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Was it simply "The Greed Decade" as many like to claim? I think not - the '80s saw the emergence of yuppies, but also Red Wedge, the Greenham Common Peace Women, and increasing concern for the environment. It may be convenient to scapegoat the '80s as the cause of all known ills, but the reality of the decade was far different - absolute bedlam, as Right fought Left, idealism fought corporate ambition. The election of Ronald Reagan as American President in 1980, and his second victory in 1984, had a far more decisive effect on the international political landscape than the three successive general election victories of UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1979, 1983 and 1987.
Fashion came fast and furious - deelyboppers, ra ra skirts with lycra leggings, Swatch watches, pixie boots, jelly shoes, shoulder pads, blonde highlights, hair gel, hair mousse, men in pink, goths, shell suits, New Romantics, donkey jackets, leg warmers...
Musically, the 1980s saw the beginnings of House Music, the exciting and still evolving world of synths taking centre stage, the evolvement of Rap music into the fully-fledged Hip Hop scene, Band Aid and Live Aid, great Indie, startling Acid House, and Raves...
At the amusement arcades, Space Invaders ran rampant and we first met Pac-Man...
And there was so much more! The decade truly had something for everyone - and provided a welcome escape for a while from the long-running and boring saga of flared trousers as fashion, begun back in the 1960s!
It was a brilliant decade for telly - bringing us such wonders as A Very Peculiar Practice, Inspector Morse, Spitting Image, Hot Metal, The BeiderbeckeTrilogy and Edge of Darkness.
The 1980s also saw the creation of The Simpsons, Twin Peaks, and other wonderful (often groundbreaking) American TV shows like Kate & Allie, Cheers, The Golden Girls, Married... With Children, The Cosby Show, Roseanne, and Hill Street Blues.
The '80s gave us some wonderful UK TV ads. Remember Ted Moult advertising double glazing at the Tan Hall Inn with "Fit The Best - Everest"? Remember the Weetabix gang? Remember the Scotch video tape skeleton ("Re-record, not fade away"?). Remember the romantic yuppie couple in the coffee ads? And what about "Lotta Bottle"?
In fact, the '80s totally transformed our telly viewing, bringing us Channel 4 and Sky TV.
The '80s were a fascinating time for science and technology! Video recorders became widespread, the Sony Walkman arrived, the first hand-held mobile phones hit the streets (expensive analogue bricks!), the ZX Spectrum, Game Boy and the World Wide Web (Thanks, Sir Tim Berners-Lee!) were invented, the first computer mouse eeked its way into our homes and Sir Alec Jeffreys accidentally discovered DNA fingerprinting. It's all here!
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12 comments:
My memories of the 80's... so many to choose from in addition to your list. Putting aside television and Music this is what comes to my mind looking back.
Vinyl Records
Walkmans
The changes in currency - no more 1/2 pences, the Twenty pence introduced, the £1 note giving way to the coin, coinage in general getting smaller (remember the disgust at the new tiddly-wink 5p pieces?)....
Communism finally falling
Falkland Islands War
Video recorders and VHS rental etc.
'Video Nasties'
Novely multicolor straws (remember those crazy twirly ones?)
Farah pants, Fred Perry pullovers.
First Satellite TV
Miners stike
Poll Tax Riots
The rise of Alternative comedians (hated them generally but their impact was undeniable)
Designer stubble
Ethiopia Famine and subsequent Charity pleas
Dungeons and Dragons roleplaying
AIDS
BMX bikes and freestyling
Acid House and the drug scene surrounding it
Maggie Thatcher....
So much to list! I also forgot: donkey jackets, Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, Super Mario Brothers, bulldog clips, neon clothing, Channel 4, Cabbage Patch Dolls, Hip Hop, body popping, VCRs, Ronald Reagan, Spitting Image, Live Aid, Roland Rat, Gilbert The Alien, Postman Pat, Danger Mouse, Henry's Cat... Fortunately, all of these things are featured on this blog!
I voted for deelyboppers and shoulder pads, but you missed out pixie boots, Walkmans, ghetto blasters, break dancing, acid house, stone and acid washed jeans. I would have voted for all those as well!
You can considered them voted for now!
Poll Tax riots were 1990, not 1980s.
ET should of been included - "ET phone home!" And you were daft to leave out Hip Hop.
Indeed I was! But you've just put in a vote for them. Thank you.
Stone and Acid washed jeans.
Boy George. How could you forget Boy George?
I think I'll do an Ultimate '80s Icons Part 2 poll when this one is over!
No Space Invaders and Hip Hop? Tut tut!
RUBIK'S CUBE! DONKEY KONG! SUPER MARIO BROTHERS! SHELL SUITS! POWER DRESSING! SPITTING IMAGE! JELLY SHOES! HOUSE MUSIC! HIP HOP! ACID HOUSE! SYNTH POP! MTV! CHANNEL FOUR! SKY TV!
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