back to article Not looking forward to a greyscale 2022? Then look back to the past in 64 colours

Isn't 2022 great? What do you mean, "no"? Jeez, you lot are hard to please. If you're reading this, it means you're still alive. What did you want instead? Hey, you may even still have a job. Given the way things have been going over last 20 months or so, that puts the two of us on top. You may have been hauled back into the …

  1. Dr_N
    Angel

    Angel Delight

    Where will you be sourcing your Angel Delight, Mr Dabbs?

    The English sections at the supermarkets are virtually bare. (Although did manage to fight off the hordes to snag 2 boxes of Mr Kipling's Mince Pies. The highlight of my Christmas.)

    1. Sam not the Viking Silver badge

      Re: Angel Delight

      Angel Delight used to advertise in the local telephone box. I'm not sure what was on offer, but it just goes to show that no phrase is definitively black of white, there's also a colourful explanation out there. Probably.

      1. Anonymous Custard
        Joke

        Re: Angel Delight

        Angel Delight used to advertise in the local telephone box. I'm not sure what was on offer, but it just goes to show that no phrase is definitively black of white, there's also a colourful explanation out there. Probably.

        @Sam not the Viking - well it is a whip, so who knows...

    2. Alistair Dabbs

      Re: Angel Delight

      Actually, I won't be sourcing Angel Delight from anywhere. The very thought of it makes me want to barf.

      1. JassMan

        Re: Angel Delight

        The very thought of it makes me want to barf.

        I used to love this as a child (several decades ago), so when I noticed it on the otherwise completely empty supermarket shelf*, I thought I would reminisce with a taste from my childhood. Either they have changed the recipe or my taste memories have altered from Covid. I cannot imagine why I liked it in the past.

        *Yet another reason to thank the masters of Brexit.

        1. Franco

          Re: Angel Delight

          I had it quite recently. I was at Sunday Lunch and most people were having some sort of fruit pudding that I didn't like, so I had some Angel Delight along with the kids. Thought it tasted alright to be honest, didn't awaken any Proustian memories deep in my psyche though. Perhaps I should have made Madeleines instead.

        2. heyrick Silver badge

          Re: Angel Delight

          Now that Cadbury is owned by a global firm, they've recently started stocking a few bars in a local Leclerc. Picnic is okay, but Double Decker (that I remember liking) was beyond awful. That failed marshmallow muck on top was revolting. I don't think your memories are wrong. I'd imagine it's all synthetic sugar and vegetable oil and whatnot these days.

        3. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

          Re: Angel Delight

          > (several decades ago), so when I noticed it on the otherwise completely empty supermarket

          That's their secret, it's the same packet - they have run out of everything else and there is a 40year old packet at the back. The good news is that it tastes the same

          1. David 132 Silver badge

            Re: Angel Delight

            Try the emergency backup dog's milk while you're at it. Lasts longer than any other kind of milk, does dog's milk.

            1. Vin

              Re: Angel Delight

              Yeah, because no bugger will drink it! :D

            2. Dr_N

              Re: Angel Delight

              But it's full of goodness, full of vitamins. Full of marrow bone jelly.

        4. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Angel Delight

          @JassMan

          *Yet another reason to explain to you" that, the U.S.A. and indeed the rest of the world, are having the same problems as we in England are. I guess they all left the E.U. at the same time as us?

          1. Stork Silver badge

            Re: Angel Delight

            Empty supermarket shelves? Not here in Portugal, and not in Denmark when I visited in November. At least to to an extent that I noticed.

            1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

              Re: Angel Delight

              Not here in my little bit of England either :-)

              On occasions, the shelves are not as full as usual, but it's hard to tell if that's lack of goods coming in or people "panic buying" to some extent. There may well be missing products, but not of the stuff I'm interested in so maybe I just haven't noticed. On the other hand, for multiple different reasons, prices are rising noticeably.

              1. LordWilmore

                Re: Angel Delight

                I’ve genuinely not seen any lack of products in the supermarkets other than when the nutters went buying up all the bog roll last year. Yet another reason to feel blessed for being a midlander

                1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

                  Re: Angel Delight

                  Is that like the slightly northern bit of the south? Somewhere down past Manchester or Sheffield? :-p

            2. TheMeerkat

              Re: Angel Delight

              And not in England too. What empty shelves?

          2. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Angel Delight

            They really aren't. The only time they're empty in Spain is last thing on Saturday when they've sold off stuff cheap close to the best before date before the end of day.

          3. Dr_N

            Re: Angel Delight

            @idiot taxpayer here again

            Shortages in France are specifically in the English food sections. The small scale importers of "British" products are going out of business for some reason.

            1. Jean Le PHARMACIEN

              Re: Angel Delight

              We came back to UK from Le Hexagone at end of Oct '21 to see family and friends for first time in 11 months...

              Bl***y h**l

              In one of (the?) most affluent parts of Gtr Manchester, local Sainsburys has..

              1. NO cheese from EU

              2. NO charcuterie from o/s UK

              3. tinned fish (i.e. mackerel, sardines) is now a 1x1m shelf vs 3mx2.5m section in our SuperU (only 250miles from sea)

              4. no beer from EU

              5. no fresh fish or cheese counter...

              It was like being in the 1970s (YES, I do remember: doing my O-level revision by camping gas light due to strikes)

              Is this REALLY what Brexit had brought us??

              (BTW 2 yrs evading Covid-19 in France and got it after visiting local pub : no mask wearing inside and rammed to the gills. I only went in to order drinks to take outside)

            2. TheMeerkat

              Re: Angel Delight

              I guess this is the French government doing.

              In England the shelves of Polish goods seem to be as full as ever.

              1. Anonymous Coward
      2. Dr_N
        Gimp

        Re: Angel Delight

        Mr Dabbs>The very thought of it makes me want to barf.

        Ah. An Instant Whip man? Each to their own.

        1. Tim99 Silver badge
          Gimp

          Re: Angel Delight

          Another advert in same telephone box as Angel Delight ?

          1. Neil Barnes Silver badge

            Re: Angel Delight

            It's the advert for Walnut Whip that has me worried...

        2. heyrick Silver badge

          Re: Angel Delight

          My dessert of choice as a child was whisk and serve semolina.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Angel Delight

            A downvote? Whatever for?

            But I hope that whatever part of you still remains in some sense a child, is suitably chastised, Heyrick. The downvoter no doubt would expect it.

            -

            :-)

        3. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          The mysterious and long-discontinued Instant Whip...?

          I've always wondered... what was the difference between Angel Delight and Instant Whip anyway? My Mum only bought Angel Delight when I was a kid because Instant Whip apparently wasn't as good so it was always this mysterious thing, even if it was supposedly rubbish.

          They were both apparently made by Birds, so it wasn't like it was a rival version. From what she said, Instant Whip was made with water rather than milk, but information online seems to contradict this and suggests that Instant Whip was first.

          Weird. You think there'd be a better explanation out there, but apparently not.

          1. Anonymous Custard
            Trollface

            Re: The mysterious and long-discontinued Instant Whip...?

            what was the difference between Angel Delight and Instant Whip anyway?

            About 40p per packet, for those posh enough to buy it...

        4. Wilseus

          Re: Angel Delight

          Instant Whip was miles better, and unlike Angel Delight, contained real ingredients instead of mostly E numbers. Angel Delight does set much quicker though, which is an advantage if you are in a hurry.

          My dad used to make a simple but yummy dessert when I was a kid. A single Ginger Nut biscuit, moistened with just enough rum to make it soft, is placed in an individual dish, with butterscotch Instant Whip (or Angel Delight if you really must) on top. Awesome.

      3. Chris G

        Re: Angel Delight

        Some years back my sister sent a care package tp me in Ibiza, it included butterscotch Angel Delight and my wife who is Russian loved it and so did her mother who was visiting.

        I ended up having to get my sister to send a parcel of Angel Delight to Russia.

        1. Tim99 Silver badge
          Happy

          Re: Angel Delight

          I don’t remember being particularly fond of it when I lived in the UK, but we found the butterscotch flavour in the "ethnic aisle" of our local Oz supermarket. I made a dessert for our friends from a gingersnap basket filled with Angel Delight and topped with fresh raspberries. We all liked it, and I had to make more. Mrs Tim99 and I now eat the butterscotch variety perhaps once a month - I will admit that the pink one is unpleasant, and the chocolate one is worse.

          1. Dr_N
            Paris Hilton

            Re: Angel Delight

            Tim99>gingersnap basket filled with Angel Delight

            Fnar.

            Ah, good to start 2022 with smutty innuendo.

            1. Tim99 Silver badge

              Re: Angel Delight

              To the pure, all things are pure; but for the rest of us…

              1. David 132 Silver badge

                Re: Angel Delight

                We are all lying in the gutter, but some of us are pointing and sniggering at the things that float past us.

    3. cookieMonster Silver badge
      Coffee/keyboard

      Re: Angel Delight

      I tasted that once, when I was a child, I didn’t know whether to lick the dogs arse or drink cod liver oil from the bottle to get taste out of my mouth.

      1. BrownishMonstr

        Re: Angel Delight

        Strawberry Angel delight with pieces of Chocolate Log is quite nice, especially when the cake is moist from the pudding.

    4. Fruit and Nutcase Silver badge
      Joke

      Re: Angel Delight

      The English sections at the supermarkets are virtually bare

      That's presumably done by the French supermarkets to make the British Expats feel at home by replicating the situation back in Blighty

      1. Dr_N
        Headmaster

        Re: Angel Delight

        Fruit and Nutcase>British Expats

        Immigrants. We are immigrants.

  2. Pascal Monett Silver badge
    Coat

    "because you'll still be in the same job, I bet"

    You say that like it's a bad thing.

  3. JassMan

    To be fair on BMW

    They seem to have at least 16 shades of black to white so not really just 2 colours. Shame the patterns they display seem to make a not particularly attractive car even uglier.

    I think the only people who will want to pay for what will probably be several £/$ K extra will be people in advertising and criminals (sometimes difficult to tell the difference). Still if you had a car like this it may be handy for getting off speeding tickets. Sorry that photo shows a black car but mine is off white. Which brings up another problem, that in the UK you have to specify the main colour of your car to register it and the police take a dim view of drivers whose car car doesn't match the registered description.

    1. GlenP Silver badge

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      in the UK you have to specify the main colour of your car to register it

      I love the disparity between the manufacturer's colour and the DVLA one, according to Citroen my car is Sable Bivouac, the reg document accurately describes it as Beige.

      1. JassMan

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        Yep, my previous car was Argent Ancienne but was on the DVLA docs, it was registered as "met grey" (presumably for metallic grey).

        My current one is Blanc Banquise, and I had trouble finding a scratch repair kit when I imported it only to find in UK it is called Bianca White, so in this case the DVLA has a point that it is still just "white" since it is the only white available as standard for that model and year.

        1. David 132 Silver badge
          Happy

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          I know you know this, but the point of the colour description on the DVLA doc is to help law enforcement. A copper pursuing your fleeing vehicle (whether it’s you or a TWOCer driving it) is hardly going to radio in to HQ, “this is car 54, I am in pursuit of a puce car, it’s like fuschia but a shade less lavender and a bit more pink…”

          1. TRT Silver badge

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            Puce. From the French for Flea and referring to the stains on the bed sheets once washed from all the fleas squashed during the night bursting and leaving blood marks. See also "depuscelate".

      2. Dr_N

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        https://sniffpetrol.com/2008/06/06/audi-announces-new-colour-palette/

        1. JassMan

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Brill! Amazed though that there isn't a John Major on the palette.

        2. KittenHuffer Silver badge

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Best colour chart from my yuff!

          https://takischitt.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Colour-Chart-Classic-upload.jpg

      3. Franco

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        My first car was a '93 Ford Escort. 1.8DL. No power steering so I had arms like Popeye when I drove it.

        It was metallic silver, but according to the plate under the bonnet with the official colour code and name it was "moondust"

        1. Stork Silver badge

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Escort - pah! You try parking an 80es Volvo 240 without power steering.

          1. C.M.R...

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            I had a MK1 Range Rover with offroad tyres and no power steering for 5-6 years. Now that was a beast!

            1. Intractable Potsherd

              Re: To be fair on BMW

              Pah! I raise you a Mk 1 Range Rover, Perkins 4203*, wide wheels, 14" steering wheel and no power steering... The bastard was hard to steer at its top speed (around 50mph).

              *I think - long time ago, now.

          2. molletts

            At one of my previous workplaces, I sometimes used to move my old Volvo 440 (which had power steering) from my allocated space near the top of the fairly-steep car park down to the (un)loading bay at the bottom without starting it. Both steering and brakes required significant effort when there was no hydraulic assistance but fortunately my previous car had been a 1986 Vauxhall Astra which was rather tank-like in construction and I still had the muscles from it.

            I've never tried doing this in my S60... I suspect it would be nearly impossible, partly because of the extra weight and partly because I've gone soft in the intervening years!

            (To get back on topic, the 440 was in "Silver Gold Metallic" IIRC. I think it was registered as "silver" and that's what it looked like - until you parked it next to an actual silver car. The S60 is something like "black sapphire", registered as "black" and, again, it just looks black except when it's beside a black car.)

            1. David 132 Silver badge
              Thumb Up

              Upvoted purely for mention of the 440. I had two - one was a G-reg one in black metallic - it was a complete heap - and I replaced it with a K-reg one in an extremely '90s shade of metallic teal. Loved those cars. Eventually replaced the 440 with a succession of S/V40s and so on.

              Living as I do in the US now, I have occasionally toyed with the idea of importing a 440 - just to see the expression of complete puzzlement on their faces at the local Volvo dealer. The 3x0/4x0 series were never (officially) imported to here.

          3. Franco

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            No doubt the Volvo was the heavier car, but (back then, don't know if they still do this) Ford's only diesel engine was fitted to every vehicle they made. Which meant the same lump was in small hatchbacks like the Escort as well as the Transit. I never realised what a lump the engine was until I saw under the bonnet of the same model with a petrol engine and how little of the space it used in comparison.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Datsun Cherry - "Antique Gold" In reality, a metallic green!

          1. Rich 11

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            Also known as "Cheap Brass", but that doesn't sell as well in the catalogues.

      4. ravenviz Silver badge

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        I've had a Fern Green, green like a fern, and Boston Green, green like, er, Boston*.

        Current car is Titan Silver**, and van is grauweiss***.

        *Boston, Lincs., or Boston MA, not specified.

        **Isn't Titan orange?

        ***VW seem to have predated BMW's new concept by 30 years!

        1. Dr_N

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          All the JLR colours are placename based: Aintree Green, Corris Grey, Firenzi Red, Santorini Black etc

        2. Rich 11

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          The Green* in Boston, Lincs was tarmaced over in 1962 and turned into a car park / Wednesday market space. So that would make the colour Boston Green quite similar to your van's grauweiss.

          * It's the westernmost part of Wide Bargate, if any tourist passing through wants to sightsee. It's still referred to as the Green, just as Bargate is still used although the medieval town gate is long gone.

    2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: To be fair on BMW...

      ... Why?

      1. Intractable Potsherd

        Re: To be fair on BMW...

        I'm in the market for a replacement car, and both BMW and Audi do models that might fit my requirements. However, I'm not even considering them because I want people to make their own minds up about how much of a twat I am, not tell them immediately.

    3. ColinPa

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      I'm waiting for the first software hack that cause rude words to be displayed on the side of the cars.

      1. Ozumo

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        I find a chisel-tip Sharpie works just fine.

        1. Antron Argaiv Silver badge

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Boring as they may be, white or black cars have the advantage that paint from the home center will usually be a perfect match. ...and at considerably less cost than official automobile paint. Only problem is what to do with the rest of the container. Perhaps touch up the mailbox or wrought iron fencing?

          1. Martin-73 Silver badge

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            I have the disadvantage of being slightly colourblind, the white i used to touch up a repair on the side of my van apparently does not match the rest of the vehicle ...oops

      2. Rich 11

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        "Lada"?

    4. JClouseau

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      Well, I just happen to have patented a revolutionary and unhackable e-ink registration certificate ("V5c" I believe you call it your side of La Manche).

      It allows to you to change pretty much any information regarding your vehicle. And play Angry Birds.

    5. ShadowSystems

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      Does no car owner ever get the urge to have their car repainted to make it feel like they're not driving "the same old piece o' shite"? Is the repainting then required to be registered with the authorities?

      "No no no. Last week my car was ''neon lime green''. This week it's ''Livid Lava Bubblegum Pink''. Keep up with me here!"

      *Cough*

      1. Martin-73 Silver badge

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        Yes the repainting should be reported to DVLA. My uncle called the police when a carpet he'd cut for a group of flats owned by a housing association got stolen from the hallway during lunch. All the flats were identical, so it would've fitted pretty well and been well within DIY skills to fit (some of the flats on that level had been sold under the right to own legislation and maybe the owners of said flats were sore that theirs weren't being done?). Anyway, the police couldn't do anything about that because of 'lack of evidence' but they were very interested why the white transit van he was driving was listed on their system as 'yellow'. He used to buy 'beater' vans for cheap then run them till they failed MOTs... he'd never checked the documents to see what colour it was listed as.

    6. usbac Silver badge

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      It's a good thing we don't have to list the color on the registration in our state in the US.

      When I was a kid, my mother won a traffic court case based on the color of her car. She had a ticket written for having frosted over windows on the car (which wasn't at all true). She decided to fight the ticket in traffic court. When the lying creep of a cop was on the witness stand, it went something like this:

      Mom: "Did you in fact clearly see my car?"

      Cop: "Oh, yes, very clearly"

      Mom: "And, you could see that for sure my windows were frosted over?"

      Cop: "Yes, definitely"

      Mom: "Since you remember things very clearly, without looking at the ticket, what color is my car?"

      Cop: "Umm, well...ummmm...blue"

      Mom: "Your honor, I would welcome you to look out of the courtroom window at my WHITE car in the parking lot"

      Judge: "(after a dirty look at the lying cop) Dismissed!"

      I was about 7 at the time. That was when I learned never to trust the police. More than four decades later, my opinion of cops has only diminished!

    7. Phil O'Sophical Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      Still if you had a car like this it may be handy for getting off speeding tickets.

      Can you just wrap the licence plate?

      1. TRT Silver badge

        Re: To be fair on BMW

        Rotating plates. A la James Bond.

        1. ThatOne Silver badge
          Devil

          Re: To be fair on BMW

          Why, that's the place for e-ink: License plates!

          Change plates instantly, as often as you want, to whatever you like.

          1. TRT Silver badge

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            I've always fancied a DMI high level brake light type job which can display messages like "I have great brakes. How's your insurance?"

          2. Martin-73 Silver badge

            Re: To be fair on BMW

            actually would be useful in ANPR equipped private car parks. Swap your plate to the managing director of the 'parking company's plates upon entry... not even illegal as it's off the public road

    8. TRT Silver badge

      Re: To be fair on BMW

      Is it also available for a Rolls Royce? Could come in handy coupled with an AI auto driver. Say fir ferrying cloned commanders of top secret Earth defence organisations around who use a smart watch to store all their memories.

  4. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    January sales starting in January? How long have you been out of the UK? They usually start on Boxing Day although this year I thought I saw some indication on an advert being fast forwarded that somebody had a sale starting on Christmas Eve.

    1. Anonymous Custard
      Mushroom

      And the way things are going, they'll be sales of Easter eggs and hot cross buns...

      1. John 110

        New Year

        This year was the first year I've been First-Footed with hot cross buns (from Asda with a reduced sticker)

      2. TRT Silver badge

        It used to be a bit of a joke about which date the Creme eggs went on sale. I saw them out on 24th December in 2018.

        This year I noticed they were in the selection boxes.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      In France it's illegal to have a sale on any dates except those legally sanctioned for the département.

      It's perfectly legal to have special offers to mark the manager's birthday, anniversary of the shop's opening, etc. Just don't ever sell below cost, that's definitely not on.

      1. stiine Silver badge

        Seriously?

        1. Phil O'Sophical Silver badge

          Yes, "sales" are very tightly controlled in France.

  5. The commentard formerly known as Mister_C

    "giving away a child for every child you purchase"

    One of the many reasons Mrs C doesn't like me 'helping' with grocery shopping was due to the time we saw a couple with two very young babies in a carry cot on their trolley. My comment of "ooh look, buy one get one free on babies" got one up vote - from the new dad - and two down votes. The babies didn't vote either way.

  6. Potemkine! Silver badge

    his local supermarket was giving away a child for every child you purchase

    ROTFLMAO!

    Those colours are black and, uh, [checks press release] white.

    Technically, I'm not sure black is a colour.

    lots include an original ZX-81

    I've still got my ZX-81 somewhere (with the 16KB extension!), next to my ATARI 2600. I knew it would turn to gold some day ^^

    "Retro" isn't always fashionable. Since January, 1, I'm not allowed to ride my 30 years old bike in many towns anymore. Politicians tell me I would pollute less being stranded in traffic jams with my newer car. Bollocks.

    For the game, I would say the bassist (Jean-Jacques Burnel) is faking playing guitar.

    1. JassMan

      @Potemkine

      Technically, I'm not sure black is a colour.

      Yeah but on the same grounds, White is all colours present at the same time, so BMW have presented an infinite palette. Not!

    2. Warm Braw

      giving away a child for every child you purchase

      In a similar vein, a local store some years ago had a sale on socks and had a large sign advertising "3 for 2", though they refused to split a pair when requested...

  7. Mr Dogshit

    Newspapers?

    Get you, Grandad!

  8. Adrian 4

    Colour options

    I don't think I've ever seen a BMW that wasn't either black or white, so they may feel they're offering the entire gamut

    1. Kubla Cant

      Re: Colour options

      I don't think I've ever seen a BMW that wasn't either black or white

      Black, white, many shades of grey and silver, plus, for some reason, a peculiar bricky orange.

      Last time I was in a BMW dealers I commented on a car finished in a wild pattern of white-on-black sqiggles. The salesman told me it was to disguise a new model.

      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: Colour options

        Being inconspicuous is such an effective way of keeping something secret.

        1. David 132 Silver badge
          Happy

          Re: Colour options

          *cough* Dazzle Camouflage *cough*

      2. druck Silver badge

        Re: Colour options

        We did have a dark blue one - practically exotic!

        1. Alistair Dabbs

          Re: Colour options

          Those dark blue Beemers were a lovely shade; a very smart look. My boss in the late 80s had one in that colour and would lend it to me whenever he went away on vacation. I always take the piss out of BMW drivers but I always found them great to drive. Other bosses had various models of Mercedes which looked good and had well appointed interiors but were never as comfortable as the BMWs I tried.

      3. Jan 0 Silver badge

        Re: Colour options

        All the red ones have migrated to the East End

        (London )

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    64 colours?

    We had sixteen in my day. And three of them were cyan.

    1. lglethal Silver badge
      Trollface

      Re: 64 colours?

      16??? Luxury!!! When I were a boy we had only 4 colours and we considered ourselves lucky!!!

      1. Potemkine! Silver badge

        Re: 64 colours?

        Oh, we used to dream of colours! Would ha' been a rainbow to us!

        1. TRT Silver badge

          Re: 64 colours?

          When I were a lad we had space invaders in colour. A dyed film stuck on the monitor glass.

      2. Trubbs

        Re: 64 colours?

        "When I were a boy we had only 4 colours"

        Four? Pfft...

        Eyeball searing green or nothing it were when I were a lad.

        But you try telling them...

        1. Phil O'Sophical Silver badge
          1. swm

            Re: 64 colours?

            One of the best Calvin and Hobbes.

          2. Tom 7

            Re: 64 colours?

            Are there any NSFW Calvin and Hobbes?

            1. David 132 Silver badge
              Happy

              Re: 64 colours?

              To answer your question, why don’t you google “calvin and hobbes rule 34”.

              Or rather, don’t. Some illusions are best left preserved.

              1. Tom 7

                Re: 64 colours?

                My googling comes up with nothing on the official site so you meant NO.

    2. heyrick Silver badge

      Re: 64 colours?

      Eight colours for me. Basic three bits to specify which of red, green, and blue was on. There was only on and off, thus black, red, green, yellow, blue, cyan, magenta, white.

      1. Tom 7

        Re: 64 colours?

        Its amazing what you can do with just 8 colours. Seem to remember doing some coding decades ago with relatively high res 8 colour monitors using dithering to extend the colour range which others found jaw dropping.

        1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

          Re: 64 colours?

          Yes, also why the very low res 320x200 VGA could look so good at the time because the "massive" colour range meant no dithering required so could appear to higher resolution than it really was. Of course, that only really applied to people who'd not experienced the earlier home computers which were so more more advanced graphically speaking, than the PC of even many years later :-) For many people, a PC at wotk with 4 or 16 colours at best was there only confrontation with a computer back then, making VGA a revelation!

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: 64 colours?

          Read somewhere that the original CGA had a NTSC composite output for TV.

          Limey - so no idea how true/good it was

          1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

            Re: 64 colours?

            Yes, it did. It also had a header for a lightpen.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: 64 colours?

        ZX Spectrum - had the Bright attribute, so had well, brighter versions!

  10. Santa from Exeter

    Swapsies

    The swap is Hugh Cornwell strumming bass like his usual guitar and JJ Burnel resolutely not playing a guitar.

    Easy

    Next!

    1. Red Ted
      Go

      Re: Swapsies

      The complete lack of motion in the audience was quite remarkable, as well as they way they kept looking at the camera... "What? Wait.... I think we're on Top of the Pops..."!

      1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        Re: Swapsies

        There were often times when something made it into the charts that the usual TOTP audience didn't like and it showed in the reactions. You'll notice there's very few shots of the audience. There was also a period where for "reasons", the audience were like that through the whole show.

    2. Alistair Dabbs

      Re: Swapsies

      Well done, Santa from Exeter.

      Mme D and I went to see The Stranglers live in my city just before Christmas - and just before live gigs were banned again. It was gratifying to learn that JJB's English accent when speaking French is now as bad as mine.

      He was also stumped when he wanted to make a funny comment to the crowd about the feeble mosh-pit of middle-aged men that had formed late-on during the concert: he couldn't think of what the French expression for "mosh-pit" might be. Neither could we. Any idea what it is? Une fosse de ... quelque chose.

      1. Irony Deficient

        what the French expression for “mosh-pit” might be

        Any idea what it is? Une fosse de … quelque chose.

        Les Interwebs me disent qu’elle est l’une des expressions « une fosse » (sans plus de choses), « un pogo », ou « un mosh pit » — faites votre choix.

        1. David 132 Silver badge
          Headmaster

          Re: what the French expression for “mosh-pit” might be

          Except that if you call it un mosh pit, you'll have the Academie Française gunning for your hide.

      2. Dr_N
        Trollface

        Re: Swapsies

        Fosse des moches?

      3. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Swapsies

        "It was gratifying to learn that JJB's English accent when speaking French is now as bad as mine."

        He's obviously been away too long - though maybe that is what it means to be Euroman. However he's possibly not in the best place any more.

        But on the bright side you have still have room for improvement but it just means that if you stay long enough you will eventually get to speak English like Inspector Clouseau

        My wife hates being instantly recognised as French, though everybody else finds it charming. C'est la vie !

  11. Graham Newton

    Monsoon children

    The local Monsoon shop has a poster in the window proclaiming "Monsoon children in stock"!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Monsoon children

      Get ready for the QAnon inspired Save The Children* mob.

      *No, not that one.

  12. Roger Mew

    Some 40 years ago I worked for the USAF and we had my van painted purple and pink. The AG team came around and they had a fit, firstly, I had a forklift that no one in the UK could wire the charger up (I was not only an electrician by trade, into electronics and also REME) I had, it worked and it was just a case of reading all the info, anyway, they turned around and saw my purple and pink 3 ton Boyertown Chevy 6 cylinder truck. They asked me what that was, so gave them the nomclemature, then the colonel said "no the colour? " to which I said grey it says so in the American dictionary, it states all colours between black and white! He laughed and said well you have the right answer, and I will send some senior officers to see you in respect of all the US electric forklifts that they cannot seem to hook up.

  13. Boris the Cockroach Silver badge
    Mushroom

    Theres nowt wrong

    in retro gaming

    After my most played games of the past year have been Team fortress 2 (came out in 2007) and missile command (came out in 1981)

    Admittedly missile command is on my phone and provides a very welcome distraction at work for whatever is going on the meeting I'm supposed to be paying attention to(something about cost reductions and expenditure... also makes a change from playing bullshit bingo with the chief inspector)

    But its hard work when the boss turns round and asks "Anything to add Mr Cockroach?" and I say "fuck...my last city just got nuked"

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      Re: Theres nowt wrong

      "Admittedly missile command is on my phone"

      I've never seen or played a version Missile Command that's anywhere close to playing the original with a trackball in the arcade. And I've played versions on almost everything since the TRS-80! Keyboards, joysticks and touchscreens simplyh don't cut it. A mouse is a barely acceptable user interface for the game.

    2. David 132 Silver badge
      Mushroom

      Re: Theres nowt wrong

      But its hard work when the boss turns round and asks "Anything to add Mr Cockroach?" and I say "fuck...my last city just got nuked"

      Bonus points if next time that happens you’re wearing a single leather glove and sitting in a wheelchair.

  14. cd

    Those BMW's would temporarily have more color if the drivers used the turn signals, unless those are meant to fashionably blend in. Might as well.

    Another great year in the offing, excellent and competent world leadership all in harmony, brilliant new variants likely to pop up from just about anywhere (given the coherent prevention guidelines being carefully followed) and they'll be easily transported and shared with the rest of the world via our extensive travel network. First class!

    It's almost like the powers-that-be read last year's article, nodded sagely, and left the autopilot in charge for another trip around the sun.

    Is Sealand accepting citizenship applications?

    1. John 110

      I didn't think BMWs had turn signals...

      1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        A very expensive optional extra that few owners opt for as they don't see the point.

        1. Sam not the Viking Silver badge

          If you ever feel down, that your life is pointless and without satisfaction, just remember there is someone out there fitting indicators to BMW's.

          1. David 132 Silver badge
            Trollface

            ...who in turn, is grateful every day that his life has a little purpose now that he's no longer employed fitting off-road tyres onto brand new Range Rovers.

            1. Intractable Potsherd

              Yep! Until recently, we lived in a fairly rural part of Scotland. Many well-used roads were (just) two modern cars wide on average. My terror was always seeing a Range Rover/Discovery/soft roader coming towards me - always 18" to 2' from the unkerbed edge of the road, and no deviation to the left in case the tyres got dirty.

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    More likely painted black - and heading into the sun. Think I'll take a year being dead for tax purposes.

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      I was just thinking there might be time for another bath before the next cycle.

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Well, it's nice to get confirmation that I was right to give an HP Palmtop 1000CX to my kid. Now, if only I were able to source a serial connector at a decent price to get the mouse working in Windows 3.0...

  17. ravenviz Silver badge

    "studying private parts"

    Genitanuary?

    1. David 132 Silver badge

      Groinuary?

    2. that one in the corner Silver badge

      Junkuary?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        For those of certain persuasions, perhaps the appropriate name is: Janus.

  18. Dan 55 Silver badge

    Gamers are [...] having a bit of easy fun with them.

    Until you load up the emulator and remember that every game needed pixel-perfect jumps, rapid fire by hammering the fire button, or some route through the entire game that you could only find out by trial and error and you had to remember all of it from start to finish, making Call of FIFA look like a walk in the park.

  19. J.G.Harston Silver badge

    Over Christmas I've been working on some RT11 PDP11 code. :) 64 colours? Pah! black, white and bright.

  20. Atlantic Roller

    NtK

    So Dabbsy was a NtK 4th estate 5th columnist. Who even knew? Respect.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like