The 70's and 80's in Ireland

Grandeeod · 14-12-2018 12:07am

Purple Mountain wrote: »

But.. I think Commodore was the 90s though.

Absolutely not.

dasdog · 14-12-2018 12:10am

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Had a Sinclair Spectrum 16K with rubber keyboard, it was a bit too much for my parents to afford for Xmas so I agreed to go halves with my confirmation money... later got the 32K Ram Pack and it was great finally being able to play all of those 48K games you heard about and could see in Tomorrow's World in the Ilac but couldn't buy. (Actually I did buy a 48K tape, Atic Atac, a while before my birthday when I got the ram pack.. loaded it in just to see the loading screen but it wouldn't play obviously!)

We got a second hand Spectrum 16K but for Christmas the same year myself and brother were given a 32K ram pack and a copy of Underwurlde after being tortured not being able to play anything bar a few games.

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

Bought a few games but got loads through tape swapping in the schoolyard... shhh... liked the Ultimate games the best. Pssst, Jet Pac, Tranz Am, Cookie, Atic Atac, Knight Lore, Alien 8 (thought it was great completing that with a map photocopied out of Sinclair User).

I went on to work closely with the successor to Ultimate (Rare) for a few years recently which was almost accidental. I was delighted with myself about that.

antodeco · 14-12-2018 12:13am

Purple Mountain wrote: »

But.. I think Commodore was the 90s though.

Sorry Sir, I'm afraid we're going to have to ask you to leave

branie2 · 14-12-2018 12:18am

The Commodore came out in the 80s alright, but I got mine in 1990.

Hotblack Desiato · 14-12-2018 1:01am

Depends which Commodore you're talking about. I think I can just about remember seeing a late model PET in Tomorrow's World in the Ilac but it would have been on its last legs then. The VIC-20 with its amazingly small memory and poor resolution, only 20 characters wide. I remember seeing ads in Shoot! magazine when they were trying to shift warehouses full of them, "free" tape deck and a load of cartridges all for "only" £199, it was a sh!t heap and the much better Spectrum and C64 were already available to order.

There always seemed to be a funny smell when I walked into that part of the Ilac.. the allure of technology, or maybe the smell of overheating electrical parts, or probably both!

There were BBC Micros on display there too, but you could do f*k all with them, and the only game was Elite. Years later in my physics lab they had.. BBC Micros. At least with disk but they were still crap and the keyboard every reviewer in the early 80s claimed was the gold standard of keyboards, was still sh*te to type on, flat, way too hard and low travel.

The Amigas came later and weren't really Commodore products at all, and the marketing especially in the US was very disjointed. They didn't know how to sell a computer with next generation graphics and sound capability to either business, or the home. In Europe it was a success in the home market but couldn't survive the crash of the US parent a few years later. In the meantime the US parent company had just rehashed old themes with the Commodore 128, they went to amazing lengths to make it compatible with C64 games.

Hotblack Desiato · 14-12-2018 1:23am

Grandeeod wrote: »

Jaysus! Where do I start with your post?? I went to Tomorrows World in Dawson Street.

Do you mean QTH Computers? On the left hand side as you go from Stephens Green to Nassau St? I could point out the building to you to this day. Great place. Wasn't great for software but was by far the best computer bookshop in Dublin. I bought "The Complete Spectrum ROM Disassembly", and "Programming the Z80" by Rodnay Zaks in there. Peats was the place to go to for electronics and radio books - I'd bought those very limited but educational electronics kits there a couple of years before. The old Peats was on the west side of Parnell St, it moved to a new building on the east side, moved to a newer one on the west side then closed down

Hotblack Desiato · 14-12-2018 1:41am

I can't remember much about the day of my dad's funeral in 1985, apart from going home and playing this game with my cousin for hours on end

http://www.crashonline.org.uk/13/finders.htm

Finders Keepers, Mastertronic, on Spectrum

It beat going downstairs and listening to the wailing and moaning downstairs from people who wouldn't give him the time of day when he was alive.

Buford T. Justice XIX · 14-12-2018 12:25pm

dasdog wrote: »

We got a second hand Spectrum 16K but for Christmas the same year myself and brother were given a 32K ram pack and a copy of Underwurlde after being tortured not being able to play anything bar a few games.

I went on to work closely with the successor to Ultimate (Rare) for a few years recently which was almost accidental. I was delighted with myself about that.

Awesome game, the music from around then reminds me of playing that with whatever Now cassette I had from the last Christmas.

Hotblack Desiato · 14-12-2018 1:07pm

You're not concentrating hard enough on the game if you can listen to music at the same time :pac:

branie2 · 14-12-2018 11:41pm

40 years ago this year, the first TV series of Enid Blyton's The Famous Five appeared on the small screen.

Grandeeod · 15-12-2018 12:02am

All together now! Opening and closing credits!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3zjoN6-ddQ

Mam of 4 · 15-12-2018 12:02am

branie2 wrote: »

40 years ago this year, the first TV series of Enid Blyton's The Famous Five appeared on the small screen.

Good series , but not as good as the books imo .

Then again , I think it's the imagery our own imaginations conjure up that make books special

Grandeeod · 15-12-2018 12:04am

Mam of 4 wrote: »

Good series , but as good as the books imo .

Then again , I think it's the imagery our own imaginations conjure up that make books special

I have the full set of books including the secret seven set. Jaysus they are dated. Little G tried reading them, but too much lemon curd Mam.:D

WomanSkirtFan8 · 15-12-2018 12:05am

can only speakl for myself as a kid of the 80s, but from my perspective, it was a pretty good decade.

IT was a decade of great movies, music, film and so on.

In those days you learned to appreciate what you had and we had a lot less
than young people have these days. :cool:

WomanSkirtFan8 · 15-12-2018 12:07am

Grandeeod wrote: »

All together now! Opening and closing credits!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3zjoN6-ddQ

Jaysys remember that so well. One of the many incarnations of the famous five.

Mam of 4 · 15-12-2018 12:08am

Grandeeod wrote: »

I have the full set of books including the secret seven set. Jaysus they are dated. Little G tried reading them, but too much lemon curd Mam.:D

Loll , I know ,.innocent times though !
Great set of books to have though G , even just for the nostalgia factor

Lemon curd ,.I never liked it

Sardonicat · 15-12-2018 12:11am

Don't forget your lashings of ginger ale!

Grandeeod · 15-12-2018 12:15am

Mam of 4 wrote: »

Loll , I know ,.innocent times though !
Great set of books to have though G , even just for the nostalgia factor

Lemon curd ,.I never liked it

My granny bought them for me. They are in a book case on the landing with a Disney's Wonderful World of Knowledge set all from the 70s. Worth feck all except for my childhood memories.

Mam of 4 · 15-12-2018 12:27am

Grandeeod wrote: »

My granny bought them for me. They are in a book case on the landing with a Disney's Wonderful World of Knowledge set all from the 70s. Worth feck all except for my childhood memories.

The memories are what's priceless , the most important things

NewbridgeIR · 15-12-2018 12:10pm

Enid Blyton is my favourite author.
I've bought nearly everything written by her.
One tip: never buy her books new. Since the mid-80s the language has been toned down which is most unfortunate.
Seek out second hand copies always.
The books reflect the attitudes of the time and should never be amended.

The Five Find Outers are my favourite.
Six Bad Boys is her best book [standalone, cautionary tale about delinquents]
Also love The Adventure series, The Secret series and the Barney mysteries.
The Secret Seven weren't great.

The Famous Five DVD set is well worth a purchase. £17 on Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Famous-Five-Complete-Collectors-DVD/dp/B007PQ5002/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1544872144&sr=8-1&keywords=famous+five+dvd
There is a 45 minute discussion with one of the writers, Marcus Harris (Julian), Gary Russell (Dick) and Jennifer Thanisch (Anne). Michelle Gallagher (George) committed suicide in 2000 but gets a mention.

ohnonotgmail · 15-12-2018 4:52pm

Sardonicat wrote: »

Don't forget your lashings of ginger ale!

Ginger beer.

dasdog · 16-12-2018 2:53am

There was life before and after this song. Eight or Nine years old just fascinated by the off beat bass and jazz drumming.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtTsky80XmQ

Edgware · 16-12-2018 3:07am

Sardonicat wrote: »

Don't forget your lashings of ginger ale!

That was before you went to the tennis club "hop" and had a chance of a slow set

branie2 · 16-12-2018 5:03pm

The film Wall Street - Greed is good

mikemac2 · 16-12-2018 9:26pm

Spandau Ballet

They reformed and went on tour several years ago. I was having lunch in a Dublin hotel and every women in the place turned to look at Martin Kemp (and his wife) when they walked in

I’ve never saw such a reaction to one person enter a room, you’d think he was a movie star. Well he is handsome,no denying it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntG50eXbBtc

Rubberlegs · 16-12-2018 9:29pm

^^^^

Shirlie Holliman is his wife, one half of Pepsi and Shirlie and also a backing singer for Wham!.

Hotblack Desiato · 16-12-2018 10:34pm

dasdog wrote: »

There was life before and after this song. Eight or Nine years old just fascinated by the off beat bass and jazz drumming.

Didn't realise until years later it was about heroin.

Purple Mountain · 16-12-2018 11:50pm

antodeco wrote: »

Sorry Sir, I'm afraid we're going to have to ask you to leave

I'm a madam actually and clearly I'm a baby one because I wasn't old enough to get a Commodore in the 80s.
Go back in your box aul lad

Grandeeod · 17-12-2018 12:07am

Purple Mountain wrote: »

I'm a madam actually and clearly I'm a baby one because I wasn't old enough to get a Commodore in the 80s.
Go back in your box aul lad

Its okay. Calm down.

I'm an aul lad sort of.:D

Grayson · 17-12-2018 12:10am

Grandeeod wrote: »

I have the full set of books including the secret seven set. Jaysus they are dated. Little G tried reading them, but too much lemon curd Mam.:D

I started reading that post and thought of these

branie2 · 17-12-2018 12:25am

We had that set of books in a red cover

NewbridgeIR · 17-12-2018 12:41am

We had the 1979 set: mixture of dark brown and black. I’d get up early and spend hours reading them. Huge influence on my knowledge. They’re still on my old bedroom in my parents’ house.

Grueller · 17-12-2018 12:52am

Hotblack Desiato wrote: »

I can't remember much about the day of my dad's funeral in 1985, apart from going home and playing this game with my cousin for hours on end

http://www.crashonline.org.uk/13/finders.htm

Finders Keepers, Mastertronic, on Spectrum

It beat going downstairs and listening to the wailing and moaning downstairs from people who wouldn't give him the time of day when he was alive.

This post really makes me appreciate having my parents always around. That sounds tough hotblack.

AndrewJRenko · 21-12-2018 4:15pm

Grandeeod wrote: »

All together now! Opening and closing credits!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3zjoN6-ddQ

Which then led on to this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRQtV6tNOEE

Hotblack Desiato · 21-12-2018 4:34pm

Grueller wrote: »

That sounds tough hotblack.

Long time ago now. But thanks.

Paddy Cow · 22-12-2018 1:32pm

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Which then led on to this:

I just watched that. Thanks. It's absolutely brilliant :pac:

branie2 · 22-12-2018 6:32pm

The Dirty Harry films started in the 70s.

cml387 · 22-12-2018 8:36pm

Relevant from another thread I got these statistics:

628 people were killed on Irish roads in 1978.
There were 128 road deaths in 2017.

Mongfinder General · 23-12-2018 11:58am

cml387 wrote: »

Relevant from another thread I got these statistics:

628 people were killed on Irish roads in 1978.
There were 128 road deaths in 2017.

It makes me wonder hue many of those were hit and runs. A death sentence on one hand and a life sentence of guilt for those who never confesssed.

NewbridgeIR · 23-12-2018 12:55pm

cml387 wrote: »

Relevant from another thread I got these statistics:

628 people were killed on Irish roads in 1978.
There were 128 road deaths in 2017.

It was 640 in 1972, the year I was born.

Some contributors:

Drink-driving
Less robust cars
"Seat belts are for sissys" mentality

Heroditas · 23-12-2018 1:01pm

NewbridgeIR wrote: »

It was 640 in 1972, the year I was born.

Some contributors:

Drink-driving
Less robust cars
"Seat belts are for sissys" mentality

Crap roads too.

Sardonicat · 23-12-2018 1:06pm

Rust buckets carrying 10 people

Franz Von Peppercorn · 23-12-2018 1:10pm

cml387 wrote: »

Relevant from another thread I got these statistics:

628 people were killed on Irish roads in 1978.
There were 128 road deaths in 2017.

Per capita that’s an even better reduction.

mikemac2 · 23-12-2018 1:16pm

Kids getting electrocuted on ESB pylons
Dogs killing sheep at nightand and returning in the morning. Do you know where your dog was last night??

There were lots, the old public safety videos didn’t hold back the shock value!

“Where’s Grandad” in the water safety video. He fell in the river and a 3 year old drowned too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjWHrjCG1LQ

Badly Drunk Boy · 23-12-2018 1:46pm

Sardonicat wrote: »

Don't forget your lashings of ginger ale!

The ginger beer wasn't in the Enid Blyton books, just the Comic Strips 'Five Go Mad in Dorset' spoof. I'm having my first alcohol-free Christmas since the 80s (probably), so I bought a few bottles of ginger drink (which has a nice kick!).

cml387 wrote: »

Relevant from another thread I got these statistics:

628 people were killed on Irish roads in 1978.
There were 128 road deaths in 2017.

As has been said, worse roads back then, but also a lot fewer cars compared to now.

Paddy Cow · 23-12-2018 3:26pm

NewbridgeIR wrote: »

It was 640 in 1972, the year I was born.

Some contributors:

Drink-driving
Less robust cars
"Seat belts are for sissys" mentality

Over crowding was a big issue as well. I remember Mum would pile seven kids into the car in the 80's - two in the front and five in the back! Not a seat belt or child booster in sight.

FanadMan · 23-12-2018 5:33pm

Paddy Cow wrote: »

Over crowding was a big issue as well. I remember Mum would pile seven kids into the car in the 80's - two in the front and five in the back! Not a seat belt or child booster in sight.

We had the same but sometimes a couple in the boot as well

jester77 · 23-12-2018 5:37pm

FanadMan wrote: »

We had the same but sometimes a couple in the boot as well

Brings back memories, I remember my friends mom used to regularly bring our whole football team to games in her hatchback.

Buford T. Justice XIX · 23-12-2018 5:40pm

My Aunt had 9 kids, 1 in the front, 6 in the back and 2 in the boot:D

Rubberlegs · 23-12-2018 6:12pm

I remember never wearing seat belts in the back of the car and once my toddler sister wound up headfirst in the footwell going around a hairpin bend, and we all thought it was hilarious. Shocking looking back on it:(
I can remember going to the dump with my friend and her Dad and sitting in the empty trailer on the way home.
Building mazes and houses with the haybales in the fields, great fun

The 70's and 80's in Ireland

Comments