| shoulder pads | and big earrings, ra-ra skirts, tracksuits, short shorts, slouch socks, berets and wide legged slacks were "it" in the 1980s. |
| the Falklands War | The Falklands War was a 10-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial dependency, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. |
| aerobics craze | Aerobics was epitomised by leg warmers, headbands and wrist bands, as well as leotard that rode up extremely high, often over colourful tights. The workouts themselves involved running, bouncing around and stretching from side to side. |
| telephone | Now approx. 50% British households had it. Microwaves were becoming commonly used, just as washing-up liquid and disposable nappies. |
| The Body Shop | Household inventions also supported the trend of working women, epitomized by women such as Anita Rodick, the founder of The Body Shop. 6 out of 10 women went out to work in the early 1980s. |
| Disco, Synthpop, New Wave and New Romantics, Gothic rock, heavy metal | Wham!, Depeche Mode, Adam and the Ants, Culture Club, Ultravox, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Bauhaus, Joy Division, Jesus and Mary Chain, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, Iron Maiden are some of the prominent British bands of the period. |
| Princess Diana | Diana came to prominence in 1981 upon her engagement to Prince Charles. She became Princess of Wales when she married Charles on 29 July 1981. Diana remains one of the most popular members of the royal family throughout history. In 1980s she represented the essence of style and charm. |
| Skinheads | A subculture which originated among working class youths in London, England, in the 1960s, and spread worldwide in the 1970s and 80s. |
| Sony Walkman | was a revolution in portable music. 100 million units were made by 1992. |
| ZX80 | The first home computer by a Cambridge company Sinclair Research Ltd.,founded by Clive Sinclair, was available for less than GBP100. |
| Coal not dole | The miners' strike of 1984-85 was a major industrial action to shut down the British coal industry. |
| Life Aid/Band Aid | Live Aid was a benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as an ongoing music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the Ethiopian famine. Band Aid were a charity supergroup featuring mainly British and Irish musicians and recording artists. |
| Neighbours | is an Australian soap opera first brodcast in 1985. It has been especially popular in the UK where it achieved huge popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. |
