LOOKING BACK

Changing times for the UK's drivers

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THE garage in Forder Valley appeared at the dawn of the 1980s, at a time when the British car ownership was hitting record heights, and yet the British car industry was in turmoil.

Thirty years earlier, at the beginning of the 'you've never had it so good' 1950s, less than 20% of British households had a car, the roads were much quieter in every way, and kids could still skip and play football in the streets where they lived - or at least some of them could.

By 1980, that figure had changed dramatically and over 60% of households had a car parked outside or in their garage, and 15% had two or more vehicles. But with the trade unions faced down by the Iron Lady, there were problems, and in 1980 the Triumph factory in Coventry closed and, around the same time, British Leyland closed the last of its overseas production plants.