To sort of miss these things that used to be on the telly

[fragola]

Mutants. Mutants were everywhere. They were generally the result of nuclear war and normally wanted to kill and or eat everyone who wasn't a mutant. If you were a small child in the seventies, it was impossible to imagine a future without mutants.

Ladies in little shorty nighties. If you were a middle aged busdriver, milkman, postman or window cleaner, you couldn't go anywhere or do anything without being beseiged by ladies in little shortie nighties. I don't think that i was sure of the significance of ladies in little shortie nighties back then, but i thought they looked pretty and i sort of miss them.

Quicksand. Most films that weren't set in britain seemed to involve quicksand, generally as a means to dispatch the bad guys. The world would now be overrun by baddies if it wasn't for quicksand.

Avalanches. If you shouted anywhere near a mountain, a big load of snow would fall on you. I considered this to be a valuable lesson learnt when i was six.

Vicars. Vicars were also everywhere. People had vicars around to their houses for tea so often you could be forgiven for thinking that at least 50% of all men worked as vicars (the rest were middle aged bus drivers, milkmen, post men and window cleaners).

So if anyone on mumsnet works on the telly could you see if you can do anthing about bringing back quicksand, avalanches, mutants, ladies in little shortie nighties and vicars please?

Thank you.

[NoelHeadbands]

A biscuit TIN corny you fool

[cornypedicure]

[cornypedicure]

I can't believe I've been putting my family in so much danger I'm so ashamed

[NoelHeadbands]

Well just for gods sake don't go climbing up any electricity pylons to retrieve your kite.

[thornrose]

The train tracks ad looks straight out of the 70's, who thought of that? I can just see it on one of those Chris Tarrant clips shows!

[5318008]

god I am terrified of escalators even now because of the warning ad about being careful or you might get eaten ANG ANG ANG like Dolly did

[minouminou]

My fave Tales of the Unexpected was the one where the wife does her husband in with a frozen leg of lamb, then reports him missing and feeds the cooked murder weapon to the investigating officer.

I always think of it when I'm passing the frozen meat section in supermarkets.

Aside from that.....it always makes md feel weird to think of people in older films relying on the postal service and telegrams to deliver vital messages. Like.....HOW long? Always gives me butterflies.

[deleted203]

Moustaches. Real men had moustaches. You never see one nowadays, sigh.

Tom Selleck, Burt Reynolds, Charles Bronson...these were the men I sighed over. Manly men, with manly moustaches. I am reduced to watching 118 118 adverts...

[5318008]

yy leg of lamb murderer-laydeee

and Royal Jelly baby

[minouminou]

Weirdo.

[cornypedicure]

bzzzzz

[wearingpurple]

5318008, yes! And I always have to be all bright and breezy getting the dds on to the escalators when they've never even seen that film.

I was terrified. Luckily we lived in a lo-fi town where escalators were as glam as Monte Carlo.

[minouminou]

Soz....that was to Sowornout.

[5318008]

oh oh oh and my bessie mate's glammo parents had a print of a swan's wing/naked girl on beach/sunset, I thought twas ultimate sophistico what with our Mother and her beloved Constable prints adorning the front room.

[wearingpurple]

Still my most terrifying film ever: Play It Safe.

Scene 1) People wheeling a boat down the bank neglect to realise that the mast is going to hit a power line (on a river bank? weird!)

Scene 2) People decide to fly their kites near a pylon with predictable results.

Scene 3) Boy tries to retrieve his frisbee from an electricity substation. The final shot is of a pair of smouldering plimsolls.

No horror film has ever come close.

[DevonCiderPunk]

okay, well if I'm the only one who will admit that she did the swoosh & smile in her bedroom mirror...

will any of you admit that end credits of many shows had a spooky feel to them, because they were harbingers of your parents saying "right, up to bed!" and up you'd go along the dark landing...

worse still were those short little marker ads right at the end of US shows for the distribution company. There was one that had people singing "Aaaaand dance by the light of the moon..." in childish voices like some sort of trauma flashback.

[LondonKitty]

I miss The Waltons. There was always some old wise person sitting quietly with a pipe or peeling potatoes who had all the answers.

Old people don't know anything nowadays.... Or if they do, they're too busy going on Saga holidays or updating they're Facebook profile to tell you.

[LondonKitty]

Oh Devon I swooshed too!

I tried it again recently, but I pulled a muscle in my shoulder...

[DevonCiderPunk]

Oh you tried it recently?! That's made me smile

I might have another go tomorrow, just for old times' sake.

[caseycartwright]

Triffids. I really miss Triffids.

[Mudwiggle]

I remember the smouldering plimsoles. Terrifying.

Quicksand, you are so right OP. Do you think it just has better PR now? She died undergoing a beauty treatment.....

[Darkesteyes]

yes i remember the green babies V it was called. And i have a hazy vague memory of the triffids in the very early 80s.

[Darkesteyes]

And i remember being twelve at Xmas 85 and catching the last episode of Edge of Darkness. All i really remember is sweaty faces and a man dying of radiation poisoning.

[crypes]

American detectives always had tiny little cameras that could take pictures of pages and pages of files .Flicky haired women detectives had to tie their hair in a bun or pony tail for that kind of work or installing a bugging device in a trim phone.

[scripsi]

Another thing ... Mime artists. It used to be impossible to have any walk through a park (in particular in US shows) which didn't feature a mime artist.
The first time I went to visit family in the US I was surprised by the lack of mime artists.