This story is a tragicomedy, I can see it as part of a sitcom.
My mother's mother died in 1933 when my mum was 4, her grandmother Mary Ann moved into the family home to look after my mum and her brother. Now fast forward to June 1944 when my grandfather my mother's dad remarried.
At that time Mary Ann was 76 and had been running the family home for 10 years. The second wife brought her mother Lucy age 81 to live with the family. My mother was then just turned 15. It became her responsibility to look after, fetch and carry for the 2 old ladies.
They did not like each other and could never agree on anything.
My mother described a typical afternoon like this; Mary Ann would say I'm cold, get me a shawl, Lucy said It's really hot in here, please open the window.
Then Lucy would say, I would love a cup of tea and a biscuit. 20 minutes later when the tea would be according to Mary Ann undrinkable, she would ask for a cup of tea and a piece of cake. My mother also shared a bedroom with these 2 old ladies and a bed with Mary Ann.
Bedtime routines involved disagreements about light on, light off, more or less blankets needed, hot water bottles too hot, too cold, window open or closed, blackout curtains closed correctly or not and, and .....
And this was also during WW2 with rationing and blackout regulations in effect.
