‘vivid, brilliantly researched … Turner may be an anorak, but he is an acutely intelligent anorak’
Francis Wheen, New Statesman
‘a masterful work of social history … told with much wit’ Roger Lewis, Mail on Sunday
The 1970s. Strikes, power-cuts, the three-day week, inflation, Paki-bashing and the dead left unburied. Or, from another perspective, a period dominated by Morecambe & Wise, glam rock, detective fiction, club football, Get Carter, The Sweeney and The Good Life.
It was the best of times and the worst of times. Wealth inequality was at a record low, but industrial disruption was reached a record high. These were the glory years of Doctor Who and Coronation Street, but the darkest days of the Northern Ireland conflict.
In 1978 London Weekend Television launched a new series, The South Bank Show, announcing that it would cover ‘the consumed arts – cinema, rock, paperbacks and even television.’ It was an acknowledgement that if you wanted to understand modern Britain, you had to look at popular culture. Crisis? What Crisis? follows that lead, telling the story of Britain in the 1970s through the soaps and sitcoms, the music and movies, the fiction, fashion and sport of the time. And it adds one crucial ingredient: politics considered as one of the ‘consumed arts’.
This is not an insider’s account of the crises that wracked Britain in that decade. Rather it is a viewer’s history, a world seen through the eyes of the mass media, in which Enoch Powell, Margaret Thatcher and Tony Benn jostle for space with David Bowie, Hilda Ogden and Margo Leadbetter.
Alwyn W. Turner is the author of The Biba Experience and Cult Rock Posters. He lives in London.
www.alwynwturner.com
Crisis? What Crisis?: Britain in the 1970s
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Review
'A masterful work of social history... told with much wit'
(Roger Lewis Mail on Sunday )‘Vivid, brilliantly researched... Turner may be an anorak, but he is an acutely intelligent anorak'
(Francis Wheen New Statesman )‘This well-researched and witty text recounts how the media reflected politics in an era of glamour, bad fashion and inflation… An account that displays wit, colour and detail’
(Brian Groom Financial Times )‘An adventurous and enjoyable reassessment of a much-maligned decade.’
(Nick Rennison BBC History Magazine )‘A real lesson in social history but without the stuffiness… A good fun reminder of the “decade that taste forgot”’
(Manchester Evening News )Review
'entertaining and splendidly researched ... He has delved into episodes of soap operas and half-forgotten novels to produce an account that displays wit, colour and detail.'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
By Balraj Gill
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Not only is it a foreign country, but in certain aspects of society, it may as well be another planet. Revisiting 70s Britain, a time ruled by pipe-smoking PMs and trade union bogeymen such as Scargill and Gormley, a time when the nation huddled each evening around 3 TV channels, rubbish mountains piled up in Leicester Square, when the whole country seemed close to collapse, seems like entering a parallel universe and is portrayed well in Turner's book.
Is it true, as has been advanced by many commentators, that here in the early part of the 21st century, we are repeating history and returning to the upheavals of the 70s? A read through of Crisis? will show the reader that the real mood of despair and havoc wreaked by the turmoil of the 70s is still much worse than the current situation (I hope!). But if you think we could be returning to those dark days, then a read through of Crisis? may well be good primer for what to expect.
As well as the political and economic aspects of the decade, Turner takes time to guide us through the cultural life of the 70s, from what was on the box, songs in the charts and the books we were reading. In this respect, one of amazing things I learnt was that Mary Whitehouse's campaign to clean up the media was fuelled by a belief that obscenity in the media was a communist strategy driven and funded by Moscow to ultimately overthrow British society, inspired by what her husband had read in the Old Testament!... Read more ›
Is it true, as has been advanced by many commentators, that here in the early part of the 21st century, we are repeating history and returning to the upheavals of the 70s? A read through of Crisis? will show the reader that the real mood of despair and havoc wreaked by the turmoil of the 70s is still much worse than the current situation (I hope!). But if you think we could be returning to those dark days, then a read through of Crisis? may well be good primer for what to expect.
As well as the political and economic aspects of the decade, Turner takes time to guide us through the cultural life of the 70s, from what was on the box, songs in the charts and the books we were reading. In this respect, one of amazing things I learnt was that Mary Whitehouse's campaign to clean up the media was fuelled by a belief that obscenity in the media was a communist strategy driven and funded by Moscow to ultimately overthrow British society, inspired by what her husband had read in the Old Testament!... Read more ›
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By Big Jim
TOP 50 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Both these books cover some of the same ground but equally find much to say that is not covered in the other volume. I have therefore decided to do a joint review that will appear under both books.
"When the lights went out" (WTLWO) is the more in depth of the two, significantly longer and has many interviews with some of the main participants which cast a modern eye on the events of the seventies where hindsight often proves, as always, 20-20. It concentrates on the political machinations of the time and brings in more of the outside world and how this affected Britain and how Britain affected the world than "Crisis what crisis?" (CWC). This means that I, as someone who was born in 1960, see this book almost like a straight history book of a period in which I spent my formative years. There is lots of stuff in here that I was not aware of and it is written in a witty and engaging style so that it is easy to read but offers plenty food for thought. It does not, however, engage me on the personal level as much as CWC does because it barely mentions things like sport, TV shows and pop music, indeed most of what makes up the interests of a teenage lad. And this is where CWC scores.
If anything there is too much reliance in this book of the author stating how the issues of the day were reflected in novels, pop music and TV programmes in particular. James Herbert's "The Rats" is surely given too much attention as a comment of the times - indeed rats of various types are a recurring theme. The author's obvious interest in the music of the time informs the chapter titles, and many of the conclusions he draws. He also spends a lot of time showing where sitcom characters in particular pass comment on current events.... Read more ›
"When the lights went out" (WTLWO) is the more in depth of the two, significantly longer and has many interviews with some of the main participants which cast a modern eye on the events of the seventies where hindsight often proves, as always, 20-20. It concentrates on the political machinations of the time and brings in more of the outside world and how this affected Britain and how Britain affected the world than "Crisis what crisis?" (CWC). This means that I, as someone who was born in 1960, see this book almost like a straight history book of a period in which I spent my formative years. There is lots of stuff in here that I was not aware of and it is written in a witty and engaging style so that it is easy to read but offers plenty food for thought. It does not, however, engage me on the personal level as much as CWC does because it barely mentions things like sport, TV shows and pop music, indeed most of what makes up the interests of a teenage lad. And this is where CWC scores.
If anything there is too much reliance in this book of the author stating how the issues of the day were reflected in novels, pop music and TV programmes in particular. James Herbert's "The Rats" is surely given too much attention as a comment of the times - indeed rats of various types are a recurring theme. The author's obvious interest in the music of the time informs the chapter titles, and many of the conclusions he draws. He also spends a lot of time showing where sitcom characters in particular pass comment on current events.... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By Mark Keeble
Format:Paperback
The seventies was a cathartic period for Britain. The economy was in chaos, industrial unrest was at its height, the swinging sixties had left a hangover of moral dilemmas and, with the loss of empire, the country had also seemingly lost its place at the international top table. Many of the debates and issues which still set the news and political agenda in Britain to the present day became established as prominent themes during the decade, making the seventies an essential period to study if one wants to understand modern Britain.
Alwyn Turner's study of the period is perhaps not an 'academic' work but it gives a good insight for the layman into the events, issues and themes of the time. What makes it eminently readable is the wealth of anecdotes and quotes not just from politics, but also from popular culture: television, film, music, the press and fiction, demonstrating how the political and social environemt influenced the cultural output of the period and was in turn influenced by it. In doing so it shines a light not only on the main themes of the book but also on the way they were percieved and experienced by the general public through the media.
A thoroughly enjoyable read.
Alwyn Turner's study of the period is perhaps not an 'academic' work but it gives a good insight for the layman into the events, issues and themes of the time. What makes it eminently readable is the wealth of anecdotes and quotes not just from politics, but also from popular culture: television, film, music, the press and fiction, demonstrating how the political and social environemt influenced the cultural output of the period and was in turn influenced by it. In doing so it shines a light not only on the main themes of the book but also on the way they were percieved and experienced by the general public through the media.
A thoroughly enjoyable read.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Context is all, and in this much needed reappraisal of the 70s, Alwyn W Turner has managed not only to put it firmly within its context sandwiched between the tectonic social shifts of the 60s and the ghastly me-me greed of Thatcher's 80s but also within itself. It's not another glossy of recycled pictures of Abba, whacky fashions and weird convenience foods - the things drawn out for those inevitable 50 Best shows on Saturday nights - but as Turner says,'an attempt to depict both the high politics and low culture of those times'. And it is a very successful attempt, written in an elegantly transparent style with occasional flashes of sly wit.
Any student of modern social history, anybody writing about the music or politics of the time, and anybody who lived through that oddly uneasy decade should read this book. Context is all.
Any student of modern social history, anybody writing about the music or politics of the time, and anybody who lived through that oddly uneasy decade should read this book. Context is all.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The 70's culture and politics
Excellent portrayal of the nation during the most depressing economic period since the 2nd World War. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Susan A. Harris, Prints
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spot On Nostalgiafest (And Probably A Good Historical Account)
Having lived through the 70's, it is hard to judge this book empirically as an historical account, but in writing style it certainly compares well to the dusty old tomes I had to... Read more
Published 6 months ago by mr stephen knight
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Missed Opportunity
As a teenager who was starting to become very aware of the issues and politics during the seventies and the sense of never ending turmoil that existed back then, I was greatly... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mezzofanti Due
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent addition to the 'decade by decade' history genre
Along with Dominic Sandbrook, this is an author who provides the most concise but often amusing perspective of an extremely turbulent decade. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Paul Christian
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book is tour de force of the sexy 70s
This book is a brilliant and rollicking expose of how Britain fell and lost her way in the 1970s. Turner draws on a range of source material based on films, tv programmes, novels,... Read more
Published 24 months ago by Mr. Craig Henderson
4.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful assessment of my favourite decade
I found this book a rather thrilling trip down memory lane, since my formative years (5-15 yrs) occured during the 1970s. Read more
Published on 25 Feb 2011 by Neil Kernohan
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good read
A very good read. Partly light hearted, partly very serious. Gives a view of Britain in the 70s that anyone growing up at the time would recognise. Read more
Published on 23 Aug 2010 by S. Westwood
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good? Very Good?
Excellant writer,not to dry brings the decade back in all it's horror,but adds the popular culture that made those who lived through it,hell, it was bad but it was fun
Published on 9 July 2010 by Kernow Blue
4.0 out of 5 stars
The best of times and the worst of times...
Looking for a definitive potted history of UK politics in the 1970s, originally I had intended purchasing "When The Lights Went Out". Read more
Published on 25 Mar 2010 by bloo_toon_red
4.0 out of 5 stars
Engaging account of a turbulent decade
Turner's book is an engrossing history of a very turbulent period in modern British history. It is very different to Andy Beckett's The Day the Lights Went Out, both in coverage... Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2009 by Steven Thompson
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