Turn and Face the Strain; Britain in the '70s'

The 1970s were the growing years for 'thetvreviewguy'. Now a long time ago, some of the momentous social changes in Britain that took place in that decade were well-covered in Dominic Sandbrook's entertaining retrospective, 'The 70s' (BBC2). In what should be seen as a comparison piece to Francis Wheen's excellent book 'Strange Days Indeed', Sandbrook recaps some of the main seismic shifts that took place from 1970-1979. Even pre-Thatcher, there was a move towards house ownership as the mortgage market was loosened up. Foreign holidays became more affordable and served as a companion status symbol to owning your own home. Britain went onto 'Europe', that strange, exotic continent that began beyond Dover and Edward Heath sought to be a One Nation Tory. But, Sandbrook argues, while the 70s is cited as the zenith of left-wing trade union power, the most militant group of all, the miners, had a materialistic outlook to wage improvement. Personal mores changed as Britain finally moved into Larkin's post-1963 world. Sandbrook makes some interesting observations; the growth of wine purchases in the decade reflected greater disposable income and aspiration. Age is a funny thing; for this reviewer, it does not seem odd to have to wait months for a phone to be installed, have the national TV station close down at 4pm everyday 'for a break' and pile into a car boot on the way to a beach to get sunburnt. Ah yes, they were the days my friend.