Over the last 40 years, technology has developed with dizzying speed.
But how has technology changed us?
How has it transformed our homes?
What has it done to our families?
To find out, the Sullivan-Barnes family are taking part in a unique experiment.
They've been stripped of all their modern technology.
Their own home has been turned into a time machine.
What on earth have they done with our kitchen?
Already they've lived through the digital wilderness of the 1970s.
It's black and white.
They're fast-forwarding through the years at the rate of one a day.
Now they're entering the ''80s.
Can modern kids get to grips with prehistoric electronics?
Wait! Why can't you be more patient? Nothing ever works.
And will the ''80sbring them labour-saving must-haves or time-wasting boys' toys?
Ha-ha! I've got it working.
Has progress always been for the better?
Has it fulfilled our electric dreams?
# We'll always be together however far it seems
# We'll always be together, together in electric dreams. #
For one household in Reading, it's still the 1970s.
But not for much longer.
And that's a relief for some of them.
I have to say, the technology's been pretty poor.
For self-confessed gadget freak, Adam,
the ''80s have got to be better than the decade he's just lived through.
What a total waste of time!
What on earth were they thinking?
Though mum Georgie's faced challenges too,
she feels the simpler life of the '70s had its upside.
We've really spent quite a lot of time round the table as a family.
That's partly because the kids haven't been busy with their usual electronic gadgets.
Adam's daughter, Steff, and Georgie's children,
Hamish and Ellie, have no idea what lies ahead for them in the 1980s.
Nor does two-year-old Jude.
Not surprising really. Even the eldest wasn't born until 1995. I don't know what to expect really.
I hope our '80s lifestyle doesn't mean that everybody's got massive distractions.
Can their new found closeness survive the coming onslaught of '80s electronics?
Elsewhere in Reading, the family's very own technical support team are assembling vintage '80s equipment.
# It was acceptable in the '80s...#
Gia Milinovic is a technology writer with a lifelong passion for computing.
This is when things get very exciting for me.
Obviously, this is the first time that computers make it into the home.
There's loads to choose from.
They may cause the family some problems, however,
because they're not quite as easy to use as modern computers.
Tom Wrigglesworth is in charge of all audio and communications devices.
It's going to be a busy decade for him.
In the 1980s, consumer electronics were getting smaller, more personal and more portable.
It meant, for the first time, you could live in a world of your own.
To put it all in context, Dr Ben Highmore
is a sociologist who specialises in the history of domestic technology.
This technology gets sold to people as being convenient, labour-saving.
How labour-saving was it?
As they prepare '80s equipment to send into the family home, the team face a constant challenge.
This era's technology often went wrong.
When it broke, it was hard to fix.
# We are family... #
The family's been dressed up for the '80s.
They're about to find out how their house has been similarly transformed.
For many people in this decade, home became increasingly important, as more time and money was spent there.
Oh, wow!
The digital age has arrived.
As the new Conservative government exhorted Britons
to buy their houses, Laura Ashley was telling us how to decorate them.
Very tasteless really. It's just...
The whole flowery stuff just drives me bonkers.
Though they're marching into the digital future, their decor's heading in the other direction.
This cod-historical style was nostalgic for less high-tech times.
It looks a lot like a granny or more a great-aunt or something.
I'd agree with youon that one. Look at that! Is that an answer machine?
In 1980, Britain's phone system was still run by the Post Office.
Many people had only ever seen an answering machine on the Rockford Files.
'Hello, family. Welcome to your new house. I hope you like the decor.
'I hope you like the floor and drapes.
'Good luck with all the technology we've supplied you with,
'including the answerphone, which you've clearly found and mastered.'
'See you soon, bye.'
And a really nice stereo. Look at that!
It's got all sorts. A complete leap of technology, isn't it?
This is proper separates hi-fi.
This is more like it.
'80s appliances were less likely thantheir predecessors to be hidden away behind the doors of cabinets.
The latest technology was a status symbol to be proudly displayed.
Look how much thinner it is now!
It was a massive thing, wasn't it?
I hope we have more channels than we did last time.
I don't think you'll get another channel until 1982, Steff.
It's nice to have extra space, to spread out a bit more.
For a decade when building house extensions became common, the family have more space.
In the '70s, this was the living room.
Now, a lounge has been created next door, it's a set-aside dining area.
It's a little bit of a status thing, isn't it?
You can impress people in here.
The kitchen's no bigger and still a long way from high-tech chic.
There has been some progress with the white goods.
This is a fridge and freezer.Yeah, we have a freezer inside the house.
Wow! A ceramic hob, Adam.
They were really difficult to clean.
Go, go, go!
Upstairs it's all change.
Oh, my God! Look at that.
How completely cheesy is that?
We've got an upstairs phone, darling.
You can make private phone calls now.
We've come from a decade where there's been nothing private about the phone.
It's right in the middle of the house.
Do you like the style of the phone?
Yeah, I like it.
It's very girlie.
The only bit of masculinity I can see in the house is that hi-fi.
That feels really rugged and manly.
Oh, my goodness!
Ellie and Steff's room isn't exactly macho either.I love it.
During the '80s, kids started to spend more time in their bedrooms.
It's going to freak me out. How horrible.
There was now more to keep them entertained upstairs.
Hey, look, we've got a tape player.
We didn't have any technology in our old room in the '70s.
Hamish's room is littered with electronic toys.
During the early '80s recession, much of Britain couldn't afford technology like this.
Families with disposable income were increasingly spending it on their children.
I think 1980s girls should go and be playing in their room with their scary dolls and ponies.
What are you doing?Nothing!
It is not your personal property.
The other male of the family is also marking his territory.
I am absolutely convinced that the man of the house would have gone out and bought himself a decent hi-fi.
The children of the house would not have been allowed near this
kind of hi-fi kit because it would have been so expensive.
I would be.You might be!
I would be.You would be. I'm going to leave you to it.
Let me know when it's not working.
Oh, please God, make me be able to make it work.
It's not working, girls.
No, it's just a button we need to press.
That needs to be on. Come on, you stupid thing.
Everything's on.
MUSIC STARTS Ah!
# I said upside down you're turning me... #
Mum said to let you know it was working.
Good.I'm glad you managed to work it out!
Don't touch it again without my permission.
Back at the workshop, the tech team are preparing their first delivery.
Microwave ovens are now found in over 90% of British homes.
# Atomic... #
But in 1980, only 6% of households had one.
A basic microwave then cost over 30 times more in real terms.
Yet that wasn't the main reason they hadn't caught on.
There was a real fear around them in the beginning of the '80s.
It was a slow and difficult take up even though the technology was available from the mid-70s.
The radiation at the heart of microwave cookery sounded uncomfortably similar
to radioactivity for many consumers, at a time of widespread nuclear paranoia.
'Today, many scientists are worried that the safety levels aren't good enough.'
This fallacy was encouraged by a widely seen television programme.
Microwaves can kill a person,
for example, if you have the intensity required to cook something, you could cook a person.
I was literally baked in a microwave oven.
There's a host of unknown consequences including cancer, birth defects, things of this sort.
UK microwave sales plummeted immediately after the documentary aired.
Potential purchasers were particularly anxious
that radiation would somehow escape through the oven's walls or door.
I suggest we give them this - a microwave leakage detector.
Knowing that the safety fears eventually proved groundless,
the tech team dispatch the oven to the house.
Gor, it's heavy!
The family's challenge is to use their delivery as a household would have done in 1980.
At that time, microwaves were being sold as a time-saving replacement for the traditional oven.
So, we've got to do a menu for tonight created entirely with the microwave oven.
An exciting prospect for anybody about to embark on it.
But first, following commonplace advice in 1980, the family makes sure the oven won't cookthem.
If it gets into the red, run for your life!
I've heard before it's going to be harmful standing in front of the microwave.
Who told you that?You.
Because I heard that when I was first using microwaves, so, I probably just passed on the big fib.
It's fine. What's all the fuss about?
There might be meals that you could do quite nicely.
Many cookbooks were published at the time dedicated solely to the new art of microwave cuisine.
They promised food which not only cooked much faster but also tasted better.
Some of my dinner guests have exclaimed that my microwave
cooked vegetables are the best they've ever tasted.
What are we making for dinner then?
Roast chicken in the microwave.
Even the most evangelical cook books had to admit microwaves couldn't brown meat or poultry.
They suggested slavering your roast in ketchup, gravy mix or paprika.
It's to give it a bit of colour to try to persuade yourself it looks a bit more
something akin to the colour bird you're used to eating from an oven.
Roast. So I guess that's the fellow.
Of course, only one dish at a time can fit into the microwave.
None of the trimmings Georgia's preparing can begin cooking
till the chicken's completed its 40 minute spin.
Hello, chicken.
It looks like fake tan that's had a bit of time sweating on the dance floor.
Microwaves were even recommended for baking, so making puddings should be a piece of cake.
Wow!
That is brilliant. Look!
It's good being able to see it, isn't it?
Only when every single dish has had its moment in the oven, can the family finally have their dinner.
Is that nice, Jude?
Delicious.
I looked at my watch at 6.20pm and thought, 40 minutes, brilliant, we'll be eating at 7.
8.52pm on my digital watch.
Nearly 9 o'clock.
Let's be honest, throwing a chicken in the oven with a few roast potatoes is
at least as easy and probably less bother.
I'm surprised this actually tastes, if you're not eating the skin, absolutely fine.
Not as nice as the oven but it's not horrible.
It is better than I thought it would be.
Though the cake looks the business, the proof of the pudding traditionally lies elsewhere.
Looks like it's a stale cake. A hint of radiation.
Rock solid.Almost like it's not cooked evenly all the way through.
Classic microwave cooking really, where it tends to heat one part of the dish more than another.
The family won't be chucking out their regular oven just yet.
Right in the middle!
The kids end their first day in the '80s by settling down in front of the new TV.
There's one novelty waiting for them.
It's massive.It's huge. Is it heavy?
It's quite heavy.It's quite heavy.
Like a mobile phone. Hello.
'I have only one thing to say,
'you turn if you want to.
'The lady's not for turning.'
'This is another wrong type. The links are far too fine, the hair gets through...'
Since only 2% of households had video recorders in 1980,
this was as much control over the TV as most people had.
With a new day comes a new year
And a new delivery from the tech team.
An increasing amount of technology in the '80s was designed to entertain us...
This is Jude's one.
..no matter how young.
It says spell, A.
Speak & Spell cost £120 in today's money
but sold well because parents could be persuaded it was educational.
For the older kids, the primitive ancestors
of the world's best-selling hand-held electronic games.
That's Nintendo.I didn't think they'd be around in the 1980s.
I don't get what you're supposed to do.
It's not very good compared to the games in 2009 but since we don't have that, it's good enough.
Hamish quickly figures out the benefits of having pocket-sized tech.
It's mine.
It belongs to me. Nobody else has the right to play it.
Dad's new toy would have cost nearly £300 in today's money.
A Sony Walkman, look!
Look how big that is!
For the same amount in 2009, he could by two MP3 players with room for 60,000 songs.
Solid state.
Lovely.
A new Polaroid.
They're all rapidly silenced by their individual gizmos.
Even Jude.
Where are you going?
# I like tall speakers
# If they've music they're wired for sound
# Walking about with a head full of music
# Cassette in my pocket and I'm going to use it
# Stereo out on the streets... #
Sony launched the world's first personal stereo in the dying months of the '70s.
The designers initially worried it was anti-social,
so early Walkmans were fitted with two head phone sockets.
# Power from the needle to the plastic... #
As it turned out, we all loved being cut off from the world around us.
Soon, every other manufacturer brought out their own version of the Walkman.
It's so much better than having nothing.
Having something like this to take my mind away from the boredom of it is a must.
I find it difficult.
I don't think I'd do as much exercise without some entertainment.
It's not one of those things you need to have but it sure is nice to have.
In the decade where Margaret Thatcher would claim there was no such thing as society,
the family are all ready enjoying technology they don't have to share.
In the '70s, you'd like play together rather than playing on your own or something.
Now, because they've brought in this kind of thing and tape players,
you can go off on your own.
It's good to have your own like a kind of bubble and you can do what
you want really, instead of all being together at the same time, which kind of gets a bit annoying.
While most of the economy was deep in recession, British computing was a miraculous exception.
A manufacturing industry that wasn't sacking everyone.
If it's got a keyboard, a manual and computer written on it, it'll sell.
That's the word around the exploding market for personal or home computers
that simply plug into a television set.
We're the world's largest producer of computers. We make more than the whole nation of Japan put together.
Technological innovation had met '80s entrepreneurialism.
The perfect mix for a leader who was a science graduate as well as a free-market evangelist.
Prime Minister, this is a small computer.
The Sullivan-Barnes family are going to experience micro computer mania,
so the tech team needs to check-up on the choice available in 1982.
Gia's come to meet Simon Webb from the National Museum of Computing.
We've got about 3,000 items in the collection.
From this vast array, they select a few models of the right vintage - some faded rapidly into obscurity.
There's a Dragon there, Dragon 32.
A Welsh company produced this.
Others, however, found their way into millions of homes.
What made a machine successful was the availability of software.
And this is where machines like the Spectrum sort of won out because
there were a huge number of software titles available for it.
Spectrum's main British rival was made by Acorn.
Although it cost three times as much, it had heavyweight backing.
The BBC branded it and the Government paid for one to go into every school in Britain.
So, I suppose the main issue with early '80s computers was that none of them were compatible.
That's right. This is what really was unsustainable.
Everybody doing their own thing. It wasn't until the IBM PC really
established a standard that all these machines started sort of dying out.
Navigating a path through such incompatible hardware was often tricky.
But the Sullivan-Barnes family would have to make this tough choice, just as early '80s consumers did.
Gia's set up a computer fair for them.
This is the astonishing new ZX Spectrum.
Full eight colours, sound generation, high resolution graphics.
High resolution!
All of these machines had much less memory and power than a modern mobile phone at a much higher price.
Even the cheapest Spectrum cost over £300 in today's money.
The model the BBC kept plugging would have set you back a whopping 900 quid for 32K.
Gia's invited some guests to help the family decide.
Simon Munnery is now a professional comedian.
In the '80s, he published software for the ZX Spectrum.
It still works.
How do you stop it?
Patrick Bossett preferred the BBC Micro.
He wrote a book about programming when he was a teenager,
as a follow-up to his best seller, You Can Do The Cube.
You're a whizz-kid in this area. What's happening here?
You're controlling a car - it's a race track.
Then you've crashed.
I think you should buy the BBC computer because you'll have
a lot of fun out of it. It's got tremendous games.
When you get bored with playing the games, there's so much more you can do beyond it.
Things like word processor and good software just for doing letters and business stuff.
I recommend this, Sinclair ZX Spectrum.
Partly because it's cheap and so many people have it.
There are so many people out there writing games for it.
The Spectrum's very good fun for games. It's effectively a toy.
The BBC computer has the stench of school about it.
Most of the games are fun with counting or,
isn't geography nice? That sort of thing.
Much better to stick with Sinclair, have fun and let education worry about itself.
Simon's Spectrum is definitely sounding cooler but Patrick wins back
the family's attention by demonstrating some of his old programming skills.
Then when you tell it to run that...
Wow!
What he's written is basic in both senses of the word.
It's enough to intrigue the kids.
It's simple stuff but it's worth a go.
All right, guys! I've brought you here to choose one computer.
Which one do you want to choose? BBC.
Which one?BBC.
It's your decision. >
I was going to save the BBC actually.
I'm really surprised because in the '80s, kids really just wanted the Spectrum.
It was kind of seen as being a bit swotty to have the BBC Micro.
Look at Hamish! He's not even paying attention to this.
He's just programming.
It's got games and word processing as well and you can print things off or something.
And Hamish quite likes... What was it?
Processing, I think it's called.
But a home computer is not what everyone in the house wants.
Georgie's worried that kids will spend as much time on it as they do on their modern PCs.
I guess it depends how capable the computer is.
If it's got computer games, I think that will be
the first start down the slippery slope to the kids regressing back to the naughties.
Everything's just fine as it is.
Do you want to get it in and we'll set it up?
Where do you think it should go?
In my bedroom. I wouldn't not let you play on it in my bedroom.
No, it's not going in your bedroom. No question of it going in your bedroom.
I'd like it in the spare room.We've got to put it somewhere everybody can use it.The spare room.
It won't fit on that desk. Why can't it be on there?
Because I want to be able to sit and relax in this room without having a computer here.
There's enough gadgets in this room.
The decision is thespare room, right?Yeah.
That's the data loading device.
And a load of software, which is cool. An instruction manual.
We haven't got a monitor, have we? Definitely need a monitor.
Call the tech team.
Hi, it's Hamish.
We need a monitor for the computer.
The tech team have to break the news that the average family in 1982 plug the computer into the TV.
OK then. OK, thanks. Bye.
A dedicated monitor then cost more than most computers.
Mum, they said you have to plug it in to the TV.
Stop there. No, no.
You'll have to take it back then.
You can unplug it and put it in the cupboard when you don't use it.
No.
But that's not an option.
I'd rather you put the TV upstairs.
In my room?No.
Absolutely no.
I think we should have a computer.
I think it's relatively easy to unplug and plug.
It is. It's literally just like plug, pull out the cord.
It's not like there's anything to watch on the television, is there?
I think my vote's quite clear, so I'll let you vote.
Do we have the computer down here or do we take the TV upstairs
to the computer and don't have a TV down here?
The TV is staying downstairs.
The sitting room's quickly taken over by the boys' new toy.
Right, shall we do the typical boy thing and just plug it in or shall we read the guide?
I'm not particularly interested to watch the computer being installed.
It has to be in the sitting room. I'm not very pleased about it but I'm resigned to it.
That's how it's going to be.
We won't be playing it.
Because Hamish and dad will be dominating it.
And dad will say, "The man of the house would normally have the computer."
Back!How was school?Good.
Hamish can't wait to show the computer off to his school friend, Dan.Put that there.
Since it's not allowed to stay out overnight, that means setting up the hardware all over again.
Look! It's a masterpiece.
The common belief in the early '80s was that to use computers, everyone would need to learn programming.
Instead, by the time these teenagers were born,
many tasks required little more than the click of a mouse.
Wait, wait!
Yet, surprisingly, Hamish is more excited by the prehistoric micro
than any of the technology he encountered in the '70s.
One, and then press return.
COMPUTER PLAYS TUNE
Ah, yeah.
Its a bit boring!
Like her mum, Ellie can't see the point.
Zero, zero...
I have no idea what they're doing.
Anyway. Sound.
AU,1.
COMPUTER PLAYS TUNE
Electronics weren't just found in the home in the early '80s.
They were saturating every aspect of popular culture.
DOORBELL CHIMES
Good evening, Ellie.
Good evening, Steff.So, 1983's delivery from the tech team
is the technology which soundtracked the era - the synthesiser.
It means nothing to me, this.
So, I've got a couple of chaps
outside I'd like you to meet who will be able to explain a lot more how it works. Just give me one second.OK.
Yes, playing live tonight in Adam and Georgie's dining room, the keyboard players from one of
the most successful synth pop groups of the decade.
All right, family. It's Chris Cross and Billy Currie from Ultravox.
No! These guys were our idols.
Absolutely gobsmacked by that.
Though Adam was a huge fan, they don't mean as much if you weren't even born at the time.
In 1983, we started doing bass sounds like...
You know, that kind of thing. But with a drum machine, it was so new and sounded so exciting.
Do you recognise that?That, I do.
Ultravox broke new ground, not only with their synthesised sound, but also with their visuals.
As well as ostentatious pop videos, the '80s brought the world
thesatellite network to show them on.MTV.
# This means nothing to me
# Oh, Vienna. #
We made our own videos.
And it was really new.
Our music was quite visual.
There was a real big shift in how records were promoted.
And these guys made some great videos.
So you kids have got a challenge for this decade.
You've got to make your own pop video.
With what?Exactly. We haven't got a camera.
Not yet you haven't. It's only 1983.
By the end of the decade, I will give you enough things to make your own pop video.
The good thing in the '80s was everyone used to mime. LAUGHTER
It's so surreal having two absolute '80s music icons in our house.
Sounds like Indian.
Ellie gradually started to catch on what a big, big deal it was.
We were so awestruck.
Don't think Hamish and Steff give a monkey's.
So, we just had half a pop band in our house. Isn't that pretty cool?
It is cool, but I have no clue who any of them were.
Say, in 40 years when we have kids and we'll be like, "These are the people from Scouting For Girls!"
They'll just be like, "Yeah, whatever".
As Britain reached the year of Orwell's nightmare, Big Brother wasn't watching us yet.
But we were watching more.
Telly was now broadcasting at breakfast time.
And on a fourth channel.
And technology was giving us for more choice over what we watched and when.
A video cassette recorder was now found in almost a third of British households.
Even though, just as with home computers, consumers
were caught in the crossfire between conflicting technologies.
The real video war isn't fought against invaders from outer space.
It's battled out on the high streets of Britain.
It's all a matter of format.
The tech team have to decide which date format the family will get.
With hindsight, VHS clearly seems the most future-proof choice.
But back in 1984, Betamax still held a quarter of the market.
Hello!Hello.
Andy Hane has pieced together an entire history of the video recorder and he keeps it in his garden shed.
Wow!Oh, my goodness!
It's nice to know that there's someone who knows what they're looking at!
Andy currently has 74 machines.
And not just the two formats everyone remembers.
He also has a staggering 19 alternatives, such as the laser disc player.
Just amazing technology.
There's a great big laser tube in there. It's not a solid state laser, it's a gas laser.
Huge laser tube inside. Very rare because there's very few of those still working.
That I know of.What other formats were there in the '80s?
Philips developed Video 2000. These used tapes that you could turn over.
So right from the start you had three hours on a side. So six hours total.
Do you have a tape? They're pretty much the same size as a VHS cassette.
It looks like an audio cassette and I'm very tiny!
Well, Philips invented the audio cassette as well.
This was their video equivalent of an audio cassette.
By the time they got to market, VHS and Betamax were already fighting their war
and they kind of ended up being an "also ran".
Everyone knows the story that Betamax was the superior quality but VHS won out.
What's your take on that? It was largely marketing.
The Sony Betamax, they presented it as a quality system.
VHS was a little bit more aimed at the average man in the street.
When you're talking about hundreds of pounds, thousands of pounds in today's money,
therewas a temptation to rent if there was two formats fighting.
VHS was easier to rent and that became popular.
It very quickly pushed Betamax down.
Was there actually a difference between picture quality between the two of them?
In a laboratory, yes. For the average person, probably not, No.
The logical choice then in 1984 is the VHS.
When the tech team send their choice to the house, they add an extra video treat for the kids.
Wow!It's one of the very first camcorders.
From the firm that invented VHS.
Dibs being cameraman.
And you can be like the pop girls.
There's 136 pages of instructions,
so seeing as you want to be the cameraman, there you go.
Mammoth manuals became a common sight during the '80s.
Though technology now offered advanced features,
it hadn't yet cracked making them easy to use.Where is the on switch?
That's quite heavy!
To test drive the video player,
Ellie fetches a gift from the night before.
Ultravox Live in concert.
Ooh, it's smaller. Hopefully it still fits.
Sideways a bit.
It's too small, Hamish.
You know why it's too small, Ellie?
Because that is a VHS and you're trying to put a Betamax in it.
You know Blue-Ray and normal DVDs? Yes.
You're trying to put a Blue-Ray into a normal DVD player.
It's not going to work.Hi!
The task of finding a tape the machine will actually play quickly gets passed on.
You need to go and get a video.
Any preference?Something good.
Tricky third gear.
Adam and his '80s Escort may have quite a journey ahead of them.
It feels quite strange to me, having got back from quite a long day of working,
to be off in the car in search of a film when,
in the modern day, I'm a member of a DVD film club, so I get DVDs through the post.
Which is very good because you don't even have to go out from the door.
But video rental shops were a boom business in the early '80s.
The UK boasted precisely none at the start of the decade.
A couple of years later, it had 25,000.
As a result, many cinemas closed.
I'm looking for VHS videos. Films.
OK, we haven't done them for about three to four years.
DVD has taken over now, so we only stock DVD.
I promised the kids I'd get them a film tonight because we've only just got a video recorder.
Is there anywhere around here I could possibly get one?No.
There's one other video shop we can go to.
Might as well give that a go before we give up all hope.
Dad is at the video shop. Still.
After about two hours. Literally.
Because he doesn't have a phone with him, we can't phone him up and say, "Where are you?"
We're a bit bored now.
Adam's finally found an old independent store.
With no VHS tapes on its shelves either.
But the owner does keep a few under the counter.
It's ex-rental stock he's selling off.
I'm just trying to get rid of them.
Back in 1984, very few people bought rather than rented.Can I buy those?
How much would that be?£3.
The average retail price then was £60.
That's £150 in today's money.
Kids!
What is that?It's coming on. Sh.
It's not coming on.
It doesn't look any different to the screen looked before you put it in.
Was at working earlier when we got it here?
It was at one point.
Ellie neglects to mention her earlier vigorous attempts to force
a Betamax tape into the VHS machine.
It's not going round, so there's clearly something not right.
Have you tried pressing a button called play?
Is it rewound?Nothing ever works!
Wind it up. No good. It's not working.
Having spent all that time rushing around
trying to get these videos and then for it not to work was a little bit of a let-down.
DOORBELL
The next day, the tech teamcollect the broken machine for repair.
There you go. So, what's the problem?
Well, it doesn't work.
The early VHS machines weren't incredibly reliable and
one of the suggestions was that you get it serviced every six months.
Really? Every six months?
In fact, 25% of VHS machines needed to be repaired in their first year of life.
For other formats, the rate was even higher.
Stick the cable on the top. That is heavy!
But CPR for the VCR isn't the only reason Gia's come to call.
OK, Adam. I've got you a surprise.
I've got you a new set of wheels.
Really?
Now that is good news.OK, Adam.
Here's what we've got you.
MUSIC: "The Final Countdown" by Europe
That is unbelievable! I didn't think there would be that many that actually worked still.
1985 saw the launch of the C5.
The most famous technological flop of the decade.
Oh, man!
I'm gobsmacked!
Creating an electric vehicle had been the dream of Clive Sinclair
long before he made his fortune with computers and calculators.
We've got chaos on our roads.
I don't believe that the forms of transport we have today can long survive.
Sinclair's plan was to use the profits
from the C5 to fund production of a full-sized electric car.
But less than 17,000 were ever sold.
These enthusiasts would like to persuade Adam their motors are more than just a retro joke.
So, what's its top speed? Around 15 miles an hour.
You can get a little bit more if you really pedal crazy, but 15 is about the going rate.
Why do you think it didn't succeed in 1985?
If it were released now, where cities have got more cycle paths and areas
where you could use these things, it might have been a different story to the one that turned out.
Highly ahead of its time.So this is the 1985 vision of the future.
Everyone has a C5.
I'm going to send you out
shopping in one of these to get the experience of the future.Fabulous!
Adam quickly has to supplement the engine with pedal power.
25 years later, climate change has put electric
vehicles firmly back on the agenda, but the C5's visionary concept was let down by its execution.
A common fault of '80s technology.
You feel quite intimidated because you're so small in this traffic.
I couldn't really see myself using this full time,
not in the main traffic.
It's just too dangerous, I think. I wouldn't feel safe.
And then you kind of factor in the weather conditions in England.
Why would you have this? I don't know.
It's a shame, really, because it's really fun.
Most people in 1985 came to the same conclusion.
Whoever brought out that wants putting up a wall and shooting.
The failure of the C5 was proof that consumers were wise enough about new technology.
Clearly not everything innovative was worth buying.
# You can't go on
# Thinking nothing's wrong
# Who's going to drive you home tonight? #
Sinclair lost millions and had to sell his own name.
We've bought the Sinclair computer business.
We've bought the Sinclair brand name.
Other British computer manufacturers had already gone bust.
There was no place for eccentric innovators anymore.
The last big British player in computing was Alan Sugar's Amstrad.
They outsourced their manufacturing to the Far East.
That night, the family are sent an '80s invention which conquered the world.
At least until MP3s came along.
We have a letter. It says, "Dear Sullivan-Barnes family, here is your compact disc player.
"The arrival of the CD saw people getting rid of their records.
"So please remove yours and the turntable into the garage.
"Regards, the Technical Support Team".
Bit sad to get rid of this, though.
Dad! We're not going to use it. We have a CD player.
Couldn't we just put it on top of that?No, we couldn't because it will break.
I'm not happy to get rid of the vinyl because I know that it's got a different, richer sound.
But once the new player is plugged in, Adam admits the advantages.
I can remember getting my first CD player and being amazed
at how I could just skip tracks and go backwards and forwards so quickly,
I really liked that.
Dire Straits' 1985 album Brothers In Arms was the world's first million-selling compact-disc.
# We gotta instal microwave ovens... #
But it wasn't just the ability to hear protracted guitar riffs
with crystal-clear clarity that helped CDs take off.
# We gotta move these colour TVs... #
Lessons have been learned from the computer and video format wars.
'European and Japanese manufacturers have agreed on a single compatible
'system, so one maker's disc will play on another's machine.'
Though, with hindsight, not all the claims made for the new technology ring true.
Make sure it's nicely spread around there.
A bit of coffee.
Anyone who has heard a CD jump due to a single fingerprint won't want to try this at home.
A quick wipe down. Let's see how it sounds.
# Blue eyes... #
Do you think you're gonna miss the vinyl, Adam?
It's my collection, it's just nice to have them.
It's me, and I don't want to get rid of me, really.
Most Britons weren't so attached to their vinyl.
By 1988, more CDs were being bought than records.
Adam's collection is laid to rest in the garage, which is fast becoming a graveyard for discarded technology.
What a shame. Never mind.
Progress.
Most of the LPs I've now got on CD, because I went and bought them again.
How stupid are we to go out and buy the same music twice?
The tech team have also sent back the video recorder.
Is it working?They guaranteed me it's working.
Any second now. Hit it, yes. Can you turn it up, please?
Unlike the contentious computer, a video brings everyone together.
# Believe me The sun always shines on TV... #
You need to find the instructions, sweetheart, they're over there.
There, there you go.
The following night, Georgie is still full of praise for technology
that, for once, enhances family life.
Having the video recorder for us, as a family, is going to be a really good thing,
because we won't be scheduling the meals around the TV viewing times
because there's a particular programme everyone wants to watch,
we can video it when it's on and watch it later.
Because this is time for us to sit down before a meal together as a family.
Right now, though, the whole family clearly isn't together.
The male side is notably absent from the kitchen.
I wouldn't be at all surprised to find that Adam's in the sitting-room.
He's been itching to get back to the computer, so...
Wait, why can't you be more patient?
What are you gonna run? I think you have to be patient, otherwise it definitely won't work.
Five days after getting the Micro, Adam and Hamish still haven't
managed to load in any of the games, which are stored on cassettes.
Load. Load.
The appeal is the challenge.
It's the man against machine thing.
I'm not going to be beaten by this inferior technology.
Start.It's not in capitals, it won't accept it.
Blast.
But other members of the family aren't getting so much as a look in.
Come on, Daddy. Come on!
We're playing with the computer.
Oh, "Searching", we're in!
I haven't tried going on the computer yet cos I'm doing other things. Too busy.
They aren't as interested in the computer, the girls.
They do different things on the computers, so they're much more
into communication rather than playing games or something.
Several hours later...
..Adam finally gets a game to load.
Yes!
I was finding it quite frustrating that it wasn't working.
I think we've forgotten how basic everything really was, how awkward things were.
Shall we turn it off now?No.
I thought the deal was that you weren't going to have this out if I wanted to be in the sitting room,
or if anyone wanted to watch telly, that you'd put it away in the cupboard?
It's taken five years to do this.
'I'd also forgotten how rubbish the games are.'
Some of the games really are so basic that they don't even have the retro appeal.
Let's try that again.
Shall we not try it again?One more.
We'll try one more.Oh, blimey.
Another night, another year.
The second half of the decade is racing by.
In a home with ever more technology, all the family have plenty to keep them busy.
Oh, at last. What are you doing?
It's Mum and Adam.
Since there's still only one phone line, no conversation can be entirely private.
Mum is gonna be late home.
See you later, bye.
With Georgie late back from work, there's no chance of a family dinner tonight.
Fortunately, 1987 saw the launch of microwavable plastic.
Chilled ready meals were a godsend for the increasing
number of households where both parents worked.
The microwave had finally found its true purpose in our kitchens.
I'm supposed to let it stand for a minute, aren't I?
To hell with it. I'm sure it'll be fine.
But being able to eat at different times and in different places
had a downside for family life.
What a day.
The last thing that I want to eat now is this stuff.
I like to eat as a family and the idea of individual portions of not very nice food is...
really disappointing.
Technology designed to take less time can mean less time spent with other people.
With 1988, the weekend arrives.
'Now then, how is your pop music? How's your decision-making on pop music?'
What's the little otter thing? I dunno.
The kids are seeking inspiration from Saturday morning TV for the pop video they've got to make.
# Lucky, lucky, lucky I should be so lucky in love... # Really weird, she looks so young.
# I should be so lucky,lucky... #
I have a really good idea.
We'll go through the whole routine of the day and in different scenes we'll just keep changing clothes.
As we walk through different rooms, we pause it...
And then we change, and then we come in again.
What I want you to do, I want you to be the same distance apart
so it's not like Steff goes halfway and then you start coming.
Get closer, Ellie. Go.
Hamish is clearly confident about directing as well as how to use the camcorder.
Stay where you are, Steff.
Ellie, come a bit more.Mastering an unfamiliar and antiquated piece of technology
apparently isn't hard for a young and curious mind.
No, you need to be alongside so you can high-five.
Steff, all you have to do is this, it's not hard.
Getting your sisters to do as they're told is an altogether bigger challenge.
Just stop and high-five.
1989. As the last day of the decade begins, the family are preparing to host a dinner party.
Can we have a pen and paper to write down the recipe?
Quick, hold that, I really want this recipe.
Georgie's serving Teletext,
the closest '80s homes came to the World Wide Web.
As well as Ceefax cuisine,
the dinner guests will also be treated to the kids' pop video.
That provided the family work out
how to connect the camcorder to the TV.
That doesn't exist, that cover.
They've come to realise that moments
like these were an inevitable by-product of this decade's designs.
The most annoying thing and the most frustrating thing
about '80s technology has been that nothing works,
and it's really annoying.
We do take things for granted in 2009, because you just plug it in
and turn it on and it works, rather than having to programme it
or fiddle with all the switches or anything like that.
And as the tech team reflect on their '80s experience, they've come to the same conclusion.
It wasn't really plug and play in the 1980s.
The ideas and concepts of the technology was there,
but the hardware wasn't actually up to speed and the early adopters
were left banging their head against the wall.
It's not this cable, is it?
Let me look at the photo.
Throughout the decade, the boys
have been noticeably more hands on with technology.
A gender gap has opened in the home.
It's near the cable at the bottom.
The technology itself becomes time-consuming,
just the attention and care that you need to put into it to make it work.
Perhaps Georgie isn't interested in technology in the '80s
because she's waiting for it to do something that she wants it to do.
One of these things in the '80s
that they talked about was a big gender divide around technology.
Technology really was just about the hardware, it wasn't about socialising, which it is about today.
And women are much more interested in the social side of technology, connecting with other people.
Tonight's social event happily has something for the whole family, the premiere of the kids' '80s epic.
The '80s childhood is quite good, to be honest. It wasn't bad.
It wasn't as boring as the '70s.
# Slowly learning that life is OK Say after me... #
The '80s has been a lot more similar to the 2000s, but we still have a long way to go.
# Take on me... #
Very good.Really good.
Then the kids are packed off upstairs
so the adults can indulge in the '80s ritual
of the formal dinner party.
It seems appropriate to make a toast, so here's to the 1980s.
Lovely to see you all. Thank you for coming.
And at least for one member of the family, any hardware hassle has been
compensated for by the chance to revisit his salad days.
This was technology that I was awestruck by 20 years ago, I thought it was fantastic.
The reality of it is that it's been a bit rubbish, really.
But it's been fun investigating it and fun
hitting it, banging it and getting frustrated with it.
Bye, thanks for coming.
Safe home.
Next time, the family experiences the communications revolution of the '90s.
It works!
But as the pace of change goes into overdrive...
Blimey, not another one.
..what price family life?
This is what I've been dreading, lots of different entertainment media choices around the house
and everybody being off doing their own thing.
And you can continue your journey through the decades online with the BBC and the Open University.
Visit...
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd