — if you enjoyed it, give us a follow, leave a rating, and share it with someone who remembers when milk came in bottles.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Cockney and son. Now don't be daft. We've got proper opinions and plenty of craft. Old school chat with the podcast twist. So stick the kettle on, you don't wanna miss.

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Cockney and son, two generations who won London. Cool blame it, governor.

SPEAKER_01 0:21

Hey everyone, and welcome back to Cockney and Sun Series 2, Episode 8. We're fast approaching that time where the clocks change. Yes. Do you know if they're going forward or backwards?

SPEAKER_02 0:31

They're going forward. Spring forward.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

Yeah? But you obviously didn't even know what day it was. No, because you was trying to arrange to come here on Tuesday.

SPEAKER_02 0:38

I did, yes. I got a bit confused.

SPEAKER_01 0:40

So I phoned up your doctor and said, Can you just pop in and make sure that he is okay?

SPEAKER_02 0:45

I was so busy the other weekend, I thought what day it was.

SPEAKER_01 0:47

Yeah? Well, let's get into it. This whole situation with the clocks. Yeah. With a little bit of this. Right, so for this bit of a nutter, I'm gonna combine the first two. Do you like my clipboard? Very professional. This was Richard's old clipboard. I found it's a bit of rusty.

SPEAKER_02 1:09

Why do these people do that nowadays?

SPEAKER_01 1:12

ASMR. ASMR. I was you don't know what that is. No, I've got clock. You don't even know what day it is. Try working on the days of the week before you worry about ASMR. Right, so this week we're talking about the clocks. Yes. And that they change. But what I've decided to do, because I know that you are probably gonna have some negative stuff to say about it, I thought we would combine a bit of a Natter and Adam and Eva into one. So it's a conversation where we don't have to remain positive for the whole first part. Because I know that you really struggle with that, don't you? What's that? Struggling not to moan about something, trying to keep it positive for at least like 10 minutes of your life. 69 years old. Can you tell me the scientific reason of why the clocks change? Scientific reasons. Yeah, why, how did it all come about?

SPEAKER_02 2:04

No idea, I haven't got a clue. But it was like something to do with the farmers or something. Right. Do you want to know? Because I've actually got it. Oh, you got it down, is it?

SPEAKER_01 2:11

Is it the farmers? Well, no. Not in initially, I don't know if this guy was a farmer. I haven't got that many facts. Okay. Okay. So it was a bloke called William Willett. Yeah. And in 1907, he was moaning. So you might have a lot in common with him. He was moaning. Because people were wasting daylight. Yeah. Because obviously the clocks never changed. So I'm guessing that makes sense because you would have just continued to have lighter mornings. I don't know. If the clocks had never changed, what was he moaning about? You're wasting daylight. Anyway, then a law, a law came in in 1916, and ever since then we've been tired. So so basically, some guy I don't know if this guy was a scientist or whoever he was. He basically said we're losing daylight. So it had nothing to do with farmers unless this guy is a farmer. So we need to delve deeper into this, which I don't know. Yeah. But now it's all done by machines. Well, obviously back then there was no machines.

SPEAKER_02 3:19

Daylight robbery. Why? Because when it's when it's all the started getting light and all that, the uh they started putting a tax on windows. Oh yeah. So people then decided with the big houses, they started bricking up some of their windows. Is that why it's so dark in your house? And that's why it says daylight robbery, see?

SPEAKER_01 3:38

Wow, well going. I love that fact. There you go. There you go, people. So back in 1907, okay. So do you think now in 2026 William still would be thinking We're wasting daylight?

SPEAKER_02 3:53

We're wasting daylight. When the clocks do go, they change. And you've got you've got that extra time to do stuff. You know, you come out of work and you know you got them few more out, you know, you've got that little bit of time's gonna get dark till nine o'clock. Yeah, no, no, I don't I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 4:07

I don't think it's true because I think Yeah, you know, you might be safer, you'd be able to see the person who's gonna rob you in the daylight. But but even if the clocks didn't change back, it would go, it would be naturally lighter. We're talking about oh it's light at nine o'clock at night. Yeah. So this William Woolett obviously didn't have kids that he had to put to bed when it's blazing sun. Yeah. I'm sure they didn't have blackout curtains then.

SPEAKER_02 4:34

No, not at all. I just painted the windows black.

SPEAKER_01 4:36

So I I don't I get it. I get that there was a purpose for it back in the day, but in 2026 it just messes with us all.

SPEAKER_02 4:44

No, what they should do is put it forward and leave it. Yeah. Be like Europe. Exactly. You know, just leave it. Just leave it as it is and then people can enjoy the enlightened.

SPEAKER_01 4:53

Do you does it affect you if you lose the hour? Not really, no. Nah? You don't feel tired. No. Jet lagged.

SPEAKER_02 5:01

No, I'll just uh you know, I'll use to it now, because been so many.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

Yeah. You've got 69 years of it. Been so many battles and forwards. I just don't see why you it's not like you would go, oh, it's a bit darker than it would be an hour if you're talking about. Yeah, no, but I'm not gonna get it.

SPEAKER_02 5:17

Yeah, sometimes sometimes when you're out and you know it's gonna start getting dark, you might just like make your way home. Yeah. But when it's lighter, you you tend to stay out more, don't you?

SPEAKER_01 5:25

No, I just go by the time. I'm leaving at nine o'clock when I mean the park.

SPEAKER_02 5:30

So you took the kids over the park and you know it's about five o'clock or something, and it's or after school, say we we didn't change the clocks when it started getting dark. You know that you could go, like you say they come home from school and they can't go out in the garden because it's dark. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:43

Well No But that hour difference is not going to be make a difference in the winter, is it? No, no, but that's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_02 5:48

If they keep it, if they didn't keep changing it and kept it I could actually see a point.

SPEAKER_01 5:53

You could go out in the garden in the winter months, couldn't they? Could it still be light, wouldn't it? Yeah. I can see how it's more effec more beneficial in the winter because obviously But they can't put the clocks back like seven hours, can they? No, no, but I mean just put them forward and leave it just labor. No point. There's no point. It doesn't work nowadays. Just leave it. Also, for those people who don't have technology that changes the clock for them, yeah. Yeah, because there used to be a time that if you forgot to do it, you might turn up to work early or late.

unknown 6:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:25

Yeah, true.

SPEAKER_01 6:26

That doesn't happen now. No, because look, you know, look. My iPhone just changes it. Yes, I know, but imagine if you weren't in a clock shop. Yeah. What about the person who has to change Big Ben? So your body clock doesn't get affected. No, not really. I think mine does. I think I actually can tell. It's easier. What uh my trick, but this is my parenting hack with the clocks, yeah. So say like the clocks go back and then you're trying to have to you're trying to put the kids back to to bed an hour early. I always go because it's a Sunday, isn't it, or whatever. Yeah. It's always a Sunday, isn't it?

SPEAKER_02 7:02

Well, the early hours are Sunday morning, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

Yeah. So we always do something crazy on that day where where we go and maybe they give them a later bedtime than they would have had normally. Yeah. So they would go out for like a ramble or something like that, or go out and do something. So when they come home, they're just tired because of the thing.

SPEAKER_02 7:19

You've only got a more couple of more years of of doing that because they're suss it out, are they?

SPEAKER_01 7:23

Yeah. Well no, I'm talking about Richard. I mean, I know that we've spoken about it before, and it's I just don't see nowadays if it helps a farmer out. But what does the how does the farmer so the cow? Yeah. Yeah. So the cow's in its pen or whatever. In its pen. Cage nowadays. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:45

And it's stall you with a sound on it.

SPEAKER_01 7:47

So the cow does absolutely nothing all day, yeah? It just stands in there, eats grass or whatever it does. Yeah. How is that gonna benefit the cow? Like how's how do you know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_02 7:59

No, I do. Well, Google it.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

So are these farmers they don't have any lighting in the in the in their own. It's all done by machine. In the milk. It's all done by all done by a machine now, isn't it? They're probably they're probably not even taking off the cows and they're set on a timer. Well, that's a Google question. I'm just saying, like, the cow's not gonna go. Why is he walking over here? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Why is the far why why is Well the cow's looking at his watch? Why is Farmer Joe coming here? He's not meant to be here for another hour. What's the matter with him? Or it'd be like this. I'll try and have a kip, yeah. What you're doing here already. Yeah. I'll try a lay in and he and he wants me to have a meal cup. I just don't think that anyone really benefits from it on the whole. Do you know what I'm saying? Yeah. Like, apart from a farmer and a cow.

SPEAKER_02 8:45

And all those people that that have restaurants and that mate down the seaside, it's only an hour. Yeah, but down the seaside, it's you know, you go down the seaside, you know you, you know, you can walk along the front and all that, and you know it's gonna be nice and light still.

SPEAKER_01 8:57

Yeah, but that hour, yeah, you're walking along the seafront, yeah, south end or wherever. Yeah, but it's eight o'clock, so it would be No, you think in the winter it's starting to get dark at what?

SPEAKER_02 9:08

Yeah, but we're not talking about the winter. No, what I'm saying. So it gets dark at quarter four. In the spring and summer, it don't get dark till about nine o'clock, you've got all the extra hours.

SPEAKER_01 9:15

Yeah, but when that hour that you've gained finishes, it doesn't go like someone switches the light off.

SPEAKER_02 9:22

No, we better get in. No, we better get back time.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

It's stupid. Absolutely stupid. Like, it's just so people can make money, and I tell you how they've made money by those clocks that I've got the kids, the sun clocks.

SPEAKER_02 9:37

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:38

Well, it's not a benefit then, is it? It's not a benefit of anyone if I'm having to spend money on these things. I just pretended to give something give you something to do. So we're gonna lose an hour. Well, we're actually we're gonna lose an hour, we're gonna feel tired all weak. Really? So, what do you think to that to our lovely listeners out there? Do you are you fed up with this daylight saving thing? Should we tell William to go and Yeah. Just enjoy the lighter evenings. That's all you have to do. But unless you you unless you're doing an activity, yeah, that is essential for it to be light outside. That's the only way it's going to be light.

SPEAKER_02 10:15

It might want you to go down to a park or something. You finish work, instead of going home, you might oh might go down to the pub. Sit outside, or I might go into the park, you know, have all that. You can see all of those parents now so excited that they get to stay out later with their kids. Everyone, isn't it? Well Yeah, well, I mean the kids I mean some parents they'd like to take the kids outside out a bit longer, and no, as you say, wear them out. Yeah, when they come back in, bedtime.

SPEAKER_01 10:44

Well, thank you for that. Great advice, the man in a pie and mash t-shirt.

SPEAKER_02 10:50

Yeah, it's like isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 10:51

What does it say? Pia mash is got to be Mansies. Yeah. What's that? That's a name.

SPEAKER_02 10:57

It's a shop, isn't it? Mansies, Pia Mash shop. Whereabouts is that? There's not many about now. One in Pekham, I think, and one in uh Sourbridge Road.

SPEAKER_01 11:05

That looks like quite a new t-shirt. Because they've gone out of business. I bet that website don't work. If there's a PR or social media manager for Mansies. Yeah, you can get you can get different colored t shirts, you can get uh tea towels, mugs. Maybe that's why they've gone out of business because they spent all their money on merchandise no one's buying apart from you. Focus on the pie and mash. Yeah. I mean I could I could easily bring out a line of merchandise. Could be good. But I wouldn't do it. There's only four mugs in the world of Cockney and Sun mugs.

SPEAKER_02 11:52

Well, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:53

Isn't there, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:55

Maybe it's a fortune. Just think in a few years' time when someone takes it on antiques road track.

SPEAKER_01 12:00

Yeah. This this who is this fella Cockney on here? Right, okay, off track, but you know, clocks going forward, great, clocks going back. If you enjoy it, great. It doesn't make sense, let's be honest. There's no scientists. Just enjoy it. Some guy back in the 1907s or whatever it is. Oh, I'm sure. Yeah. It says here, Middleton. Probably just wound everyone up. So let's change the clocks and let's wind everyone up and that and now it's still going on. That's a good pun. Wound everyone up. Yeah. Right, well, moving on. Yes. To say it like stee. Don't sugarcoat it.

SPEAKER_00 12:37

Sometimes in life, you just gotta say it like stee.

SPEAKER_01 12:42

Right, so you actually get to moan about this one. Excited. It's a statement. Just moan away. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:50

No, did we hear back from last week's one? Lady about the garden?

SPEAKER_01 12:54

No. No, okay. She sold her house. She moved to a flat. She concreted it over. She's gone on sick leaf because she got so depressed at how the state of her garden is now because you said to leave it alone. So you're ready for a statement, yeah? Go on in. Technology was meant to save time, not fill it. Do you understand that? Technology was created to save time, not fill it. Yeah. Do you understand what that means?

SPEAKER_02 13:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:27

Explain it, explain it what it means then. What does it mean? I'm not sure. Go on, tell me. So basically, technology was like created to make life easier. Yeah. But obviously it's saying that actually technology is taking up more time because people were just on five or whatever.

SPEAKER_02 13:44

That is true actually.

SPEAKER_01 13:45

Yeah. Yeah. So it's gone too far, hasn't it?

SPEAKER_02 13:47

Well it has gone too far, yeah, because it's it's taken away social skills.

SPEAKER_01 13:51

Yeah, everything's quicker.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

Everything's quicker, you don't have to do I mean you don't don't have to leave your house. You get everything delivered, your food, you can pay all your bills. I mean you uh back in the day you had to go down to the post office or bank to pay your bills and all that, to do it online now, then you've got to leave your house.

SPEAKER_01 14:07

Relaxing is actually becoming hard for the younger generation.

SPEAKER_02 14:14

They can't put the phones down.

SPEAKER_01 14:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:16

Especially I mean, you imagine like uh a lot of the schools now, they ban them, don't they?

SPEAKER_01 14:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:20

So when they get their phones, they've got to make up all that time that they've lost by bringing at school. So they're constantly on the phones. I mean I went I was on the tube on last Friday. Yeah. And you look along the you look look right along the carriage now.

SPEAKER_01 14:35

Yeah, I know, but we've had yeah, I know we've said it, but it's just it's just because then there was that photo of everyone reading newspapers.

SPEAKER_02 14:41

Yeah, that's true, but did you read the newspaper this week?

SPEAKER_01 14:44

Was there anything interesting in the newspaper?

SPEAKER_02 14:46

I did read it, yes. I did see that I I did see an article that cuts caught my eye.

SPEAKER_01 14:50

Did you? Yes. I mean, the article caught my eye, but when I saw the the lady, I didn't recognise that I didn't know who that was.

SPEAKER_02 15:00

No, that was uh that was a that was a bit of a strange picture, that one.

SPEAKER_00 15:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:04

Because it was didn't have been like her. Yeah, it was good though. It was good because there's one I won't say the line, but the one line that was in that article did make me chuckle.

SPEAKER_01 15:15

Anyway, I am not in the mood for dancing now. Work used to end. This is a statement, yeah. Work used to end, yeah, now it follows you home. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Some people just can't give up.

SPEAKER_02 15:26

Um if you're in that job that you're you you sit in front of a computer all day and you go home and sit in your own laptop or your phone.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

Because if you left at nine back in the day and you had a landline, no one can contact you.

SPEAKER_02 15:39

No, that's right.

SPEAKER_01 15:40

No one can send you an email, nobody can say so. You wouldn't actually know if you had something, you know, oh my god, that's it works.

SPEAKER_02 15:46

The only communication back then is uh the uh you want you wanted to get something quick for some telegram that I was a telegram boy.

SPEAKER_01 15:53

The issue with relaxing is so say like work, you used to have to send stuff in the post, yeah? Say like before like emails and stuff like that. So at least you know, like, oh I've sent that off. Yeah, yeah. Whereas you could exchange like 20 emails about the same situation in that.

SPEAKER_02 16:11

We get the fax machine, wouldn't it? Yeah. You know, fax machine came in that took took a lot uh from the post. And then Did you used to moan about it?

SPEAKER_01 16:19

No, no, it was we're still busy when I was fax machines taking our jobs. But this is obviously just a statement at saying that technology was there essentially to free up the time. Yeah, you see a lot of technology nowadays being creative for for for because you know, like obviously people writing stories using AI and stuff like that. Yeah, yeah. So it was meant to be to be created essentially so you could spend less time working and doing more things that you enjoy, but now it just seems to be across the board.

SPEAKER_02 16:50

It's taken over your people's lives. Some people just can't give out the phones. There was one the other day, some I was listening to LBC, you know, doing could you give up your phone for 24 hours or 72 hours and people going, Oh no, I don't know if I'll be able to do that. And you think you only the only good thing about a phone is in case of emergencies and stuff. But I mean look how tech technical the phones have got. When they first come out, you could only make a call or a text, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:13

Well, yeah, you could remember when you had to send a text message and you kept getting complaints about Morse code. Because you didn't turn the beep off. Right, hello. Did No, but that's all you could do years ago, but now you can just your your your whole life is run by the phone. Exactly. And if it weren't for technology, I wouldn't receive 20 jokes or reels or mems and all that sort of stuff. Well, it's a hard one, isn't it, technology? Because you we do need it. Yeah, I mean if you're if you're brought up on phones, yeah, you know, you know no different, do you?

SPEAKER_02 17:50

I mean you see now, you you see now two or three years old holding a phone. Yeah. You know, so they're that all they're gonna know is fun.

SPEAKER_01 17:57

It's like you know the boy sees me and Richard sending a text, an email, and then you used to see your parents seal an envelope with a wax symbol of the Middleton house. Yeah. So to recap, because we've sort of been here, there, and everywhere. Clocks. Clocks, that's stupid. We don't well, I think that personally, that doesn't need to exist. Technology, you know, there there's always gonna be technology for absolutely everything nowadays. Yeah, I mean look at all the apps you've got as well. There's like millions of them, yeah. That's what I'm saying. So that's never gonna go away. I mean it could managing it. I should imagine someone's phone is just full of apps and stuff, you know. I heard on the radio today that they are testing social media not being allowed to 16-year-olds to like 300 kids and removing a lot of their stuff. Because obviously in Australia, you can't access social media until you're 16.

SPEAKER_02 18:52

How'd you get around? But surely you can get around.

SPEAKER_01 18:54

No, no, well, you can't because of the way that it has to be downloaded.

SPEAKER_02 18:57

Did you parent do it for you?

SPEAKER_01 18:59

No, because you have to put in like face recognition and like um and uh things. So, but I actually think that's a really good idea. Yeah. I think it should be like short.

SPEAKER_02 19:07

Imagine if they'd done that over here.

SPEAKER_01 19:09

Yeah, but that's what they're testing to see how good. No, but but if they got rid of it now. Yeah. If they started it now, the generations. Yeah, yeah, well, yeah. That's a good idea, yeah, definitely. I think so. Yeah. I don't think I don't think they should let schools have phones. But but really should because I know that there's a lot, because even the boys' secondary school it says phones are not to be out, but obviously I know that they are because one of the kids that showed me around the school got a phone out while we're doing it. So I think I think what they're saying is it's not to allow to be out. But don't some schools make you lock them in there? I don't know. But they I I do think there is a way to like be able to really crack down on that.

SPEAKER_02 19:51

Yeah, of course, yeah. I mean I I'll I'll say uh real there's um schools and they they they have to put them into a lock compartment thing and only get them out after school. Yeah. I mean, r really, I mean, kids that only go to secondary school should have really have phones. Kids that go to primary schools don't need to have a phone, though.

SPEAKER_01 20:09

But I think, yeah, I don't know. We'll see how happens. I'll be able to report back soon. Yeah. After year seven. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That won't be long now, wouldn't it? With the school. Yeah. Right, okay, on that note, let's end it with a little bit of a laugh.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

Get ready to laugh. It's now time for the bleeding dad joke.

SPEAKER_01 20:28

So I feel like I won the bleeding dad joke last week.

SPEAKER_02 20:32

Oh, yeah, with that granddad go, can it?

SPEAKER_01 20:34

Yeah. Yeah. Lots of feedback about that. Oh yeah, oh yeah. Rich liked it. Um So I haven't gone as forlorn because I want you to like. Who's going first? You go first. I'll go first, okay, right. Two windmills are out in the field and one asks the other, so what kind of music do you like? Because, well, I'm a big metal fan.

SPEAKER_02 21:07

Yes. Talking of windmills. That's good. Big metal fan. Yeah, yeah, I like. Right. So as a doctor left the room after doing my uh prostrate. Who was that?

SPEAKER_01 21:28

Could have set that up a bit well. Ready? Why don't blind people ever go skydiving? I don't know. Why don't blind people go? Because it scares the hell out of the dog.

SPEAKER_02 21:46

My old granddad always said as one door opens No, as one door closes and one open. Yeah. Lavity bloke, terrible cabinet maker. Let's hope they get better.

SPEAKER_01 21:58

Well there we go for episode eight of Sorry if we've upset you if you are a farmer or a cow or somebody who loves technology and or somebody who enjoys jokes. Tried our best. Next week's episode will be pre-recorded. It is our Easter episode. Yeah. Because I will be AFK. AFK. Away from keyboard. Oh wow. I'll be on holiday. Are you again? Yeah. So I'm excited. You like the new Judy Chalmers?

SPEAKER_02 22:29

Always away, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:30

We'll see you next week for a little bit of a channel. Middle name's Tui, isn't it? No, that's a flying one. You need to call me Euro or something like that. Enjoy those early them lovely light evenings, people.

SPEAKER_02 22:45

Mew. Get out there with your vitamin D. Mr.

SPEAKER_01 22:48

That's it for this week's Cockney and Sun. If you had a laugh, hit follow or subscribe. Whatever buttons in front of you. Leave us a review if you're feeling fancy, and don't forget to share with someone who loves a bit of a moan. We're on Instagram and TikTok at Cockney and Sun, so come say hello. Thanks again if you've made it this far, and until next time, cheers from the old man and the not so young one.