PICK OF TODAY’S TV

MADE IN THE 80S: THE DECADE THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD, 10PM, CH4

LOOKING back on the 1980s, we can feel nostalgic for the music and hairstyles, and remember the great shifts in the political landscape at home and abroad, but it was also the decade that saw the birth of a technological revolution that would reshape — or reboot — the entire world. The concluding part of this lively and fascinating series tells the story of that revolution. In 1989, the British scientist Tim Berners-Lee (pictured) got computers talking, leading to the birth of the World Wide Web, but also driving this new era was an army of young people who took tech, and especially gaming, to their hearts, and who helped to build an industry now worth billions. Meanwhile, while most people’s main mode of communication was still the old-fashioned landline telephone, a chance discovery was made in Cambridge that paved the way for the development of that now ubiquitous marvel of modern technology — an astonishingly powerful silicon chip that’s integral to the mobile phones we now take for granted.