Well did the future live up to it?

[maytreefrannie]

I remember washing day as a child in the 1950's and my poor old mum heating the water in the copper then soaking, scrubbing, mangling then rinsing three times and mangling again. I remember her saying,"One day there'll be a machine invented where one puts one's dirty washing in, press a button and it'll all be done for you!"
I also remember tinking that in 2000 I would be 50, that day would surely never come!!

I remember that too - the amount of work that went into it, yet I remember my mother singing quite a lot of the time! I guess most of the week was spent drying, airing, ironing the stuff as well.

When I was a child, I asked my mother: 'What would you do if you won £100?'

She laughed, then answered: 'I'd pay all my bills!'

What would we answer today? Something like,
'I'd go to the supermarket and be able to carry out what I buy!' (OK, a bit of exaggeration)
or
'If I won £100 I'd have a night out.'

[SlugLobber]

Too young to remember hand washing as such, but I do remember the twin tub washing machines, which were the bees knees 'back then'. Did anyone watch Now That's What I Call Music 1983 on Sat/Sun? They were talking about Walkmans coming out and CDs being developed. Now I have an ipod shuffle - about 40mm x 30mm x 7mm. That's TINY!

Never really thought about an invention that hasn't materialised. I've had plenty of my own ideas that I haven't had the motivation to make/patent, which others have!

[Nicos]

Discovering the flame of eternal life and time travel haven't yet been sussed- nor has tele-transportation
Fast flights across the planet...well they did make a start with Concorde- but...well

I always fancied one of those silver wigs worn with the all in one body suit- well it looks like I've started growing my own silver hair now so I won't need a silver wig
...all in one body hugging suitmight put a few peeps off their food if I were to wear one at a restaurant

[Alison]

If you watch that bizarre hole in the wall prog on Saturday night then you'll soon realise that all in one silver body suits don't really suit anybody! Very unforgiving.

[Stacey Steve]

Nicos realised the point of my thread, it was all the things we were led to believe were going to be ours.

Perhaps I watched to much Tomorrows World, I don't know.

I don't knock all the advances we have now, never mind mobile phones etc. I think of where we have advanced, no diptheria, measle epidemics, polio, scarlet fever.

And Alison, no silver body suits don't suit everyone (I would look like an airship) but the "promise" was, in what was presented to me was, that there was no obesity.

[SarzWix]

Unfortunately a lot of my 'Visions of the Future' were formed by reading a couple of books in English lessons - 'Brother in the Land' by Robert Swindells, all about the after effects of nuclear war, and 'Future Track 5' by Robert Westall, all about mind control & Big Brother style government, in a super-modern high-tech setting. Both were hideous views of the future, which I'm thankful haven't come true!!

[lynda66]

i'm still hoping for meals in a pill ...... saves all that cooking and using the dishwasher ....

[Mcbee]

i'm still hoping for meals in a pill ...... saves all that cooking and using the dishwasher ....

You should have beenan astronaut...............obviously missed your vocation, or perhaps you're keeping it quiet

[Gro-Bag]

I remember all us kids in primary being told that when we had our own kids we'd be going for holidays on the moon. It always sounded unlikely (I was right all along Mrs Beadle!) and I'm happy we don't do that.
I also remember the 'robots that do all the housework' story - and the masses of leisure time story - I was totally taken in by those. Where are my cute little robots with their trays of tea and biccies?

[Polly Fouracre]

I remember all us kids in primary being told that when we had our own kids we'd be going for holidays on the moon. It always sounded unlikely (I was right all along Mrs Beadle!) and I'm happy we don't do that.
I also remember the 'robots that do all the housework' story - and the masses of leisure time story - I was totally taken in by those. Where are my cute little robots with their trays of tea and biccies?

I think perhaps the "robots" are, in fact,washing machines, dishwashers,food processors etc.

[squashysu]

hindsight is a wonderful thing isnt it, also dreams, well i dont know what the future holds, but i was told that its gonna be "orange" lol!!!

I remember as a kid trying to work out how old I would be by the year 2000 and thinking how old that would be and wow I have surpassed that and still manage to be here! lol!!!!

I love technology and thank all the boffins for passing it on, cause without them, I wouldnt have found you lot x have a great day xx

[Gro-Bag]

Nope - it was definitely cute little robots with faces and trays of drinks and biccies. One red, one blue, about 3 ft high and making a slight clunking whirring noise as they walked.

A dishwasher would be fab, I live for the day...never tried a food processor, but the washing machine is a huge improvement on my Mum's old twin tub and mangler even if I do have to kick it to get it to spin.