To ask which historical crossroads you wonder about?

[HoneyParsnipSoup]

For me it’s wondering what would’ve happened had Catherine of Aragon had a son and Henry hadn’t divorced her. Country may well be totally different.

And we would still have the monopolies of British Gas, British Telecom, etc. Zero choice for consumers - I bet you don't remember ever having to have a telephine connected or a meter moved. Water, I agree, was a step too far.

Do you wish Germany had won WW1 or WW2, or we were influenced more by Iraq - actually the latter might have stopped Bliar in his tracks!

Given how many trans-identifying males father children, I don’t think that would have been a problem.

Inspired by one of Jodi Taylor’s St Mary’s books, what if Mary hadn’t married Bothwell after Darnley’s murder?

Continuing with the Maggie theme - how about if Denis’ first marriage had gone the distance and he hadn’t married her?

If the Iranian coup of 1953 (Operation Ajax, orcestrated by the CIA and MI6) hadn't happened, Iran might have developed into a stable democracy.
The US and British coup overthrew Iran's democratically elected prime minister, Mossadegh, and reinstated the Shah, Pahlavi.
Without the Shah's restored dictatorship, the Islamic Revolution of 1979 might never have happened, and Iran might have emerged as a stable influential democratic power in the Middle East, altering the political direction of the region and its relationship with the wider world.

I think all that probably would have come later, tbh, under the next Tory government. I don't think Labour would have won another term in the early 80s.

Although Thatcher wouldn't have been leader, I still think the Tories would have done all that stuff then.

And Johnson’s

If Brown had called an early election Brexit may never have happened

I'm 70 too, and feel very much the same.

It makes me feel sad for young people now. We got grants to go to uni, they get debt. You could get into a decent career without a degree, rents were cheap and so were houses if you wanted to buy.

I'm not convinced that that would have satisfied the Europhobes, but he could have made it a two-stage process: a referendum on the principle and a second one when the terms for leaving were agreed to see if they were acceptable.

It would still be going on now!

My Sliding doors moment is about that generation of the Labour Party that idolised Stalin. They gave USSR 3 jet engines and drawings that enabled the Russians and allies to build enough aircraft to attack Korea.

i didn’t know that about the Labour Party giving USSR that information. That’s truly shocking given the appalling suffering of the Korean people in the Korean War.

I don't understand this perspective. I voted for the first time in 1979. The country was an utter mess. The unions were in charge, coalmining was unsustainable, many nationalised industries were entirely shambolic, primary education, particularly ilea was being run for political mantra, and children were being taught without rigour.

Taxes were eyewatering and people were leaving in droves, Denis Healey had to go to the IMF to beg for money, interest rates and inflation were too high.

In London, Pimlico, I recall rats running through the street, due to striking bin men.

Yes, there were no student loans but only a minority went into higher education, probably 5/6%. I agree the growth has been excessive and often at the expense of basic foundation skills.

For all the 1066 fans on this thread, the Bayeux tapestry is coming to the British Museum next year. I'm so excited to see it!

He supported the Nazis so a lot would have been different.

What if the lookouts on the Titanic had been given binoculars that night.

I don’t think it would’ve been, even at that point Monarch powers were ceremonial and military decisions were in the hands of the PM. He would’ve been forced to keep his opinions to himself, or abdicate.

I don't agree that the country was in a mess in the 1970s.

Higher education had expanded giving many more people the chance of it, but with decent grants still available.
It's the subject of another thread but much equalities legislation was passed improving life for women - like outlawing blatantly different wage rates £xx for men, £xx/2 for women.

It was possible to buy a house on 1.5 times your salary, certainly outside London.

Just some things which had improved.

Under Margaret Thatcher house prices rose significantly!

Under Margaret Thatcher house prices rose significantly!
Since she didn't become PM until part way through 1979, that can't apply to more than a few months of the 1970s. I agree that house prices rose significantly in the 1980s.

Probably wouldn't have made any difference. Most gay and trans people have the same urge to procreate, even if it's not their chosen mode of romantic relationship. Many kings and queens of Britain (and indeed any walk of life) have been gay, but still do the procreating thing. The urge to continue your legacy is very strong, even if you don't care for the process.

Sorry, I misunderstood! I think some things were better but life economically was still hard. At the beginning of the 70s women could’ve even buy their own house by themselves!

The speculation and comment here about Ireland always stirs me. (BTW I am English). How much better The UK would be if Ireland were a committed member. I think it would have strengthened Scotland and reduced the natural dominance of the English population and economy.
Imagine the universities of Trinity Dublin, Queens Belfast and Glasgow having equal weight with Oxbridge. A powerhouse of learning.
We on the mainland would have benefitted more from the literary traditions of Ireland.
Perhaps stronger negotiations with Angela Merkle would have obtained concessions and avoided Brexit. Or if Brexit had happened we would be so much stronger and we would have benefitted from the strength of the Ireland USA relationship.

[well a chap can dream] Many thanks for the thread and the ideas.

Ooh, that's a good one!

They did have one. Henry, Duke of Cornwall. He died at about 6 weeks old :(

Good morning!
Yeah, it would have been an impossibly high price to pay (literally so) merely to assuage British anti-Irish animus. Any grudging going on belonged emphatically in the other direction (prior to the 1970s, anyway.)
If GB had the hump in the pre-WW2 years, it wasn’t up to Ireland to provide mood elevators!

Blimey I just realised I dreamed about a Mary Q of S narrative last night. As you say, there is jolly good pondering to be had all round, with historical what ifs 🙂

If the Yes vote had won in 2014. No fucking Brexit up here for one thing..