Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1989 v3

As the 1980s draw to a close, incredible events take place that loom large in memories and have a profound effect on the world for years to come, possibly forever. Those are grand statements to make as 22 year-old me certainly didn't see himself connected to such momentous stories. I'd moved to a different part of Cheltenham, still sharing rented accommodation. While the location and, therefore, my local pub had changed (The Bass House on Hatherly Road), nights spent drinking, clubbing and in a close relationship with chemicals remained the same. All of this coincides with a change in music. Just 10-years earlier, synthesized sounds were hardly ever heard (apart from Kraftwerk) but now the use of electronics is pervasive in the mainstream. Others are obviously immersed in the same world of music and drugs that I was and you'll heard a musical revolution (or is it evolution?) coming out of Manchester. Elsewhere, an FA Cup semi-final doesn't usually make global news headlines. But events at Hillsborough in Sheffield, had a profound effect on many of us and will change the way people watch football matches forever. Further afield, with many, but certainly not all, benefiting from a more affluent society and with Reagan's 1987 speech about tearing down a wall still ringing in our ears, there is a feeling of increased optimism. It was hard to think that way at the time. Was that the optimism that comes naturally to a 22 year-old drug-fueled me? Or is it part of the natural flux and adjustment of the world? Throughout this series, I'm continually drawn to parallels with the present. It's enough to drive you crazy but maybe a new optimism is just around the corner.