Great video! Nice to see how Plymouth looked all those years ago, before the main shopping streets were Pedestrianised. The cars of the time, Austin Maestro, Ford Sierra's, Austin Maxi etc, the old TSW building at Derry's cross along with car park, and Petrol station underneath it. I was 9 months old when this was filmed!
Rose tinted glasses. Before the internet and social media A LOT more injustice went on. Sure life was good if you were straight white males although workplaces would get away with a lot more worker safety violations. But it was a very bad time for minorities, LGBT people and to a lesser extent women. When a black man got kicked out of a store for being black or got beat up by cops for instance nothing happened because it was the 80's and there weren't the means to expose it to millions of people to express their outrage guaranteeing something gets done about it. No it was just something that happens they had to accept.
Notice how many independent shops there were and how thriving the city centre was. Now it is pitiful for the such a large city. How sad. Thank you for recording this video at the time, how times have changed with so many cities and villages due to bad planning and bonkers ideas of tin pot councils and Westminster deciding what is best. I found it most enjoyable to see on film how Plymouth was before pedestrianization.
This is brilliant! So many memories! I was 12 in 86. The reflection of Woolies sign in the wing mirror when the car stopped outside Wimpy! Even the Pepper Pot is there…which is still around. I passed it a few weeks ago and it is a tiny student letting agents.
Historic, if you were their you were their at that time I was about a year later 1987, well I often think of the mild winters and super summer days in Devon.
As with most cities, Plymouth was a far nicer place to live in the 50’s 60’s 70’s & 80’s. Very interesting to see those old shop names I’d totally forgotten about. Happy days!
A link to this popped up on Facebook yesterday. Thank you so much for sharing this. I was in Plymouth city centre yesterday and lamenting on how poor and run down it looked. Then seeing this, when I was 21 and working in the city centre brought back so many happy memories. And as was previously mentioned, even the tantalising glimpses of HMV and Woolworths in the car mirror are thrilling. I just wished it carried on as you were driving up North Hill. I would have loved to have seen Mutley Plain 1986 style. Thank you again.
I just love this. Simple piece of video footage reflecting on what life was like then. I would have been six, and can see in my minds eye everything g here. Thank yoy
Oh my, this is amazing. I was 7 years old then and this brings back so many vivid memories of going in town at Christmas with my grandparents. The city centre layout hasn't really changed all that much since, its just so dead and dull in there now, unlike how busy and colourful it was in the 80's. Please tell me you have more of these?
