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‘It wasn’t a day out without a trip to the Rotunda’

‘It wasn’t a day out without a trip to the Rotunda’

Our columnist recalls one seaside town’s beachside amusement park – once a must-visit destination.

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The Popemobile, the Prince and 25,000 on the streets

The Popemobile, the Prince and 25,000 on the streets

It was a moment "which centuries and generations had awaited" when the Pope came to Kent in 1982.

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Classic pictures from Kent towns in the 1980s

Classic pictures from Kent towns in the 1980s

Can you spot yourself or someone you know in these amazing photographs taken across the county during the 1980s?

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How Kent celebrated the wedding of Charles and Diana

How Kent celebrated the wedding of Charles and Diana

It was a time of riots and unrest but the wedding of Charles and Diana in the summer of 1981 offered a rare moment of national unity.

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The horror crash which killed three schoolgirls

The horror crash which killed three schoolgirls

It was one of the saddest events in a town's past but the impact of a 1986 tragic crash which killed three schoolgirls would not just be felt locally.

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How the raves of 1989 turned nasty

How the raves of 1989 turned nasty

Remember the 'Second Summer of Love' of 1989? We take a look back at how the acid house craze spilt into the county's countryside.

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1980s vs 2020s: How things have changed

1980s vs 2020s: How things have changed

Advances in technology mean our lives have changed dramatically over the last four decades - here we take a look at some of the biggest differences.

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The 1987 Great Storm in 100 photos

The 1987 Great Storm in 100 photos

Every picture tells a story as we look back through our archive at the storm that devastated Kent in October 1987.

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Pictures of life in Kent the last time inflation hit 9%

Pictures of life in Kent the last time inflation hit 9%

Prices may be going up as fast as they were in 1982 - but life in Kent was very different, as these classic pictures show.

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Incredible final journey of disaster ferry after it was refloated

Incredible final journey of disaster ferry after it was refloated

The Herald of Free Enterprise disaster claimed 193 lives in 1987. This is the story of what happened after the ferry was refloated.

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Frankie Say: Remember our influence on 1980s culture

Frankie Say: Remember our influence on 1980s culture

From Frankie Say T-shirts to TV, games and music, the county's influence on the Eighties was significant.

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'The Falklands War was sad but the cause was just'

'The Falklands War was sad but the cause was just'

Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands exactly 40 years ago as a former Royal Marine looks back on his time helping liberate them.

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Necrophiliac arrested for '87 murders as wife sleeps

Necrophiliac arrested for '87 murders as wife sleeps

Watch the moment a necrophiliac is arrested for murder after 33 years, with police then discovering he filmed himself having sex with 98 bodies.

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Soldier brought Berlin Wall home

Soldier brought Berlin Wall home

A former soldier has a permanent reminder every working day of his part in the fall of the Berlin Wall.

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'It was horrific, unreal and senseless'

'It was horrific, unreal and senseless'

Our reporter - and big Beatles fan - recalls the shocking day John Lennon was murdered in 1980.

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The Kent teacher who won the London Marathon

The Kent teacher who won the London Marathon

A PE teacher from Kent remembers the day he won the London Marathon in an impressive time of two hours, nine minutes and 42 seconds.

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Kent from the skies in the 1970s and 80s

Kent from the skies in the 1970s and 80s

Just how much has the county changed in the last 40 to 50 years? Take a trip down memory lane with 101 pictures of Kent's towns.

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Eleven people killed in IRA bombing at Deal

Eleven people killed in IRA bombing at Deal

A man who survived the blast due to a late start recalls the devastating IRA bombing at Deal in 1989.

A day at the arcade in 1980s Kent

A day at the arcade in 1980s Kent

Remarkable photographs reveal what days were like at a Kent arcade in the 1980s.

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The day the government planned to blow up Kent

The day the government planned to blow up Kent

Confidential documents released from 1982 reveal the government considered an option to flood parts of Kent to save London.

The promising Kent athlete killed in a US aviation disaster

The promising Kent athlete killed in a US aviation disaster

Julie Rose and six others died when the plane they were travelling in crashed in Iowa - but the legacy of her cross-country team lives on.

Teen's attempt to 'assassinate' the Queen

Teen's attempt to 'assassinate' the Queen

We take a look back at a Kent gunman's plan to become 'the most famous teenager in the world' by shooting the Queen.

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Town still affected by 1987 Herald of Free Enterprise disaster

Town still affected by 1987 Herald of Free Enterprise disaster

More than 35 years of mourning the victims of the Herald of Free Enterprise have not mended the tear in Dover's heart that the tragedy created.

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The TV star whose show put Kent on the map

The TV star whose show put Kent on the map

TV star Jill Gascoine put Kent on the map in the 1980s with TV detective series Cats Eyes, Britain's answer to Charlie's Angels.

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Memories of school in the 1970s and 80s

Memories of school in the 1970s and 80s

From swimming in your pyjamas, BBC Micro computers and Panini football stickers - we take a look back at life in Kent's schools in the 1970s and 80s.

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Do you remember these playground crazes from the 1980s and 1990s?

Do you remember these playground crazes from the 1980s and 1990s?

Before smart phones, the playground was a simpler place – we take a look back at the fads which drained pocket money during the 80s and 90s.

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'Can I have a P please Bob?'

'Can I have a P please Bob?'

We take a look back at legendary 1980s quiz show Blockbusters, presented by former Kent schoolboy Bob Holness.

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