It is likely that a good number of PT readers born in the 1970s may be feeling a little melancholy right now.
Why? Well, because many of those born in the seventies will either be about to turn 50 or have enjoyed that dubious honour already.
50 years. Five decades. Half-a-tonne. A mid-century. 18263 days.
Whichever way you look at it, 50 years is a landmark reckoning in the psyche of any human being.
With so much life and experience under your belt, it is natural to cast your mind back and get all introspective about the distant past of your childhood (which let’s face it, now seems a long, long time ago).
Of course, one of the most powerful focal points of nostalgia is the place you grew up in: your home; your street; your neighbourhood; your city.
If you were lucky enough to spend your 1970s childhood in Peterborough then chances are you have good memories of living in a comfortable, mid-sized city with plenty of shops, parks and places to play.
You may also remember it as being a place where change was in the air, with the grown-ups around you chatting furiously about the modern-looking supermarkets, shopping precincts and municipal centres that would soon be springing up left, right and centre.
It was a heady and, in some respects, really quite unique time in our fair city’s history.
With this in mind, we thought it only right and proper to celebrate that time period with a concentrated raid on the extensive collection of classic images on hand at Peterborough Images Archive.
Though we hope all our readers will enjoy taking a peek at how daily life played out in Peterborough during the 1970s, we are especially keen to ensure our readers approaching (or running away from) the big five-o enjoy this entirely decadent stroll down Memory Lane.
So strap on those platform shoes, turn on the lava lamp and stick some Santana on the stereo as we invite you to join us for a picture-led tour of daily life on the streets of 1970s Peterborough!
9. Life on the Streets of Peterborough during the 1970s
A fascinating pre-Queensgate aerial shot looking out over Bridge Street / Albert Place / Wentworth Street. Photo: Peterborough Images Archive
10. Life on the Streets of Peterborough during the 1970s
Looking along Queen Street towards Westgate in the early 1970s. In due course, this entire scene would end up buried under Queensgate. Photo: Peterborough Images Archive
11. Life on the Streets of Peterborough during the 1970s
While the city centre was often busy in the '70s, the rest of the city was still relatively quiet and uncrowded. This lonely driver is about to turn off towards the Bretton Centre. That huge empty space on the right is where Peterborough City Hospital stands today. (Image courtesy of Mark Warrick) Photo: Peterborough Images Archive
12. Life on the Streets of Peterborough during the 1970s
A row of shops on Broadway in the 1970s that will doubtless be familiar to a certain generation of Peterborians. Photo: Peterborough Images Archive