1984

What Was Happening in 1984

Orwell's year arrived — and Big Brother was watching, but so was everyone else

Born in

By the Numbers in 1984

World Population

UK Life Expectancy

57.6 years

US Life Expectancy

57.9 years

Gold Price (per oz)

$520.94

Dow Jones Index

1,680

US National Debt

Sovereign Nations

166

How Much Did Things Cost in 1984?

ItemUKUS
Average house price£29,000$72,400
Average salary£8,800$23,500
Pint of milk22p$0.62
Loaf of bread43p$0.56
Gallon of petrol/gas£1.70$1.13
Pint of beer52p$1.25
Dozen eggs63p$0.97
Cinema ticket£2.00$3.36

Technology and Inventions in 1984

Apple launched the Macintosh with its iconic '1984' Super Bowl advert. The first commercial CD players appeared in homes. The term 'cyberspace' was coined by William Gibson in Neuromancer. Tetris was created by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union.

  • Apple Macintosh launched with its iconic '1984' advert
  • Tetris created by Alexey Pajitnov in Moscow
  • William Gibson coined 'cyberspace' in Neuromancer
  • Dell Computer Corporation founded by Michael Dell

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More About 1984

What Was Happening — A journey through the years