Electric Dreams

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[edit] General Information

History, Technology Documentary hosted by Robert Llewellyn and published by BBC in 2009 - English narration

[edit] Cover

[edit] Information

The Sullivan-Barnes family are sent back in time to experience a life of technological advancements through the Seventies, Eighties, and Nineties. Before you run outside to scream at the top of your voice that we have finally cracked time travel I would like to point out that the family didn’t actually go back in time. Technology is not the only thing which changes in each episode as the family wear clothes, and their home is decorated, in a style fitting of that particular decade. There is a technical support team on hand to help and advise the family as they tackle the changes in each episode. The three experts are Brits Tom Wrigglesworth and Dr Ben Highmore plus American ex-pat Gia Milinovich who I happen to find very sexy in a geeky kind of way. The narrator is none other than Robert Llewellyn, most famous for playing Kryten in Red Dwarf, and his familiar voice has a comforting effect. A family and their home are stripped of all their modern technology to live a life of decades past. The family must live through the digital wilderness of the 70s, 80s and 90s at a rate of a year per day, starting at 1970. “I think this is a must to view, just to show your children what hardship we had to endure, it brought back so many memories, the only reason I have released this in Forum tracker even though it’s a documentary, is I think its slightly edging to the side of a reality show. artistharry.”

[edit] 1970s

By modern standards the 1970s are decidedly low-tech and the family face many challenges. They endure a spell without central heating and get to grips with the suburban favourite, the Teasmade. They see the effects of 70s industrial unrest on their home when they experience a power cut and home entertainment becomes even more limited when their newly-arrived colour television breaks down. But it's not all grim - the arrival of chopper bikes, the first video game and a mix tape expert who shows them how to create the soundtrack for their very own slide show all help to prove that life in the 1970s had its upside too.

[edit] 1980s

The family must live through the digital wilderness of the 1980s at a rate of a year per day, starting in 1980. They have their very own technical support team who source and supply them with the vintage technology that would have been available to British households during the decade, including iconic technology such as the Walkman, Game and Watch and the CD player.

For a modern family it is a decade of challenges. In 1980 they attempt to cook a roast dinner in a microwave oven, as consumers of the time were encouraged to do. They are faced with a bewildering choice of home computers in 1982 and the arduous task of finding a rental shop that still supplies films on video cassette for their newly-arrived VHS player.

Dad takes a spin in the most famous technological flop of the decade, the Sinclair C5, but the family do experience an 80s success story when New Wave icons Ultravox pay a surprise visit to demonstrate the synthesiser technology which soundtracked the era.

[edit] 1990s

The family must live through the communication and home entertainment revolution of the 1990s, at a rate of a year per day, starting in 1990. They have their own Technical Support Team to source and supply them with the vintage technology that would have been available to British households during the decade. They attempt to stay in touch using pagers and take a giant mobile phone and a rudimentary digital camera on a day trip to Paris in honour of the opening of the Channel Tunnel in 1994. Workplace technology becomes increasingly portable, but a home without access to the internet proves frustrating and the arrival of the 1990s World Wide Web is a far cry from what the kids are used to. The 1990s see a whirlwind of technological progress and the family are inundated with gadgets and upgrades that infiltrate every area of their home. They are left reeling by the pace of change and surprised by the impact of 1990s tech on family life.