Born on 1 January 1983

Back in 1983, life felt like it was moving at a slightly more soulful pace, usually soundtracked by the synth-pop echoes of Eurythmics or Culture Club drifting out of every transistor radio. If you’d nipped down the pub then, you’d likely be nursing a pint of Watneys or a chilled Babycham, surrounded by a thick haze of smoke and the frantic chirping of a *Space Invaders* machine in the corner. It was the year the seatbelt law finally kicked in, and we all felt a bit posh with our new "A" registration plates.

We spent our evenings huddled around the telly for the very first Breakfast Time with Selina Scott, or losing our minds over the sheer tension of *The Magnusons* on *Mastermind*. The kids were obsessed with their Casio digital watches and Cabbage Patch Kids—if their parents were lucky enough to find one—while we all flocked to the cinema to see the return of Luke Skywalker in *Return of the Jedi*. It was the year of the "Brinks-Mat" robbery and that blistering summer heatwave that turned every park brown, making a Cornetto feel like the height of luxury.

It wasn't perfect, but there was a genuine magic in waiting all week for *Top of the Pops* just to see if Michael Jackson would do the moonwalk again.