Things you don't see anymore

Brilliantine
Anti Dandruff Brylcreem (the one in the blue pot)

I used both of these when I was a teenager. I used to put copious amounts of gunk on my hair back then. I no longer use these products anymore, and haven't used them since then. I just noticed that they seem to have disappeared from chemists and supermarket shelves. Looking back, it was no wonder that everyone else used to call me "Elvis" or "Slick Rick", lol.

I've still got all of my hair, but it's a miracle that I didn't end up looking like Telly Savalas by the time I hit my 20s, lol...
 
factormax said:
Sweets in jars (too many varieties to list), sold by the quarter pound or two ounces in paper bags.

Actually, I've come across a few shops selling them, but they tend to be a gimmick.
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I remember there being one or two of those shops around when I was growing up. I was especially fond of Rum N' Raisin Fudge and Coconut Mushrooms. The closest thing that I saw to these shops more recently was the pick n'mix sections in Woolworths and Wilko, but it's not really the same.

Our local Thorntons shop DID used to sell the Rum N'Raisin Fudge also, but now they are gone too. I still have fond memories of Woolworths and Thorntons. Those were the days...
 
Blockbusters (the video rental shop, not the old quiz show with Bob Holness, lol)

I used to spend many a pleasant hour (and quite a lot of money) in these places. They were ideal for choosing an evening's entertainment for nights when there was sweet bugger all on the telly. Back then, everyone I knew was a member of Blockbuster Video and other video shops like it. I even knew some of the staff, as they went to my high school. It was always busy, especially in the evenings and at the weekends. I think their popularity started to wane when DVDs became popular, and their fate was really sealed with the introduction of the internet and now online streaming services. My local shop closed down years ago, and is now a Doner Kebab shop. How tastes (and trends) change. I walk past the shop quite often, and I still think about them. I still have my membership card somewhere. It will always remind me of those golden times.
 
FJY said:
Brilliantine
Anti Dandruff Brylcreem (the one in the blue pot)

I used both of these when I was a teenager. I used to put copious amounts of gunk on my hair back then. I no longer use these products anymore, and haven't used them since then. I just noticed that they seem to have disappeared from chemists and supermarket shelves. Looking back, it was no wonder that everyone else used to call me "Elvis" or "Slick Rick", lol.

I've still got all of my hair, but it's a miracle that I didn't end up looking like Telly Savalas by the time I hit my 20s, lol...
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Now you mention it, I don't see many products advertised as treating dandruff at all nowadays. Maybe the 'problem' has been eradicated.
 
factormax said:
Now you mention it, I don't see many products advertised as treating dandruff at all nowadays. Maybe the 'problem' has been eradicated.
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There is the Head & Shoulders shampoo ad on TV, of course. I believe that is marketed as an "anti-dandruff" product. It's the only product of its kind that is currently advertised, though.
 
Will Hay films on the TV


I was easily pleased on Saturday mornings as a kid, before the Multi Colored Swap Shop emerged


Which leads us on to Cheggers Plays Pop


And who could forget Tiswas?

 
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Landlines in peoples' homes.

Whenever I've been in anyones' home, I haven't seen a landline phone, or anyone who lives there using it. This seems to have become more prevalent in the last decade, at least. Whatever happened to the usage and popularity of "normal" home phones? Nowadays, it seems as though every one has a mobile phone.

RIP landlines. They're rarer than rocking horse shite now. These days, mobile phones are like backsides - everyone's got one.
 
Paul L said:
Will Hay films on the TV


I was easily pleased on Saturday mornings as a kid, before the Multi Colored Swap Shop emerged


Which leads us on to Cheggers Plays Pop


And who could forget Tiswas?

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The same could be said for Hammer horror films. They were on late-night TV fairly regularly when I was a kid. Now, they are very rarely shown on network TV at all.

You mentioned old Will Hay films. You don't get many Carry On films now, either, except on Bank Holiday Mondays. I guess that films like this are seen as "old hat" by younger people these days. TV has changed. People aren't interested in "grandad" films anymore.
 
Well that's largely because mobile contracts now are pretty much 'unlimited minutes' and you pay for the data speeds, so, given that you pretty much need a mobile anyway, paying extra for using a landline makes no sense for most people. I keep mine just to ring my mobile if I lose it. And for emergency because mobile reception can be flaky here.
 
On landlines, BT are programmatically replacing copper with fibre (to the house) and so your landline migrates over to a digital VOIP. You can plug your old phones into the router, so it has a digital converter inside rather than requiring specifically a digital phone. So, yes, RIP ... I don't think you can even buy one anymore (other than the functionality via digital).
 
pjgh said:
On landlines, BT are programmatically replacing copper with fibre (to the house) and so your landline migrates over to a digital VOIP. You can plug your old phones into the router, so it has a digital converter inside rather than requiring specifically a digital phone. So, yes, RIP ... I don't think you can even buy one anymore (other than the functionality via digital).
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I suppose landlines will no longer work during a power-cut with this being the case?
 
havings said:
I suppose landlines will no longer work during a power-cut with this being the case?
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Mobiles will work until the back-up generators at the cellular towers run out of diesel. Broadband internet will die with no electricity as broadband services require power at the amplifiers to boost signal. Its the same scenario for fiber direct to exchanges, once the diesel running the back-up generators runs out. In the South East, UK Power Networks, has written to everyone, to ascertain if they qualify for their "priority service register" in case of a power cut; I suspect they may provide a camping stove and gas canister to vulnerable households.
 
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hotmetal said:
Well that's largely because mobile contracts now are pretty much 'unlimited minutes' and you pay for the data speeds, so, given that you pretty much need a mobile anyway, paying extra for using a landline makes no sense for most people. I keep mine just to ring my mobile if I lose it. And for emergency because mobile reception can be flaky here.
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I used to have a mobile phone, but the bloody thing wasn't very reliable. It had very poor sound quality and needed to be recharged constantly. It ended up costing me a fortune, so in the end I got fed-up with it and sold it to my local branch of CEX. Now, I am quite tempted to get a smartphone, but haven't bothered yet. New technology scares me a little bit. I also worry that, if I did bite the bullet and buy one, the bloody model I choose would be obsolete within 6 months. I have absolutely no luck with modern technology. My pockets are not deep enough to keep upgrading to newer models, in any case.
 
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