Inside this week | Back to the ’80s

Margaret Thatcher (a new performance dance piece charmingly dedicated to her) and American football (our preview of the best places in town to watch Sunday’s Super Bowl) were pretty big in the 1980s where I come from.

I refer to, of course, England, a country that entered the decade with new hope after the doldrums of the 1970s, fell in love with money – both yuppies and labourers alike – and the Fridge (remember him?), and then left it with a rather nasty taste in the mouth.

I thought I’d seen the back of them – by 1993 we’d pretty much got them out of our system – so why oh why do they keep on coming back. Embarrassing fashion (Going Underground’s guide to gatecrashing parties at Copenhagen Fashion Week): see any episode of Dallas – yup, it’s returning. ‘Beat me up now’ haircuts: the New Romantics probably had the worst – just give it time. Crap tinny background music as one lone voice, Morrissey, wailed in the wilderness: can anyone tell me a ‘80s band that hasn’t reformed, with the possible exception of St Winifred’s School Choir?  

The problem is that people in their late 20s and early 30s nostalgically look at the decade through rose-tinted glasses, but one glance at its films tells you everything you need to know. Al Pacino made just five, James Caan seven, and everything Harvey Keitel made went straight to video. Instead we got Chevy Chase and Police Academy, and a best film Oscar nomination for Working Girl.

Take a look at any top ten list from that decade and I guarantee most of the films will be from 1980-83. That’s because decades don’t just end, they linger around for years as the new one try to define themselves. Those fluorescent shirts in the early days of the Premier League – really they were a relic from the ‘80s.

But was it all Maggie’s fault? In many ways the old girl gets a rum deal. There’s not many who’ve been so widely vilified while they’re still alive. She might have left her country materialistic and in the grip of Murdoch, but it was still probably better than the winter of discontent.  Albeit it with a prevalence of tasteless vulgarity.





  • Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    On Friday 27 and Saturday 28 of September, The Copenhagen Post will be at International Citizen Days in Øksnehallen on Vesterbro, Copenhagen. Admission is free and thousands of internationals are expected to attend

  • Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Chisom Udeze, the founder of Diversify – a global organization that works at the intersection of inclusion, democracy, freedom, climate sustainability, justice, and belonging – shares how struggling to find a community in Norway motivated her to build a Nordic-wide professional network. We also hear from Dr. Poornima Luthra, Associate Professor at CBS, about how to address bias in the workplace.

  • Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality, home to Denmark’s largest infrastructure project – the Fehmarnbelt tunnel connection to Germany – has launched a new jobseeker support package for the accompanying partners of international employees in the area. The job-to-partner package offers free tailored sessions on finding a job and starting a personal business.