The 1970s, 80s and 90s Back in Time for Christmas

Meet the Robshaws.

They're about to embark on a whistle-stop tour of Christmas past.

For Brandon, Rochelle,

Miranda,

Roz

and Fred...

It's Christmas!

It's Christmas!

It's Christmas Day!

..it really will be Christmas every day.

They are travelling back in time

to celebrate six decades of festive fun.

Oooh!

Ho, ho, ho!

Oh, my Lord, look at that!

-From dinner...

-It's ox heart.

..to decorations.

I think people might be quite impressed by that.

It's exploded in a tinsel timebomb.

And party games...

Fat goose.

..to presents.

He's got a Johnny Seven!

Whoa!

Fantastic.

It sometimes feels like, the more you give them, the more they want.

As they fast forward through

the changing food and fads of each era...

Oh, it is La-La!

..will the Robshaws discover the ingredients

of a perfect family Christmas?

Da-na!

# Let the bells ring out

# For Christmas... #

The Robshaws are only halfway through their Yuletide journey.

They've gone from a frugal wartime Christmas,

through the communal celebrations of church and footy in the '50s,

to tinsel, Twister and their very first turkey, in the 1960s.

But, after 30 years of no telly and some unusual Christmas dinners,

has what they've learnt prepared them for the festive frolics

of the decades to come?

I think the Christmases that we've had

have shown a marked movement from austerity to plenty.

So I can only assume, from this point onwards,

it goes beyond the Christmas scale.

I feel nervous!

Mum might not agree, but I'm looking forward to more chocolate,

more sweets and, hopefully, more presents.

I'm really enjoying Christmas,

and I think, so far, every year, it's only got better.

This time, the Robshaws will experience

the festive season in the '70s, '80s and '90s.

First up, I'm sending them to a house stuck in a time warp.

I was nine at the beginning of the '70s, and I was 19 at the end

of the '70s, so that was the decade in which I did my growing up.

I remember it with a lot of affection.

I'm excited about going back to the '70s for Christmas.

It's going to be a lot of fun.

Wow!

Dad, you've moved up in the world.

Oh, it's amazing.

This is the most '70s house that I've ever seen.

-It's all brown and cream. I had that telly. Isn't it strange?

-Yes.

Oh!

-Oh, wow. This is a fantastic kitchen, isn't it?

-Really sleek.

Deep fat fryer. You could cook chips in there.

-Oh, that's a nice big chest freezer there.

-What have we got?

I've left them a box of everything we ate and drank

at Christmas in the '70s.

-Frozen carrots.

-After Eights!

-Frozen Brussels sprouts.

-Frozen sprouts, that's not right!

-No.

-Look at that, that's getting a bit exotic.

-Look at that.

French cheese.

We have sausages and bacon, so we can make pigs in blankets.

-That's good, that's good. I'm looking forward to that.

-Leave it.

-I will smack you.

-You could do that in the '70s!

-Honestly, put it back.

It's not after eight, you idiot!

Oh yes, look. Creme de Menthe.

-Everything is sweet.

-Can I have some Babycham?

It's for babies, it isn't for you!

Their Christmas box might be full of delights,

but in December 1973, not everything looked so rosy.

Festive preparations were undertaken

against the backdrop of industrial action,

and the Opec oil crisis,

resulting in shortages of both petrol and electricity.

In terms of comfort,

we shall have a harder Christmas than we have known since the war.

But we weren't prepared to let the doom and gloom

ruin our festive fun.

I think the vast majority of people have decided that,

whatever the country's economic troubles are,

they are going to have their Christmas first.

Hurray!

Happy Christmas, everybody.

Social historian Polly Russell

is delivering one crucial ingredient missing from their Christmas box.

-Hi!

-How are you?

-Come in.

-Good to see you.

-I've got something really exciting for you here.

-Wow.

-Do you want to help me get it out?

-Yes.

It's a large frozen turkey. Try to contain your excitement.

Here you are.

Frozen food really takes off in the 1970s

and many people would have relied on a frozen turkey for Christmas.

-Is it free range?

-I think there's no chance that that is free range.

I'll have to cook it, I suppose.

You need to defrost it first or you will poison everyone.

So, you need to be really careful.

So, there's a bit of jeopardy in this Christmas!

Great.

Freezer ownership grew from 3% to 50% over the decade

and supermarkets responded to their new popularity

by offering up a host of frozen products - turkeys included.

The '70s is thought of as this period often of shortages,

strikes, you know, blackouts.

Actually, it was the period where people had much more

disposable income, for the first time, and more leisure time,

so this becomes the time when Christmas as we know it,

this kind of a festival of three, four, five days of indulgence

really begins.

# Santa Claus is coming to town... #

What better way to start a festival of indulgence

than writing your '70s Christmas list?

I'm going to get a racer. No, I'm getting a Chopper.

I want a Polaroid.

Yeah, so do I.

Wish lists have come a long way since the modest requests

made in the grottos of the late '50s.

What you want for Christmas?

A pencil sharpener.

A dolly that wees itself.

A sewing set.

-Are you quite sure?

-Yes.

In 1973, a new arrival on the high street

helped supersize kids' demands.

Argos offered a shopping revolution,

with its analogue version of click and collect.

Its portable catalogue opened up a new world of dreams,

tempting us all to want more and more.

Lots more choice from previous decades

and all these nice glossy pictures makes you want it, doesn't it?

-I want a lava lamp.

-Can you get me a metal saw, please?

No, you're having a Tiny Tears!

-Hi.

-We've written our lists.

-OK, what have you got them?

-I want a video camera...

-What?!

A lead LED watch.

A bike. A BB gun.

For the piece de resistance, I would like a tent.

I want Pifco curlers,

a radio, a television, a Polaroid,

tennis racket, some clothes, some perfume...

What perfume? Is it like Tramp? Do you remember Tramp?

Yes, what a great name for a perfume.

"She's wearing Tramp and everybody loves her." That was the slogan.

I want a single-stone diamond ring, electric hairstyler,

electric watch, a red radio, a record player and records,

a Polaroid camera, an electric blanket,

an egg poacher, earrings in the shape of a cross, a deckchair,

a rowing machine, and those arm strength things.

Right.

I think, given that list, and you only got them one thing

out of that list, you would feel a bit sort of mean, wouldn't you?

-You don't want to disappoint them, do you?

-No.

-That's the thing.

You want to have this glistening array of presents.

The Argos catalogue is really fun.

There's something very Christmassy about catalogues,

looking at all the different things and reading the descriptions

and thinking what they'd be like.

It is quite...

It's like an early form of internet shopping, really.

# Santa Claus is coming to town... #

It's Christmas Eve!

One thing you couldn't buy at Argos was a real tree.

This is a fine tree, isn't it?

In the '60s, artificial trees were all the rage,

as people feared natural trees would catch fire and shed needles.

But in '73, the spruce and fir fought back,

as a chemical was developed

that made them fire retardant and non-drop.

Having overcome the problems, the Forestry Commission reckon

they'll be able to sell about 200,000 Norway spruces

to a public that is eager to buy, which means that,

for them at any rate, it's sure to be a very merry Christmas.

-Shall we just put all this tinsel on?

-I think tinsel it up.

The tree wasn't the only thing that had got safer.

Invented in Germany in 1610,

tinsel was originally made from real silver and, later, lead.

Luckily for the Robshaws, by the '70s,

all new decorations were lead-free.

Ho, ho, ho.

It's in your face a bit.

It has exploded in a tinsel timebomb.

We've got this lovely, natural green tree.

The aim is to completely camouflage the tree.

Perfect. And you've done that really well!

However, in the midst of the energy crisis,

there was one Christmas decoration that had to be used sparingly.

We are asking you to cut down to the absolute minimum

the use of electricity in your homes.

# Gaudete, gaudete... #

Christmas 1973 was a less sparkly affair.

Parts of Britain had power cuts,

fancy lighting displays and festive street lighting were banned

and even the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree

was only lit for three days.

Brandon was a teenager at the time.

There was a government minister who said, "You've got to clean

"your teeth in the dark. Don't waste the bathroom light."

They issued a guideline saying you can only have Christmas tree lights

on for three hours a night

as a kind of, you know, responsible citizens that,

that's what they were supposed to do.

But not everyone took the government's pleas

for restraint seriously.

We're supposed to be saving power at the moment,

but somebody coming into this room might think

you're trying to use as much as possible.

Well, shall I put it this way?

I love Christmas

and I couldn't care less for any government, at the present moment.

# Hosanna in excelsis. #

-# Umba, umba, umba...

-# Tra-la-la-la

# Tra-la-la-la Tra-la-la-la... #

From Wales to the West End,

nothing was going to stop us getting into the Christmas spirit

and 1973 had a festive soundtrack all of its own.

# He's on a sleigh ride All around the world tonight... #

I've sent the Robshaws record shopping,

to get the lowdown on that year's epic battle

for the coveted Christmas number-one spot

from a familiar face.

# Rockin' and a rollin'... #

Oh, wow.

It's Kid Jensen.

-Is that...

-You must be Brandon?

I am Brandon, Yeah, pleased to meet you.

TOP OF THE POPS THEME TUNE

On this very special day,

Legs & Co have invited a special friend along,

to help them move to the sounds of Stevie Wonder...

DJ David "Kid" Jensen

was a presenter on Christmas Top Of The Pops in the 1970s.

The 1970s was really THE golden age of Christmas number ones.

The whole thing started in 1972.

It was John Lennon, with Happy Christmas, War Is Over,

-which was his anti-Vietnam war anthem.

-Yeah, yeah.

That, kind of, started the trend for purposely-written songs

to be played at Christmas time and, hopefully,

from the artist's point of view, to be bought at Christmas.

The Christmas number one meant you were probably going to score

in excess of a million sales.

And how about the 1973 Christmas number one,

when you had three major acts in the '70s competing with each other?

# So here it is Merry Christmas... #

You had Slade, Merry Christmas Everybody.

# Well, I wish it could be Christmas every day... #

Wizzard, featuring Roy Wood.

And Elton John, no less, who in '73 was being established

around the world as the global superstar he would go on to become.

It was a real competition. The papers were full of it,

the radio stations were hyping it up.

The Christmas number one used to be a really big thing

and would be debated weeks in advance of Christmas,

what's going to be the Christmas number one, in that top slot?

With no computers, calculating the Christmas number one in 1973

was an epic feat.

Motorcycle couriers raced around the country

collecting handwritten sales figures

from 250 randomly-selected record shops.

At the British Market Research Bureau,

after two days of frantic calculations,

on the 18th of December, the anxious wait was over.

When the chart is compiled on Tuesday morning,

it's phoned through to the BBC.

Good morning.

Are you all ready?

Right...

-It was won, of course, by...?

-By Slade.

Merry Christmas, Everybody.

# Does your granny always tell ya

# That the old songs are the best...

# And she's up And rock 'n' rolling with the rest?

THEY LAUGH

# So here it is

# Merry Christmas

# Everybody's having fun

# Look to the future now... #

'Listening to that Slade song today really got me into the spirit of'

the excitement of Christmas.

Hearing that record does give you a certain sort of tingle.

# Look to the future now

# It's only just begun... #

Spin. Woo!

That was fun. I think I need to learn the chords

-for that on my ukulele. We can play it tomorrow.

-No.

MUSIC: A Winter's Tale by David Essex

Despite all the frivolity,

one responsibility is still hanging over Rochelle.

'You know, I feel that there's going to be just a slight

'edge on the whole day.'

I might just kill everybody with a sort of, a turkey

that hasn't been cooked through properly.

It's Christmas!

# Oh, I wish it could be Christmas every day...

# So let the bells ring out

# For Christmas. #

Before they can open their presents,

Rochelle's got to tackle the turkey.

What have I got to do?

See if it's got any ice particles inside it? Oh!

I'll go into its cavity...

THEY LAUGH

..and check it out.

Oh...look.

-Ooh...

-That's ice.

Oh, it's an icy bird.

My hands are freezing off, I need a mitten.

A large bird like a turkey really does need proper de-freezing.

Along with the popularity of frozen turkeys

came a spike in food poisoning.

In 1975, there were around 7,000 cases

of salmonella poisoning recorded,

double the numbers of ten years earlier.

If the centre is still frozen,

it will never become hot enough to kill the bacteria.

With no instructions, and no particular guidance,

this is death on a plate.

Perhaps if I run it under the hot tap for a bit,

just to speed up the defrosting.

What's the worst that could happen?

Well, I'm a bit nervous about eating it now.

The turkey might be causing palpitations,

but Rochelle's got a host of convenience foods

to ease her Christmas dinner preparations.

Oh...

-Oh.

-Oh.

-Nothing to see here.

-That's not stuffing.

There's nothing to see.

Frozen veg has certainly made my life easier.

Having the frozen turkey,

I don't see how it's saved me any time, whatsoever,

cos it added in worry time.

It's in. It's done.

# And I believed in Father Christmas... #

'While the turkey's cooking,

'I've adopted a cunning disguise, to deliver the Robshaws' presents.'

Ho, ho, ho!

Have you been a good boy?

THEY LAUGH Naa!

It is actually me.

My word, and what have you chaps come as? The Brady Bunch?

HE STRAINS

'It's the decade of Rochelle and Brandon's childhood Christmases.'

Aw!

I actually had one of those for Christmas.

Has it got the little dancing lady?

Doesn't she look a bit creepy?

Oh.

It's a really boring game, Battleships.

Battleships is a great game.

Remember the ads for that? They were playing it at the opera.

-B6.

-Ssh!

Miss.

-D5.

-Ssh!

Just at the moment when it all goes quiet on stage,

"You sunk my battleship!"

-Yes!

-Do you remember?

-I do remember that.

-Proper ads.

INDISTINCT

-It is Mastermind.

-That's it.

Oh, my God, that was a game for really brainy people, wasn't it?

Oh, I usually, kind of, got it, by about there, by about seven.

If you put five in, it would be very hard to do.

It's very hard. You're supposed to try and pull it like that.

Sit down, you might do yourselves some damage.

You can do it sideways like that, sideways like that,

but hardest one of all was to do both at once.

I had one of those when I was about 15, I remember

if you closed it wrong, it would pinch a nipple.

BRANDON LAUGHS

-Frustration.

-Oh, the pop-o-matic dice.

-I love that.

-Can we do it?

THEY TALK OVER EACH OTHER

-No, no, no.

-Go on, then. Go on, then.

-You've got a little...

That was like, just sort of a modern present,

-to have that dice in there like that.

-Want a go?

-Yeah.

-Six! There.

-SHE LAUGHS

Where's the frustration bit come in?

-It's frustrating if you don't get a six.

-Oh, right.

Some '70s fads, they might not remember.

Got the sort of built-in cap.

I think you put that on your head.

-You put that on your head?

-Yeah.

And you turn it on

-and it fills up with hot air, does it?

-That's it, yeah.

-HE MAKES GURGLING NOISES

-Now...put hot air in there.

-ROCHELLE LAUGHS

-Wow.

'At least Fred is getting one thing on his Christmas list.'

What about that? Do you know what that is?

It's a Commando.

-It's a Commando.

-It's a Commando.

-It's great, isn't it?

'And I haven't been left out of the nostalgia fest, either.'

Oh, he can't wait.

-Ooh.

-Ooh.

I might actually cry.

-See, now that is a genuine, bona fide awesome thing.

-Look.

-There he is!

-Evil Knievel.

-That's Evil Knievel.

This was the toy that I wanted all through my childhood.

"What a jump!"

"Evil's riding the amazing Stunt Cycle.

-"He's..."

-"Evil Knievel!

-"He's a..."

-"K-nockout!"

-"He's..."

-"Ideal!"

WHIRRING SOUND

LAUGHTER

Yes!

# Jingle Bells

# Jingle bells

# Jingle all the way... #

Rochelle's being just as much of a daredevil,

with a classic 1970s recipe from The Complete Avocado Cookbook.

These are avocado

stuffed with Camembert, then deep-fried.

This is the first time that we've had a starter on Christmas Day.

It's a nice '70s treat.

Never thought of deep-frying an avocado before,

but this just seems like a good idea at the time!

In the '70s, avocados cost the equivalent

of more than £3, compared to just £1 today.

But what's Christmas for, if not for splashing out?

Oh. Ooh la la. What is it?

THEY LAUGH

Strange-looking object, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-So, you can eat everything?

-Yeah, the crispy outer crust...

-Replaces the skin.

It is, sort of, nice.

-I think it's really nice.

-It just feels very rich.

-So, I may not actually finish it.

-OK.

-But it is...

don't be offended, it's nice,

I think half of one is... would be just right.

In the '70s, we ate 40% more saturated fat than we do today

and the dinner Rochelle is serving up

contains more than 4,000 calories.

-Look at the size of that bird.

-Way!

# Have yourself

# A merry little Christmas...

# Make the Yuletide... #

-Merry Christmas, everybody.

-Merry Christmas.

-Merry Christmas.

I won't try it,

in case I need to go for medical assistance!

-THEY LAUGH

-So...

-What's that, the turkey?

-Yeah.

-I think it's cooked.

Yeah, I think that is cooked through.

But there is such a lot, isn't there?

-Look at this table.

-Mm, lot of food, isn't it?

-It's a lot of food.

The other thing is, it's not just this huge spread,

we've got a dish of mince pies over there,

satsumas next to the telly and a dish of peanuts up there.

That's what it was like,

you'd just wander through the house, grazing on things as you passed.

-Is that all you did all day?

-Well, that and watch telly.

# Hark, now hear... #

Pour the brandy, liberally.

Watch this.

-Whoa!

-Whoa!

THEY LAUGH

I actually feel so full,

I might have to, um, sort of, loosen my belt by a notch.

-Couple of notches.

-THEY GIGGLE

After a massive dinner,

flopping in front of the telly became a tradition,

even though there were only three channels.

There's a load of comedy on.

We've got The Two Ronnies, the Mike Yarwood Christmas Show

and we've got The Morecambe And Wise Christmas show.

APPLAUSE

In 1977,

40% of us, over 28 million people,

were united around the box,

watching The Morecombe And Wise Christmas Show on BBC One.

This went on to become a Christmas classic

and is repeated to this day.

Do you know, I think I remember this.

-ERNIE:

-We've got a wonderful show for you tonight,

-which I'm sure you're going...

-ERIC:

-All the names up in lights...

..wonderful lighting there, some wonderful scenery,

costumes, beautiful dancing girls...

I've written a special play just for the show.

I'm sure you're going to enjoy it.

I spent a couple of weeks working very hard on this play...

Who's Mr Wrecambe?

LAUGHTER

Ah, that's much better!

-Now, wait a minute, there's just one thing wrong...

-Yes.

SHE LAUGHS

There you are, "Moecambe and Wiser", because I am.

LAUGHTER

-You've almost got it right.

-Almost...

-..there's one other thing missing.

-And what's that?

LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE

THEY LAUGH

That was quite funny.

The 1970s has been a really enjoyable Christmas.

'It's had the excessive Christmas dinner,

'absolute, kind of, mountains of presents

'and we've spent an evening just lazing about,

'absolutely, completely full up.'

It's, it's been a very, kind of, enclosed,

intense, kind of, domestic family Christmas.

Has it got cranberry sauce in it?

I've enjoyed the 1970s.

I think it's been...a really, sort of, fun...Christmas.

THEY LAUGH

'It's taken me back to my youth. It's been nostalgic.'

THEY LAUGH

I've really, really enjoyed the '70s.

Favourite decade so far.

'If this Christmas is anything to go by, most families,'

they're not really looking to a higher power any more,

they're not looking for comfort in times of austerity,

or comfort through a war.

They're just looking for fun, at this point.

# Rockin' around the Christmas tree

# At the Christmas party hop... #

For the next stage of the adventure,

the Robshaws will be celebrating Christmas

in their new 1980s time capsule.

Wow, this is classy, isn't it?

It's all, sort of, like...squishy and pink.

-It feels quite, kind of, big and bright and airy, doesn't it?

-Yeah.

There'll be enough room for our hair...

-THEY LAUGH

-..and our shoulder pads!

Look at this, this is the real '80s, the executive toy.

All these, kind of, high-flying City types

would have these on their desks.

-How often do you think they played with them?

-Well, they played with

them in between deals, I suppose.

We've got a video,

so now can actually watch films that aren't on the telly,

-if we've got videos of 'em.

-SHE GIGGLES

-It's a breakthrough!

-THEY LAUGH

It looks like we're quite well-to-do in the '80s.

Yeah, it does.

By the middle of the decade, we were well and truly Thatcher's Britain.

An aspiration to have it all defined the decade

and never more so than at Christmas.

-NEWSREADER:

-The shops are already talking about a bonanza Christmas.

But not everyone could afford an excessive '80s Noel.

Pauline is unemployed.

She and her boyfriend have to think about Christmas

very carefully indeed if they're to celebrate, at all.

It's Wednesday today and I've got that much in my purse

to see me through till Monday.

Britain was a nation of haves and have-nots.

Today, the government announced that the unemployment figures

have now risen above 2,800,000.

-Ooh.

-Ooh.

-Ooh!

With a plethora of festive treats,

the Robshaws' Christmas box makes it clear which camp they're in.

Vegetable samosas

and...vegetable spring rolls.

-Mango.

-Wow.

-That would've been extremely...

-That would've been very exotic.

-And kiwis.

-Look at that.

-Yeah. The kiwi! That is, I think

the kiwi was a completely new fruit in the '80s.

I was shocked when I saw a kiwi. Couldn't believe it.

Exotic fruit imports more than trebled during the decade,

and were an expensive Christmas indulgence.

I think we are part of a very opulent society.

MUSIC: Driving Home For Christmas by Chris Rea

What it needs is a little bit of magic.

TV and magazine features encouraged us

to make our homes stand out, with ever-more elaborate decorations.

That's not right, mate.

Well, I don't think we want to get, too... Just shove it on, all right?

No.

And how about this for novelty? A four-star loo?

When choosing decorations, the expert's advice

is to try and go for a theme.

You might prefer something a little cooler.

"Ice blue is a dramatic theme,

"yet it is soft and full of charm."

THEY LAUGH

I think having a theme's a really cool thing.

-Yeah.

-Don't you think? We've never had a theme before.

-No, never...

-We never have themes.

-And also, it's getting away from

-all the red and green of Christmas. That traditional...

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-..and it's creating, like it's a Conservative blue.

-Yeah.

So, we're going to celebrate the Tories.

Tory Christmas.

# I'll have a blue

# Christmas...

# Without you... #

That looks quite nice, you look like an ice maiden.

In the '80s, an average set of decorations cost £96,

over 65% more than in the 1970s.

Mrs Thatcher's probably got her kitchen like this.

-Will that do it?

-No!

-What's wrong with it?

-Look at it!

It looks like it's been on the whisky.

BRANDON LAUGHS

Certainly says something, doesn't it?

-That we've probably got more money than sense.

-Mm.

Having perfected their blue and silver winter wonderland,

the Robshaws are free to relax in front the telly.

-NEWSREADER:

-Mekele, a village swamped by 85,000 starving people...

However, in the lead-up to Christmas 1984,

a disaster unfolding in a country thousands of miles away

had us all questioning our excesses.

The people lie without food, without water and without hope.

Most relief agencies are not allowed here because of the war...

-BRANDON:

-Do you remember seeing this, back in the '80s?

I do remember it,

but I feel like the impact of seeing it now

is, kind of, more shocking.

Maybe it's the fact that I've had children

and it actually makes me feel really, really sick.

-It's almost unbearable.

-It is, it's hard to watch.

It makes you feel bad,

just sitting here with all this surplus food, doesn't it?

Fred, is this shocking to you or not?

Cos stuff like this is on the news all the time now.

I mean, I find it shocking,

but cos there's so much coverage of it, I find it just like another

bad news story that I don't really know what to do,

like, what can I do apart from just look at it and be like, that's sad?

You'd heard of Band Aid, had you? You must have heard that song.

-Yeah.

-So, that was, that was a response to this.

-Yeah.

# It's Christmas time... #

Pop stars Bob Geldof and Midge Ure

were the masterminds behind Band Aid.

It's not acceptable for us to sit by while 11 million people die.

Pulling together a galaxy of stars,

they released Do They Know It's Christmas

on December 7th, 1984.

'There's no question that Band Aid have caught the mood of the moment,

'not only with the song itself

'but also with the motives that inspired it.'

Britain's brand-new number one, Band Aid,

Do They Know It's Christmas Time?

# Feed the world... #

Following in the footsteps of the Christmas number ones of the '70s,

this charity record became the fastest-selling single of all time,

raising £5 million for famine relief.

# Feed the world. #

-Did you buy it?

-Oh, yeah.

I think the fact that pop stars were suddenly saying,

"Look, even we want to do something,"

that had so much power over the sort of youth,

you wanted to make things different.

Why I did find quite different is it was the first

sort of distressing thing you see at Christmas,

and I think it was quite clever to do it at Christmas

cos that's when people

are spending the most money on things they don't need.

Our donations to charity practically doubled in the '80s,

but we were spending even more on ourselves.

Inspired by one '80s family's Christmas list,

I've sent Brandon a pile of presents to go under the tree.

I think that people might regard this

as a kind of overindulgent Christmas,

especially when you know that at the time, you know,

side-by-side with all this affluence

there was a lot of poverty even in Britain, let alone overseas.

Um...so maybe there's a slight undertow of...of feeling guilty.

The guilt didn't stop people wanting to flaunt their wealth

and there was one must-have luxury item.

That would have been a controversial present in the '80s.

In real life, I wouldn't have been very comfortable buying a fur coat.

The early '80s saw Brits spending £190 million on fur.

# Merry Christmas Merry Christmas

# But I think I'll miss this one this year. #

There's been a heavy demand for luxury items such as fur coats.

-How do you feel about splashing that out?

-Well, it's once in a lifetime.

-Yeah.

-She's worth it, is she?

-Yes. Oh, yes.

I think, in the 1980s, there was this idea

that if you had lots of money, you were supposed to flaunt it.

And maybe that would be seen to be in bad taste now.

But at the same time, you know,

if you can afford it, it is nice to spoil your family, isn't it?

EASTENDERS THEME PLAYS

The '80s saw the advent

of a brand-new Christmas family tradition.

ALL HUM EASTENDERS THEME

Before this, Christmas television

was dominated by star-studded light entertainment shows.

Look at that woman's hair.

You know who Pat is.

Who's Pat?

In 1986, EastEnders transformed festive TV for ever...

You know that daughter of ours, she's a diamond.

..as the nation was gripped by its first seasonal dose

of adultery, divorce and depression.

HE HOLLERS

I've sent Rochelle and Brandon

for a Christmas drink at the country's most famous boozer.

THEY LAUGH

-Rochelle, Brandon, I've set 'em up for you.

-It's Pat!

-Hello, my dear.

-Hello.

-Please, have a drink. And welcome to the Vic.

ALL: Cheers.

-G & T, is that all right for you?

-Yeah, absolutely perfect.

-Thanks very much.

-Cheers.

-Thanks.

-A pint of lager.

This is the Vic at Christmas time.

I can't believe I'm actually having a pint in the Queen Vic.

PAM LAUGHS

Pam St Clement is the longest-serving

female cast member...

-Merry Christmas!

-Merry Christmas, doll.

..playing Pat Butcher for over 25 years.

I suppose we'd better keep Simon...

Christmas '86 was the story

of Den serving Angie with the divorce papers.

-"Happy Christmas, Ange."

-Is it?

-That's the one.

-That's the one.

-Where were you? You weren't...

I was working in the bar.

-Oh, that's it. Yeah, yeah.

-I loved it. I absolutely loved it.

-And they were such a toxic pair, weren't they?

-Yeah.

But it was brilliant.

This, my sweet, is a letter from my solicitor

telling you that your husband has filed a petition for divorce.

The epic climax had 30 million Brits glued to their sofas.

You need to get yourself a solicitor.

It remains the most-watched Christmas television of all time.

Happy Christmas, Ange.

Doing that story was pretty bold.

To have a story that had that sort of grimness about it

-for the first Christmas episode ever.

-Yeah.

-Hmm.

-On Christmas Day?

-On Christmas Day.

-It was brilliant, wasn't it?

-A stroke of brilliance.

-Yeah. Yes.

It probably stopped a lot of families killing each other,

because they were just watching it on the telly and just thought,

-"Why should we bother because we can watch it being shown."

-Absolutely.

You've touched on the very, very thing

that I have always thought about the Christmases on this show,

is that how many people do you know who think,

"Oh, Lord, it's Christmas time! I've got to do this,

"I've got to see so-and-so, I've got to do that"?

So I've always thought that this programme does a great service

to the British viewer and that's to actually say to them,

"You think you're having a bad time, honey, look at that."

-It's even worse.

-Yeah, absolutely.

THEY LAUGH

It's Christmas Day!

MUSIC: Last Christmas by Wham!

They're nice colours, aren't they? Look at that.

-A cassette! Those were the days. Nice bright colours.

-Yeah.

A few balloons and some bouncy balls.

Whoa!

-A jumper!

-So cute!

That is what I call a Christmas cardie!

Ohh!

-What is it?

-A SodaStream!

THEY LAUGH

-That's great.

-Duran Duran!

-Duran Duran!

-They're nice, aren't they?

-Hmm. Oh, my power beads.

-Yeah.

-Wow!

-Oh, Trivial Pursuit!

-Great game.

-Yeah.

Ohh!

-It's the dog!

-LAUGHTER

-Oh, my goodness!

-Oh, wow!

-Wow!

It's very ostentatious, isn't it?

I mean, it is really in a time of when there was, like,

some people getting a fur coat and some people getting nothing.

There's one big present, which is for all three of you to share.

-Yeah?

-So...

here it comes.

-Are you ready?

-Yes.

-Drumroll.

Just imagine that. Thank you.

-Da-nah!

-Whoa!

-What is it?

-A computer.

-Wow!

Sales of home computers hit the one million mark in 1984,

when the BBC Micro, ZX Spectrum

and Commodore 64 were all top sellers.

Home computers have come a long way in a short time, but the makers

claim there's no point in hanging back

waiting for prices to come down.

Costing nearly £700 in today's money,

the Robshaws' pricey PC looks basic compared to today's tech.

It would take 16 of their Commodore 64s

to match the smartphone in your pocket.

Oh!

-They are playing together.

-But we're not.

This is in a way... This is something that they do and we don't.

It's the dawn of a new age.

The '80s have been fun, we've had lots of presents,

it's the first proper technology.

I thought that computer was a really amazing gift, actually,

If you'd have been children in the '80s

and you got that as a Christmas present

it would have really been something.

# And now it's Christmas

# Yes, it's Christmas

# Thank God it's Christmas! #

Christmas dinner was no exception to the '80s bigger-is-better ethos.

And that could only mean one thing -

leftovers.

The Robshaws are preparing a Boxing Day buffet

following a recipe from a 1986 copy of Ideal Home.

You're going to make the tropical turkey salad.

-Tropical?

-Tropical.

-Strange.

People were so fed up with the turkey,

they're trying to jazz it up a bit.

Promising to make their Boxing Day one to remember

the recipe contains tinned mandarin segments, tinned peaches,

peanuts, mayonnaise, glace cherries and a tin of pineapple chunks.

They might be going to sort of far-flung places,

Caribbean-type holidays,

-and then recreate it with a tin of pineapple chunks...

-Hmm.

..for Christmas.

This is so weird!

People were just desperate to show off

and they didn't actually clock that they'd actually be eating it.

-You know what I mean?

-THEY LAUGH

-That is gross.

-THEY LAUGH

Urgh!

-A bit mad, isn't it?

-Yeah.

For dessert, Rochelle's been inspired

by the Christmas issue of Woman's Own.

She's making a trifle from sherry-drenched Swiss rolls,

fresh pear, tinned custard,

and an ingredient so novel in the '80s,

we put it in everything, kiwi fruit.

I suppose it's quite an indulgent recipe, isn't it?

-BOTH:

-Yeah, it is.

-Yeah.

-Looks messy, doesn't it?

-It looks messy and sad.

What's the opposite of festive?

-Depressive.

-Depressive.

-Underwhelming.

-Underwhelming!

-THEY LAUGH

MUSIC: A Fairytale Of New York by The Pogues

-Hi.

-ALL:

-Hi.

-Hi.

Their guests have arrived to help the Robshaws

-toast the end of their '80s Christmas.

-Whoo!

-Cheers!

-ALL: Cheers!

-Tropical turkey with pineapple.

-What's it like?

-It looks interesting.

-Yeah, it's got a totally tropical taste.

It feels strange in the '80s, actually, I think it's gone so far

into wanting to show off that it's just tipped right over the edge.

I think the less said about that trifle the better.

I think that Christmas is about excess

and I think that that has reached a new level in the '80s.

I suppose the danger is you might actually start to get jaded with it,

you might have so much that you cease to enjoy it.

# And the bells are ringing out for Christmas Day. #

For the final Christmas in their time-travelling adventure,

the Robshaws are leaving the opulent '80s behind to enter the 1990s.

They're returning to the family home they moved into in 1997...

which has had a '90s festive makeover.

"Dear Robshaws. You've come a long way since the 1970s -

"average income has grown by 40%,

"so there is more money to spend on drinking, feasting and presents,

"and there is pressure to get the must-have items of the year.

"Your Christmas table becomes about indulgence.

-"Merry Christmas. Love, Giles."

-Aw. That's nice.

-Aw.

By the 1990s, preparations for Christmas

were starting earlier than ever.

MUSIC: 2 Become 1 by The Spice Girls

In 1996, when the Spice Girls

switched on London's famous West End lights, it was November 7th,

three weeks earlier than the original illuminations of 1954.

There were still seven weeks of shopping to go until Christmas.

No wonder one survey reported that 64% of us

now felt the countdown to Christmas was starting too soon.

It's the 1st of December.

I've arranged delivery of one of the latest fads sweeping the nation.

-ALL:

-Ohh!

What have we got here, then? Look at these. Look.

-We've got a reindeer.

-I love these so much.

-Yes!

-Father Christmas.

-He's on a ladder.

-Look, one of these inflatable one. I like 'em.

Decorating your home with thousands of glitzy lights

was becoming increasingly popular.

With electricity bills falling more than 30% in real terms

between 1995 and 2003, more and more Brits were choosing

to light up their neighbourhoods in neon.

Some people obviously think we're mad,

but we enjoy doing it as well.

So, as a general rule, we get a very good reaction towards it.

A far cry from the early '70s,

when we'd had to conserve power and turn lights OFF at Christmas.

That is the most insane-looking thing.

He's head's on backwards and his feet's on backwards.

-What is she doing?!

-SHE LAUGHS

-Stop!

-That'll do. Pull him up now.

-My arm's going to come off!

-Pull him up!

-No!

He looks like he's had a few drinks, doesn't he?

-Put it round the tree.

-What's the point?

-No!

-What do you mean?

Where do these go, on the walls or the tree?

I think they go in the bin, to be honest with you.

THEY LAUGH

It is all very crafty, isn't it?

What the hell is he doing in there?! Is that Pinocchio?

THEY LAUGH

-All right, are you ready?

-Yeah.

-Ready for the grand switching on?

-Yep.

-ALL:

-Ohh!

I declare these illuminations open.

I think they're beautiful.

I feel very pleased and proud of this, actually.

I do. I look up at it with a feeling of pride.

It's kind of tacky and tasteless but it's supposed to be, isn't it?

It's not quite Oxford Street,

but Brandon's efforts are getting the neighbours talking.

Father Christmas. Look!

How do you feel about living in a road with all this?

It's really nice at Christmas

to come home to a road that's got some Christmas lights.

So, yeah, if you do them, that'd be great.

THEY LAUGH

It's interesting that pretty much all this stuff is nonreligious.

It's Christmas symbols with the religion bit taken out, really.

-ALL:

-Yeah.

-It's just kind of festive cheer.

MUSIC: Stay Another Day by East 17

# If you've got to go away... #

You didn't need to light up your house to spread festive cheer,

you could just send a few Christmas cards.

The Post Office say it's been a bumper year.

They're handling more Christmas cards and parcels than ever before.

First introduced in 1843,

when a modest run of 1,000 was produced, by the end of the 1990s,

we Brits were sending over a billion Christmas cards a year.

Get a little closer together, please.

-ALL:

-Cheese!

THEY LAUGH

The Robshaws' festive greeting will include a family portrait

and a seasonal round robin.

OK, everybody. How do you write these things?

Put "Season's greetings, the Robshaws."

You're supposed to sort of brag about all your accomplishments,

-all the things your family's done.

-That's it.

-Shall we make things up? Just to make it fun.

-Yeah.

We've had a large extension with a very nice patio.

I've won Young Musician of the Year.

So why don't you say, "Brandon won the Eurovision Song Contest."

THEY LAUGH

-We've probably been doing better than you.

-Yes, that's it.

THEY LAUGH

-Happy or glad?

-The first festive e-card was sent in 1992,

but broadband was still ten years away.

By the end of the decade, only 20% of us had internet access at home,

so the Robshaws' festive message will have to go in the post.

"We are happy for you to take such an interest

"in our recent happenings and await a reply."

We don't want to reply. Take that last bit out. We don't want a reply.

THEY LAUGH

I think that just about sums it up.

It's Christmas Eve.

And with online grocery shopping still to be invented,

the Robshaws are heading to the supermarket

for their festive food shop.

You're on sprout detail.

Don't you think that is just... That's Christmas, isn't it?

That's the meaning of Christmas - sprouts, nuts and oranges.

That's not the meaning of Christmas.

Food was now cheaper than ever,

costing just 12% of our income compared to 33% in the '50s...

-What are you doing?

-THEY LAUGH

-It's Christmas!

-Honestly, he doesn't need that.

-We'll have it!

-It's Christmas.

-THEY LAUGH

..leaving us free to splash out.

MUSIC: Stars by Simply Red

It's the decade of abundance. Right, put it in.

Innovations in food production and packaging

were changing the contents of our festive trolleys.

That is a turkey crown,

so it's got no bones, you can just cut straight through that.

-Amazing.

-It's all just meat.

I don't know what they do with the rest of it,

they probably make turkey sausages out of it.

It wasn't just the turkey that was changing -

vegetables, fish and meat were now packed with a combination of gases

to slow down decay.

And sophisticated chilling techniques

helped produce brand-new products.

Look, you can actually get roast potatoes,

you don't even have to bother to roast.

I would feel embarrassed to buy crispy roast potatoes.

It's just lazy. It's just laziness.

I think we're lucky to have it,

-we're lucky to live in a place where we can have so much choice.

-Yes.

-And, you lot, you've never known anything different, have you?

-No.

We've got to the stage now where things

that really would have been real luxury goods back in, say, the '70s

-are within almost everybody's price range.

-Yes.

-Yeah.

And there was one thing we were buying more than ever.

-I think we need something bubbly, don't we?

-Yes.

A 1997 survey saw 81% of Britons

name drinking as their favourite Christmas activity.

Right, I tell you what, we'll get a cava cos that's a bit cheaper,

we can give that to guests, can't we?

And I think we'll get champagne that we can have ourselves.

-Yeah, we could have that. We'll have that.

-We'll have that.

Oh, this is painful.

It's Christmas Day!

# A ray of hope...

It's the big day.

# Flickers in the sky. #

I've arranged a special visitor to get their '90s Christmas

off to a truly indulgent start.

-Brandon.

-Gary Rhodes! What an honour.

-How are you?

-Great to see you.

-A couple of pressies here for you.

-Fantastic. Come in.

So what are we going to have today?

We're going to do the Christmas breakfast, aren't we?

Right. Christmas breakfast.

Because that was one of the things that really changed in the '90s.

It was incredible, you know, because everybody before

you'd read hours on end going through pressies,

-everybody was eating at four or five o'clock.

-That's true,

-Christmas dinner got later and later.

-That's right.

And you were never going to take lunch as well,

-so breakfast became the thing.

-Yeah.

So I thought perhaps that we should do something

that was really quite special. Eggs Royale.

-OK.

-So that is with smoked salmon.

-Ah!

Lemon juice, water, a couple of egg yolks.

It's making me hungry just listening to you talk about it.

Do you know, this is what was happening,

everybody suddenly was watching cookery on TV.

-They wanted to see, "How do you do that?"

-Yeah.

-"How do you make these little secrets?"

-Yeah.

And chefs... You were suddenly on TV and people are recognising you

-as you're walking down the street.

-Yeah.

Before you know it, I'm being invited to movie premieres.

And I'm thinking, "What on earth is going on?! I'm only a cook!"

'90s TV schedules were packed with celebrity chefs like Gary

offering advice on how to have the perfect Christmas...

We're definitely in the Christmas spirit here.

It is true - they do put the lead in your pencil.

..and their cookery books made perfect gifts.

Delia spent an incredible 202 weeks on the bestseller list.

Hey, you lot, breakfast time.

Gary's festive eggs are served with ham or smoked salmon,

previously an expensive luxury.

This is the decade when this became an everyday ingredient

-but something that was unheard of until the '90s.

-Yeah.

It's phenomenal.

Marks & Spencer had first introduced vacuum-packed salmon

into a few of its stores in 1982.

Its popularity prompted a huge expansion

in domestic salmon farming.

By the end of the '90s,

Scotland produced well over 120,000 tonnes a year,

six times more than a decade earlier.

That's absolutely delicious.

Smoked salmon became something

that was on every shelf in every supermarket,

rather than having a go to a delicatessen to find it.

-Everybody could afford to buy smoked salmon suddenly.

-Yeah.

-CORK POPS

-Whoo!

Served up with buck's fizz,

it's a decadent start to a whole day of indulgence.

This is the best Christmas breakfast I've ever had.

-ALL:

-Happy Christmas!

-Cheers.

Yeah, do stockings first, yeah.

Yeah!

-What sweets have you got?

-Why have you taken so many? You pig!

I'm not going to eat 'em, I just want to look at 'em

Mmm. Nice! This'd be a good stocking now.

-There's my socks.

-Oh, Christmas socks!

Is it one of those snappy bands? Oh, yeah.

Hmm. Lovely.

They are definitely a lot more expensive

than in previous years, aren't they?

What is in that stocking would have been the presents,

but now this is just an...an extra.

In the 1940s, the Robshaws' presents were mostly home-made.

-What is it?

-It's a seed drill.

You make little holes in the earth and you put the seeds in.

Right, I'm going to give out the presents.

By the mid-'90s, families were splurging the equivalence of £135

per child at Christmas.

My goodness! Nintendo!

-Oh, wow!

-Luxury goods.

Oh, it's Laa-Laa.

And...

-ALL:

-Tinky Winky!

TV and movie tie-ins topped Christmas lists

and prompted a shopping frenzy.

At some shops scuffles have broken out as frustrated parents

try to get their hands on Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po.

Thanks to easier access to credit,

the abundance enjoyed by the wealthy in the 1980s

was now available to everyone.

By the end of the '90s,

Britons were spending well over £30 billion on Christmas,

much of it on credit.

It was normal just to get out your card

and buy things and pay for them later, wasn't it?

And there was no shame in that, cos everybody was doing it.

Tamagotchi! In the 1940s, that would have seemed like magic, wouldn't it?

-I do think it was better when there was less.

-Do you?

That's it, finished. Yeah, I do. I do.

There's also this thought, if we get this amount every year,

-eventually we're not going to have space for it in our house.

-No.

So, really, you'd have to have a house for this stuff

-and a house to live in.

-And have a house to keep it all in.

# Bells will be ringing

# The glad, glad news. #

-After this, it's my go.

-How did I get down?

-It's my game!

-No!

While the kids enjoy the new festive tradition

of fighting over the games console,

Brandon and Rochelle can embrace the spirit

of a ready-made Christmas.

Put that in a small bowl,

and then if we can sort of chisel out this gratin

without breaking up the top of it...

I think if I was doing it, I'd like to do a little bit more myself.

If everything's out of a packet,

everybody's Christmas tastes exactly the same.

Obviously, the trade-off is you gain

-at least two or three hours in time, don't you?

-Yeah.

# Just hear those sleigh bells jingling

# Ring-ting-alingaling too. #

Polly and I are joining the Robshaws for their final festive meal

to find out if they're any closer

to discovering the recipe for a perfect family Christmas.

-Hello.

-Happy Christmas.

-Merry Christmas.

-CORK POPS Whoo!

-Merry Christmas, everybody.

-ALL:

-Merry Christmas!

THEY LAUGH

-Oh!

-Yeah!

"What did the alien say to the garden?"

-No-one's going to...

-It's going to be a bit like "leader".

-Take me to your...weeder.

-Yes!

-THEY LAUGH

-Did you have to prepare the potatoes?

-No, they were like that.

They were in a foil tray and we just shoved 'em in the oven.

-Did you brown 'em?

-No, we didn't have to do anything,

they were already brown. We just put 'em in the oven.

'In the '40s, the family's Christmas dinner came with just two trimmings.

'Today, they're serving up ten, most of them out of a packet.'

Actually, it's delicious. It's literally all delicious.

My dear friends and relations who invite me round for Christmas lunch,

it's never any nicer than this.

I think that's why the '90s is really specific,

in that processed food in the '70s and '80s was quite low quality,

it was not particularly tasty. By the 1990s,

the food industry has worked out how to do processed food

that says almost the same as the food

that you might have spent all morning

labouring to produce yourself.

-Who's ready for some pud?

-Me!

-Oh, wow! And, obviously, you made yourself?

-Well, obviously.

THEY LAUGH

As we get to the end of the experiment,

are any of these decades so good

that you would want to live them again?

-What about you, Miranda, what's the best decade for you?

-Er...

I liked the '70s,

cos I think you had a nice combination of family all together,

board-game presents and that kind of thing

and you also have Quality Street... et cetera.

THEY LAUGH

So is there anything after all this experiment,

all these meals, all these experiences,

is there anything you'll take away with you?

Is there anything you'll do differently this year?

I don't think I'll do anything differently this year,

but I do think that I'm going to sort of appreciate

those sort of layers of tradition that have brought us to where we are

and why we sort of do things.

And everything that we do every year

puts another little bit of the tradition layer

into the sort of Christmas box.

Like Rochelle, I don't think I'll do anything differently,

but I think I will think about it in a new way.

I think what this experiment has really taught me

is how valuable Christmas is,

cos in all sorts of different times,

when people had different problems to contend with,

from the war in the 1940s to the economic crisis in the 1970s,

it's always a kind of light shining in the darkness, I think.

And I'm going to really make up my mind

to have a great Christmas this year and every year.

# The fire is so delightful... #

And there's one thing that can make any Christmas magical.

# Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. #

Oh, it's snowing!

It's snow!

Oh, look at this! Look at the snow! It's snowing!

Over the course of their festive adventure

the Robshaws have seen huge changes in the way we celebrate Christmas.

It's gone from a short holiday when the buses still ran

and Christmas dinner was modest and presents were mostly home-made,

to a week of festive indulgence

when parents spend an average of £135 per child on presents

and the abundance of luxury goods available

means that we all eat and drink far more than we ought to.

THEY CHEER

I started the experiment feeling anxious about Christmas,

but I'm strangely looking forward to Christmas this year.

So I'll probably end up being a Christmas bore,

probably go on Christmas Mastermind.

-ALL:

-# ..to the future now... #

I wish I could say that it's made me learn

that you don't need presents to be happy but, to be honest,

in the '40s it wasn't that nice getting a home-made spinning top.

You know, you would rather have a Game Boy than that.

I think having gone through this,

I'll put more thought into what I buy people,

because it's part of a Christmas tradition,

it's not just about throwing things at people

whether they want them or not.

Really, you've sort of whetted my appetite for Christmases to come

and I think that I'm going to make sure

every Christmas is great from now on.

Even though I've lived through six decades of it,

I still love Christmas.

It's become less of a religious thing and more of just a giving day.

It's still probably my favourite day of the year.