Sep 7-14
Fuel Protests Bring Britain to a Halt
Truckers and farmers blockaded fuel depots across Britain. Petrol stations ran dry. Panic buying emptied supermarket shelves. Blair's popularity took its biggest hit.
🇬🇧United Kingdom · 00s
The Millennium
Big Brother, the Dome's flop, and fuel protests bring Britain to a halt.
What happened
4 milestones of 2000
Jan 1 - Dec 31
Millennium Dome Opens (and Flops)
The Dome attracted 6.5 million visitors — 6 million fewer than planned. The £789 million project became a byword for hubris and waste.
Jul 14
Big Brother UK Launches
Channel 4 aired the first series of Big Brother UK. 'Nasty Nick' Bateman was exposed for cheating. Reality TV had arrived.
Oct 17
Hatfield Rail Crash
A broken rail caused a train to derail at Hatfield, killing 4 people. The aftermath revealed catastrophic neglect by Railtrack. Speed restrictions crippled the network for months.
What was playing
70% local · 30% international
What was in cinemas
Billy Elliot
Stephen Daldry — A boy who wanted to dance during the miners' strike. Britain wept.
Chicken Run
Park/Lord — Aardman's claymation chickens staged the Great Escape.
Gladiator
Ridley Scott — Russell Crowe. 'Are you not entertained?'
Snatch
Guy Ritchie — Major UK release — TMDB 7.8
The Beach
Danny Boyle — Major UK release — TMDB 6.5
What was on TV
Big Brother
2000-2018 — Reality TV changed British culture. 'Nasty Nick' was the first villain.
The Office (development)
2000 — Ricky Gervais was developing David Brent. Slough awaited.
Spaced
1999-2001 — Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson. Gen X sitcom perfection.
How much things cost
Currency: GBP
Pint of milk35p
Pint of bitter£1.90
Average house£83,891
Litre of petrol80p
Inflation: 3.0%
Economy strong but fuel prices sparked rage. The Dome embarrassed Blair's government.
Then vs. Now
Inflation-adjusted values
Pint of milkONS
2000 (GBP)
35p
→
Today's value (£)
--
Pint of bitterBBPA
2000 (GBP)
£1.90
→
Today's value (£)
--
Average houseONS
2000 (GBP)
£83,891
→
Today's value (£)
--
Litre of petrolRAC
2000 (GBP)
80p
→
Today's value (£)
--
Technology
Nokia 3310
The indestructible phone. Snake II. Text messaging culture.
PlayStation 2
PS2 launched in the UK. Gaming went mainstream.
Broadband arriving
BT launched ADSL broadband. Goodbye dial-up tones.
Pop Culture
Fashion
Bootcut jeansPashminasCargo pantsLow-rise everything
Slang
Minging— Disgusting
Gutted— Very disappointed
Peak— Bad, unfortunate
Behavior
- Big Brother made reality TV the dominant cultural form
- Text messaging changed how Brits communicated
- The fuel protests showed how fragile modern life was
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