Next time someone tells you that “things aren’t what they used to be” in the context of harping on about the good old days, you can remind them that up until the late 18th century visiting Bethlem Royal Hospital to poke fun at the patients was considered entertainment - this is where the word “bedlam” originates from.
The inmates, which suffered from a range of mental health conditions, were kept in squalor as there was very little respect for people who were considered to be “mad”. Thankfully public visiting was outlawed in 1770, and although the hospital has re-opened to the public it’s now a museum containing artworks and other resources relating to the history of psychiatric healthcare in the UK.
