15th February marks the 55th anniversary of one of the biggest changes Britain has ever gone through.
15th February 1971 was known as D Day – it was the day when decimal money replaced the old system of shillings and pence.
Ireland also went decimal on the same day.
It was a complicated change for businesses to handle. A number of adult education films were shown on BBC TV in the weeks beforehand, one of which was entitled Training for D Day.
It was shown at 9am each morning in the week before decimalisation.
But from a consumer point of view, you might imagine it was a straightforward change. A complex system was being replaced by one which was logical and straightforward.
In fact some older and vulnerable people found the change difficult. Some were anxious or tried to resist.
A lengthy public information film was made with them in mind.
It was called Granny Gets the Point and was shown regularly as a scheduled programme in many ITV regions. You can see it on YouTube.
There were intense preparations for decimalisation over several years.
5p and 10p pieces – identical in value and size to 1/- and 2/- pieces – were in circulation from 1968. The following year 50p pieces came into use. And a pound, of course , was still a pound.
In practice, the only big overnight change in 1971 concerned any price, or fraction of a price, of less than 2.5p – old sixpences (value 2.5p) remained legal tender until 1980.
There was advice on how to use up old copper coins in the weeks afterwards. Overpay and get your change in decimal currency.
And yet, this change was still a worrying and anxious time for a minority. Great efforts were made to try to make it easier for them.
Another big change in the 70s also provoked concern for the vulnerable.
For many people, the radio changes of 1978 simply meant retuning. Naturally there was also a lot of promotion to highlight the new station frequencies. But, again, for a minority this was a difficult situation. Boy Scouts were trained to help people retune.
So, traditionally in Britain we have often gone to great lengths to help those who are vulnerable for one reason or another with changes that were straightforward for most of us.
That is still true.
I bet few would notice the end of medium wave radio.
Radio Ulster and many English local stations are already off MW.
The numbers listening to Radio 4 on long wave are not publicised but are thought to be tiny. If Five Live came off MW, I am sure most of its listeners would easily find it on digital radio.
Yet concern for a small minority is undoubtedly the main reason why the end of AM radio has been such a slow, careful process.
So it is time for the government to make the prerequisites for switching off public services on Freeview clear.
I would suggest it can be considered when Freeview accounts for less than 10pc of viewing.
Then a medium-term timetable along with practical measures to help the vulnerable can be set out.
Talking about a TV switch off just now – when it is a long time in the future – may simply worry or scare some people.
And politicians should know there are simply no votes in turning off TV.
Decimalisation went far more smoothly than some feared in 1971. The trick was a gradualist approach to ensure the vast bulk of people were more than ready combined with a lot of help for those who really needed it.
Anyone contemplating the end of Freeview should consider this lesson.
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FEATURE IMAGE:
PICTURED: Emley Moor transmitting station. COPYRIGHT: Unknown.
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