To ask you to tell me about the '80s?

[Trulyatraditionalman]

I was born in Dec '89. I absolutely love '80s music, and the way it is depicted in films and TV makes it seem like it was the most amazing decade.

I'd like to experience the '80s through your memories

The ease of housing security is what I remember. You'd always find somewhere to rent and it wouldn't be nearly as much as a mortgage.
Interest rates were huge.
If you were made redundant in your 50s you'd be expected to never work again. There was no sort of upskilling or training for new sectors.
I remember the public bins being taken out of some areas so bombs couldn't be put in them.

Yes, @Weaveron, lots of different experiences. I remember a lot more about the fathers of my schoolfriends. My school had a small intake of working class girls but most of us were lower or middle middle class, I would say. Fathers' occupations included company director, senior or middle manager in industry, solicitor, barrister, doctor, academic, civil servant, tax inspector, retail manager, small business owner, teacher, engineer (not the chartered kind, the kind who goes out to mend machinery or office equipment). They were the breadwinners. Almost all the mothers I can remember who worked were in part-time or term-time only jobs, and nothing like as high status as many of the male jobs.

Having said that, almost every member of staff in the school was female and the majority were married with children, so there were our role models.

Watch Ashes to Ashes it is basically a documentary

I was 20 in 1981 and I remember a summer so hot we had hose pipe bans. Girls all had big hair and wore Rara skirts. Punk rock was big and strikes everywhere. Miners on strike for a while year in 1984 which meant power cuts on occasions. I remember going out every night and partying so hard. I never got tired in those days. I left home with a friend and we went to Newquay and worked as waitresses for the summer. I drank a lot and smoked too. Danced every night and never seemed to put on weight. I look back so fondly on my wild days. Aids was a thing back then. Everyone was scared of catching it. When I feel low now I think back how carefree and happy I was then. Music was good. I remember going to see Hello, Dexy's Midnight Runners and David Essex in early 1980. I married in 1982 and had dd in 1984, then D's 1 in 1986. After having children my life calmed down. Went to uni in 1989. Became a teacher in 1993.

I was 20 in 1980. I remember that ALL my male friends were either called Dave, Kev, Gary, Andy or Ian. I remember lots of awful disasters and the Falklands war too. Very different attitudes to women and gays in those times too.

As a teenager from about the mid eighties it has to be the music!

I loved (and love) 60s and 70s stuff, but you had great bands, in the charts and underground (indie) was born. I had friends who were Goths (M&F plastered in make-up and wearing black leather trenchcoats-wonderful people and still are!), Mods, heavy metal freaks and indie kids. Loved it all, played in bands, listened to the most wonderful music created by people you could relate to who also formed bands at school etc. The Smiths, Tears for Fears , Echo and the Bunnymen, The Cure, REM, Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, The Cocteau Twins (beautiful), The Wedding Present, The Fine Young Cannibals, Public Enemy, Sugarhill Gang, Prince (wonderful genius), I could bore you for ever the list is so long!
Music was more eclectic, unique, grass roots and meaningful, no ridiculous talent show winners monopolising the charts with songs they didn't (couldn't) write. It was a great time for youth culture in my opinion - Live Aid happened, great designers, art and fashion and you could argue the PC boom and mobile phones (for the yuppie then), started to develop significantly.

We smiled on photographs. Big grins. One or two pictures taken to capture the moment. No pouting or positioning. We sent off the film when it was full in an envelope with a cheque which returned a couple of weeks later.

Ooh Ok... I was born in the early 80s so I can remember what it was like from a child’s POV:

Sweets were often full of s* that would not be allowed these days

Nursery and school were a lot more rigid and formulaic in the way stuff was taught. Teachers used to shout a lot. At primary we had a class computer on a trolly and had to take turns with it rather than an IT room.

There was a LOT of smacking. My parents rarely did buy some of my friends got smacked all the time.

Music came on tapes mainly in our house in the 80s. I don’t remember us getting a CD player til the early 90s.

Cars were very square and used 4 Star (leaded) petrol that was found to cause brain damage.

I was a bed wetter and there were no DryNites or Pull-ups like my DD’s had so I wore the largest size of plastic disposable baby nappies (which were huge!) at night until I was far older than I care to admit.

Everything was full sugar, including Ribena (which I’m sure was the cause of the problem, above).

Smoking. Everyone seemed to smoke. The world smelled of smoke. You could smoke anywhere.

Saturday Superstore on Saturday morning TV (which later became Going Live).

The music which was on in the background was so memorable that hearing some songs on the radio now triggers memories.

No mobile phones. I remember my Mum using payphones A LOT when we were out and about.

Coins were bigger and chunkier.

Mister Men lolly iced were the best thing ever.

-*ices

Miners on strike for a while year in 1984 which meant power cuts on occasions.
No it didn't. If you had power cuts at all in 1984 they were nothing to do with the strike.

Oh yes, and the pop music was better!