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May 3, 2026
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The 70s 80s 90s Blog

Three Decades of History with TV historian Tony McMahon

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    School summer holidays in the 1970s

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80s

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New Years Eve in Glasgow in the 1980s

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 months ago114 mins

In 1989, TV historian Tony McMahon spent the last New Year’s Eve of the decade in Bellshill just outside Glasgow and it was a culture shock!

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Coventry
  • 1980s
  • 1981 riots
  • Politics

Coventry heroes escaping the Ghost Town

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago013 mins

In 1981 – Coventry really was the Ghost Town but local heroes like Neville Staple and Errol Christie were trying to make a difference – as Tony McMahon reports

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short sharp shock Whitelaw
  • 1970s
  • 1980s
  • crime
  • Politics

Short Sharp Shock – nightmare prison regime

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago011 mins

Short Sharp Shock was a military-style prison regime for young offenders that wrecked lives and didn’t work as Tony McMahon discovers

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Mods Rockers Tamworth
  • 1970s
  • 1980s
  • Music
  • Politics

Mods and Rockers clash in Tamworth – 1979

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago010 mins

Mods and Rockers were at each others’ throats again in the late 1970s in the town of Tamworth in England as Tony McMahon discovers

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  • 1970s
  • 1980s
  • Politics

1967 – when abortion became legal in the UK

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 months ago016 mins

From the 1960s to the 1990s, abortion became a culture war issue that is hugely divisive down to the present day as TV historian Tony McMahon reports

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  • 1980s
  • Politics

When the BBC refused to screen Dallas

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago24 mins

In 1985 the BBC lost the rights to screen the TV series Dallas to ITV and refused to screen the remaining episodes

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  • Politics

Can we avoid a recession by looking at the 1990s?

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 months ago09 mins

The next recession will very likely resemble the early 1990s when suicide rates soared as TV historian Tony McMahon recalls and reports

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brainwashing cult
  • Culture

Most evil cults – from Branch Davidians to Aum Shinrikyo

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 months ago041 mins

Five evil brainwashing cults are examined by TV historian Tony McMahon including the Branch Davidians and Heaven’s Gate

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yuppie TV ad
  • Politics

Yuppie TV ads of the 1980s

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago26 mins

In the 1980s, the yuppie phenomenon was latched on to by the advertising industry creating a slew of yuppie TV ads as Tony McMahon discovers

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Kojak 1970s
  • Politics

Kojak – 1970s police drama game changer

The 70s 80s 90s Blog3 years ago3 years ago09 mins

Kojak was one of the great true crime police series of the 1970s with Telly Savalas as the lollipop sucking detective

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Buy Original Rude Boy – biography of Neville Staple, The Specials

Boxing and racism in the 80s

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Tony McMahon – your blogger – circa 1982

TV historian Tony McMahon journeys through the politics, culture, and history of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s

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