|
||
|
15th February 2021, 08:12 | #1 |
Regional Secretary
Rover 1.8T Tourer Join Date: May 2007
Location: Heathrow
Posts: 6,948
Thanks: 1,551
Thanked 2,036 Times in 1,264 Posts
|
Decimalization
Fifty years since our currency changed from sterling to decimal. At the time it was the biggest nationwide operation created and ironically now we are in an equally big operation, the vaccination programme.
For me, decimalization was massive, being in College I made it my presentation to everybody, giving me an opportunity to get my head round it and a chance to educate all the students and staff. Very well received. I do have a small coin collection which includes both pre- and post Decimalization coins. For me the half-crown was my favourite, what a piece of treasure. |
15th February 2021, 08:36 | #2 |
This is my second home
MG ZS EV Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Lancashire
Posts: 15,562
Thanks: 4,591
Thanked 3,427 Times in 2,565 Posts
|
As an apprentice tool setter at the local engineering works I remember the bewilderment on faces when Friday the first pay day came around with the wage packets lol Me included.
I bet Rev Jules has a stocking full of white fivers & coinage from the 18th century when he started work
__________________
Blessed are the tea makers. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3b...auto-2000_auto |
15th February 2021, 08:48 | #3 |
This is my second home
Rover 75 Saloon & Tourer Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Lincoln
Posts: 14,912
Thanks: 1,630
Thanked 3,032 Times in 2,181 Posts
|
Then the change from pints and gallons, pounds and ounces to litres, kilograms and grams.
We seem to have also gone from feet and inches to metres and millimetres and to metric threads. My god I home they keep the mile! Perhaps for international engineering reasons it was "right" to align with others but as an individual, I'm not unhappy with imperial. macafee2 |
15th February 2021, 10:12 | #4 |
Moderator/Club Shop
MG ZT 1.8t+. No.3 of 4 in Sunspot Yellow & Ford Fiesta in Black. Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Rattler Farm
Posts: 22,555
Thanks: 9,270
Thanked 15,645 Times in 6,806 Posts
|
I worked in a supermarket at the time of the change over. We spent the night before changing all the prices on the stock plus on the shelves. Anything ending in a halfpenny was rounded up, nothing went down.
When we opened for business on the Monday we had to explain to the customers about the changeover but failing to mention the rounding up of prices.
__________________
233,320. New rear tyres on order for BBB. onen hag oll |
15th February 2021, 11:22 | #5 |
Coolguy
Rover 75 CDT Tourer Auto, Rover 75 2.0 Connoisseur Auto, MG ZT 2.5 Auto and MG ZT Cdti Auto (Monogra Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Finedon
Posts: 1,896
Thanks: 933
Thanked 638 Times in 430 Posts
|
It was particularly confusing to have both currencies running together for a while. I am sure I still have the original leaflet somewhere as I never throw anything away and haven't moved house in nearly 70 years!
|
15th February 2021, 11:41 | #6 |
This is my second home
75 Auto 2.5 SE Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Westcliff on Sea
Posts: 5,185
Thanks: 423
Thanked 1,680 Times in 1,014 Posts
|
I, too, was in supermarkets at the time. Had to work over the weekend before 'D' day as well as the previous weekend to introduce the system to the staff.
Can't remember even one shelf item that either went down in price or even remained unchanged. The cost to the company was huge and they had to recoup it somehow. Even so, I still think of things and measure for projects in Imperial terms. Oh, and don't get me started on the two temperature scales. Funny though, how we still use 'psi' on tyres!
__________________
member no. 235 |
15th February 2021, 17:25 | #7 | |
Senior Citizen
Rover 75 2.5 Connoisseur SE,Chrysler 300C,124 Spider, Daytona 955i,Honda XL250 & Royal Enfield 650GT Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: The Kingdom of Wessex
Posts: 6,976
Thanks: 2,391
Thanked 2,685 Times in 1,686 Posts
|
I personally think that the old imperial money system of £ s d, was a brilliantly thought out system.
The system allowed the pound to be divided far more readily than the metric system. If you divide a pound by 2 you get 10 shillings By 3 you get 80d = 6s 8d By 4 it is 5s By 5 it is 4s and so on The metric system falls over as soon as you get to 3, as it becomes 3.3333 recurring. Of course if you want metric there are 10 florins to to pound (2 bob bits). Quote:
Ships and aircraft use this because the circumference of the world is divided by 360 degrees. Each degree is split into 60 seconds and one of these is a nautical mile. 360 x 60 = 21,600, which is the circumference of our planet. Then there is a knot, which gives the speed related in time and again is an imperial system, having 12 hour or 24 hour clocks divided into 5 dozen minutes. Again a big plus, due to how the units can be divided. I believe that the French, who dislike the imperial system, tried to invent a metric clock with 10 hours in a day divided into 100 minutes. The idea was quickly dropped as they kept missing each other at various times down the restaurants
__________________
Let the good times roll............ |
|
15th February 2021, 18:20 | #8 |
Gets stuck in
MG ZT Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: Bristol
Posts: 695
Thanks: 332
Thanked 164 Times in 133 Posts
|
I prefer metric: more logical. I don’t actually remember using the old currency, maybe I was too young. I do remember tacking imperial engineering drawings though.
That’s my tuppenny’s worth...
__________________
gnu |
15th February 2021, 19:17 | #9 |
incurable Rover addict
Rover 75 Saloon V6 2.5 1999 - Rover 25 1.4 2002 - Rover 214i cab 1994 - Rover P5b coupe 1968 Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Bioule. South West of France.
Posts: 1,643
Thanks: 612
Thanked 385 Times in 223 Posts
|
Even I'm French (yet my maternal granddad was British born and his family came from Dorset) I did love the old currency when I was sent living in England to learn English in the 60s.
I feel a bit nostalgic and as I was a coin collector, I remember going to the bank asking for one £ in... pence and the cashier unruffled giving me back a bag full of old pennies. Then back in my room I was carefully searching among that heap of copper the years I hadn't got yet! And guess what? I've got them all still today with an old 1807 half penny that came to me by heritage and lots of others, farthings, six pence, shillings, half-crowns & even a few sovereigns. I agree with you @planenut: I do love half-crowns as well. And believe it or not, when Britain went for the decimal system, I sincerely feel that we've lost a slice of ... poetry! But as a collector, I've bought a mint 1971 first emission in its hard plastic package. But when my first host family - they were so lovely - kindly asked me my weight in stones and my size in feet & inches, I was fully bewildered! Happy days...
__________________
Rover 75 V6 2.5 Auto Connie born 1 July 1999, 24 kOhms resistor, 10 kOhms manual starter, full E85, modified airbox, full derestricted SS exhaust line, power & torque remap -> 202 bhp
Last edited by Dorchester2; 16th February 2021 at 07:23.. |
15th February 2021, 20:27 | #10 |
This is my second home
Rovers 75 & 25 Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Wearside
Posts: 4,519
Thanks: 543
Thanked 709 Times in 511 Posts
|
|
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|