Four General Elections, devastating storms, a 45-day drought, snow in June, the three-day week, the Winter of Discontent and countless strikes – all in one decade.
Crowds watching the Ashford Carnival procession through the town centre in 1975. Picture: Tam FoxGoalkeeper John Simpson celebrates with his Maidstone teammates in 1972 after they reached the last 32 in the FA Challenge Trophy by beating manager Ernie Morgan's old club Dartford by the only goal of the matchOne of the floats at Herne Bay Carnival in August 1977Chatham's Mickey Walker became one of the leading woman golfers in Britain while still a teenager in the early 1970s. She was the youngest player in this century to win the English Ladies' Open Championship
As ever, our county was at the centre of the action.
But these classic pictures from Kent towns show it wasn't all toil and trouble – there was lots of fun to be had too...
1970
The decade began with Labour in power and Harold Wilson as Prime Minister.
But that was all to change in June when the Tories, led by former Kent grammar school boy Ted Heath, won a majority of 30 seats at the General Election.
Counting the votes at the General Election in Rochester and Chatham in 1970Sunny Sands and Coronation Parade in Folkestone in June 1970Tilmanstone Colliery pictured in 1970Arguably the ugliest and most criticised building in Canterbury's history, the multi-storey car park between Gravel Walk and Watling Street is pictured in February 1970, a few months after opening. It was originally planned to be two floors higher. This was the view from St George's Lane.The mid-Victorian Riding Gate bridge in Canterbury is lifted away by a crane in October 1970 to make way for a new pedestrian walk along the city walls. The bridge ended up in Heathfield Wildlife Park, SussexThousands of pilgrims in the Precincts of Canterbury Cathedral watched police grapple with two militant Protestants who rushed the altar during a Roman Catholic mass in July 1970. The mass was the first to be celebrated in the Precincts for 400 years and was held as part of the Cathedral's programme to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the murder of Thomas BecketThis swan, frightened by canoeists on the River Stour in Canterbury in April 1970, caused chaos when it dropped into the main street until it was ushered to the safety of the pavement. The swan was collected by the RSPCA and later restored to the riverThe last minutes of the 136-year-old Barham Windmill, destroyed by fire in March 1970, were captured on camera. The mill was gutted and the massive sails collapsed before flames could be brought under controlIn 1970, Queen Elizabeth II with the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Andrew and Princess Anne, escorted by Canon Neville Sharp, were introduced to churchwarden Percy Woods and other church officials after the celebrations to mark the 500th anniversary of the re-building of Ashford Parish ChurchThe Queen Mother enjoyed a joke with trainer Peter Cazalet at Folkestone Races in April 1970. When his horse, Cloudsmere, won the Whitbread 'Elephant' handicap Chase she handed him a bottle of County Ale as a token of the crates of beer due to the winning stable. Also in the picture is Lord Cornwallis, Lord Lieutenant of KentHerne Bay Pier pictured in 1970British Road Services drivers marching through Strood in 1970. They had been on strike for higher wagesMembers of the Draughtmen's and Allied Technicians' Association march to Elliott's works at Rochester in 1970 after holding a protest meeting in a local church hallThe flats at Mote Road, Maidstone, in May 1970Pococks Bread Factory in Tonbridge Road, Maidstone, in 1970Opening ceremony of the KM press at Larkfield by The Rt Hon Edward Heath in January 1970, with Mr H R P Boorman and Edwin Boorman looking onOn January 23, 1970, Tory leader Edward Heath visited the Kent Messenger Group's Larkfield headquarters to officially open its new 500,000 web offset press. He is seen here with Edwin Boorman, Mr H R Pratt Boorman and Mrs Boorman and other guestsMount Pleasant in Tunbridge Wells in August 1970The construction of the subway in Strood in March 1970Crowds pictured in June 1970 at Rochester Market, which was held every FridayThe Venetian Fete at Hythe in August 1970Inside the Medway Accident Centre pictured in January 1970Sunny Sands and Coronation Parade in Folkestone in June 1970The toll gates at the Dartford Tunnel pictured in May 1970. It had opened seven years earlierThe bus terminal at Canterbury with the fire station in the background in October 1970The computer tabulating room in Kent House, Ashford, in March 1970Mixed Basketball Match at the Stour Centre in Ashford in 1970Inside the Rose at Bearsted in July 1970Princess Ann at Benenden in May 1970Looking towards the High Street from St George's Street in Canterbury in 1970Ted Heath, now Prime Minister, conducting Broadstairs carol service in December 1970
Come Christmas, Mr Heath was Prime Minister and conducting a carol service in Broadstairs, where he grew up.
The best-selling single of the year was Mungo Jerry's In The Summertime, while Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water topped the album chart – a feat it was to repeat in 1971.
In April, 28.6 million people in the UK were glued to their TV sets as Apollo 13 splashed down in the southern Pacific Ocean. Almost as many watched the FA Cup final replay between Chelsea and Leeds.
1971
It is now 50 years since the introduction of decimal currency in the UK, in February 1971.
At Rochester Market, prices were shown in both "old" and "new" money.
Rochester Market was still thriving in 1971 just after decimal currency had been introduced. Prices were shown in old and 'new' moneyProtesters at Cliffe in November 1971 opposed to plans by the Burmah-Total oil company to build a refinery on Cliffe marshesIn March 1971, the Duchess of Kent unveiled a commemorative lectern to mark opening of Sheppey School. She then toured classrooms chatting to pupils and staff. Here she is seen with four-year-old Dawn BakerTime for a breather during harvesting at Hockets Farm, Detling, in 1971Prime Minister Ted Heath opening the Tonbridge bypass in July 1971, finally easing traffic congestion in the townTonbridge High Street, pictured in July 1971Bob Burns, centre back, conducts the last cattle market at Tonbridge Cattle Market in 1971The Barge Museum in Sittingbourne pictured in June 1971Commuters at Rainham railway station in March 1971Families relaxing on Hythe beach in August 1971Fishermen at Folkestone in 1971Looking down on the Port of Dover in August 1971At Dungeness Power Station in October 1971, an operator lifts a boiler element to move it towards the cleaning machine for the removal of rustSailing at Broadstairs in August 1971Margaret Thatcher, then Education Secretary, visiting Cobham School in October 1971
In the world of politics, the then Education Secretary Margaret Thatcher's proposals to end free school milk for children aged over seven were backed by a majority of 33 MPs that June.
And in October, the House of Commons voted in favour of joining the European Economic Community, the precursor to the European Union.
1972
It was a bleak start to the year as the unemployment count exceeded one million for the first time since the 1930s, while 14 people were killed when troops opened fire on demonstrators in Derry on 'Bloody Sunday'.
A state of emergency was declared twice during 1972, following strikes by mineworkers in January and thousands of dockers in August.
The Folkestone harbour entrance with Sealink's cross-Channel ferry Horsa coming astern. All ferry services at the harbour stopped in 2001Amanda Barham, eight, presented Princess Anne with a posy at Folkestone Roller Dance Club in August 1972Taken in June 1972, one of the final pictures of the Wellington public house which stood on the corner of Hempsted Street. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettThe Duke of Marlborough in May 1972 still standing proudly at the top of East Hill before demolition as part of the ring-road scheme. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettParkwood shopping centre in Rainham in June 1972The police station and court houses in Margate in August 1972The entertainment arcade at Leysdown in August 1972Hythe Model Railway in 1972Prime Minister Ted Heath was back in Broadstairs to conduct another carol service in December 1972Madhvi Pattni showered the Duke of Edinburgh with rose petals and rice in a traditional Indian welcome to the Uganda Resettlement Centre in West Malling in November 1972. Mrs Pattni was one of the Asians expelled from Uganda by President Idi Amin
In August, Idi Amin, Ugandan dictator, expelled 50,000 Asians with British passports to the UK, claiming they were "sabotaging the Ugandan economy".
Resettlement centres were set up across the country, including in West Malling, which was visited by the Duke of Edinburgh in November.
1973
In March, Pink Floyd released The Dark Side of Moon, which remains the best-selling album of all time by a British band or artist.
Later that year Princess Anne married Mark Phillips at Westminster Abbey, an event watched on TV by 27.6 million people in the UK.
Princess Anne chatting with Chay Blyth at Ramsgate in May 1973. Two years earlier, he became the first person to sail single-handed non-stop westwards around the worldAshford's Elwick Club in Tufton Street closed in 1973 to make way for the first shopping centre in that location. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettCrowds gathered to watch a cavalcade of vehicles to mark the opening of Ashford bypass in 1973 which brought relief to the traffic-choked town centre. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettThe Kent Messenger newsroom in Larkfield in 1973Sittingbourne High Street in 1973VW Beetle cars in Ramsgate harbour in February 1973David Wood who ran the village shop and post office in Mersham in 1973Education Secretary Margaret Thatcher walks from the village hall in Borough Green talking to Conservative candidate John Stanley (left) after attending the Tonbridge and Malling Tories Women's Advisory Committee in 1973. Mr Stanley won the Tonbridge and Malling seat at the General Election in February 1974. However the overall result was a hung parliament, which eventually led to Mrs Thatcher becoming Tory leaderThis crazy cricket match on the Goodwin Sands near Deal in 1973 was played between two teams from three Chatham-based survey ships. it was limited to 15 overs a side - because of the tideAerial View of Dover harbour in July 1973Queue for petrol in December 1973 ahead of the 'three-day week' being introduced
It was another year disrupted by a series of strikes, with rail workers, civil servants, firefighters and ambulance drivers all taking industrial action at various points.
Meanwhile, with inflation increasing, miners' wages were falling in real terms. The National Union of Mineworkers held a vote to strike which its members rejected.
But an overtime ban was introduced with the aim of halving production, which was to have a dramatic impact on the country's power supply. In December, Ted Heath announced a number of measures, including the Three-Day Work Order, which limited commercial consumption of electricity to three consecutive days each week.
1974
During this tumultuous period, the Prime Minister called an election for February 1974.
But Labour gained 14 seats, resulting in a hung parliament, Mr Heath resigning and Labour's Howard Wilson returning as Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Edward Heath in good humour on the campaign trail in February 1974 on a visit to Gravesend. But the result would end in a hung parliament and see Labour's Harold Wilson become Prime Minister once againThis picture was taken in 1974 before Ashford's Odeon cinema was converted into a bingo hall. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike Bennett (48589060)The scaffolding covered Charter House in Ashford nearing completion for Charter Consolidated in 1974. Since the mining company moved out of town, the offices have never been fully occupied. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettDartford Football Club won the Southern League Championship and reached Wembley in the FA Challenge Trophy in 1974 - but had their hopes of an historic double crushed as they lost 2-1 to MorecambeThese donkeys caught the attention of Princess Anne in November 1974 when she visited Fairfield House School for deprived girls, in Broadstairs. She is seen here with headmistress Adrienne BrokkeClaverley Road in Tunbridge Wells in November 1974Inside the Forum shopping centre in Sittingbourne in October 1974Inside Staplehurst Library in February 1974 - the three librarians are Joan Hartly, left, with Ann Waters and Georgina ColemanFolkestone harbour with the partly-constructed Hotel Burstin in the background in December 1974Sunseekers at the beach in Folkestone in 1974Brian and Linda Russell, landlords of the Royal Oak in Mersham in 1974Graham and Ann Moore, landlords of the King's Arms in Headcorn, pictured in January 1974The Edwardian Festival in Folkestone in June 1974The Old High Street, Folkestone, pictured in October 1974Inside a bank branch in Ashford in May 1974
There were a number of IRA bombings during the year, with targets including the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London and Ted Heath's home in the city.
By the end of 1974 another General Election had been held, giving Labour a slim majority. Meanwhile, Abba won the Eurovision song contest with Waterloo, Lord Lucan disappeared and McDonald's opened its first UK restaurant.
1975
In February, Margaret Thatcher defeated Ted Heath to become Tory leader, while Britain's coal miners were handed a 35% pay rise by the Labour government.
Another huge political moment was the referendum on the UK's continued membership of the European Economic Community, with 67% voting to stay in.
In July 1975, the Queen visited the Royal Green Jackets at Connaught Barracks, Dover, as the regiment's Colonel-in-Chief. At Fort Burgoyne, built to resist the threat of invasion by Napoleon, three regular battalions staged a tattoo outlining the regiment's historyFlooding at the Lees in Yalding in January 1975The clock tower in Sheerness High Street in March 1975Shelagh Cooper cuts the tape to open the new passenger terminal at Sheerness Docks in 1975, watched by Ole Lauritzen, founder of the Olau-Line, and Mr N Staff, chairman Medway & Sheerness Ports AuthorityRolvenden piping band following the floats at the Ashford Carnival procession through the town centre in 1975. Picture: Tam FoxThe Butter Market, Canterbury, in September 1975Shoppers in Canterbury High Street in February 1975
For the first time since 1761, snow showers occurred in June across the country, even as far south as London.
Bye Bye Baby by the Bay City Rollers was the biggest-selling single of the year.
1976
The country was hit by a heatwave in the summer of 1976, with temperatures reaching 32.2°C for 15 days running.
Parts of England went for 45 days with no rain in July and August.
World Cup winner Bobby Moore was the star of Children's Day 1976 in Ashford. Crowds blocked the entire high street for carol singing and entertainment led by girl pipers. Rolf Harris and comedian Michael Bentine were also in attendance. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettThe Queen spent five hours at Canterbury Cathedral inspecting the restoration work being carried out in December 1976The Queen Mother visited the Royal School for the Deaf at Margate to open its £1 million new buildings in April 1976The Duke of Edinburgh had a lesson in rope-making when he opened the Merchant Navy College in Greenhithe in October 1976Vera Chapman, Sheila Hubbard and Irene Cheeseman, all of Nettlestead, in the kitchen at Phoenix Brewery in Wateringbury in 1976Tonbridge Market in November 1976Crowded Margate beach in August 1976
In politics, Harold Wilson stepped down as Prime Minister and was replaced by Jim Callaghan.
Save Your Kisses For Me by Brotherhood of Man was the winning entry for the UK at Eurovision and was also the biggest-selling single of the year.
1977
This was the year of the Queen's silver jubilee and street parties were held across Kent to mark the occasion.
The new Jubilee Way, linking Dover and Whitfield, was also named in Her Majesty's honour. Unfortunately it had to shut within hours of its opening due to high winds.
The new Jubilee Way in Dover had to be closed within hours of the opening ceremony in February 1977 because of high windsIn June 1977, the children of Alma Street, Sheerness, celebrated the Queen's Silver Jubilee with a street partyThe Upper High Street in Ashford was home to the International Stores supermarket, a popular destination for shoppers when this 1977 shot was taken. But it was demolished to create the entrance to the Park Mall shopping centre. Picture: Images of Ashford by Mike BennettThe Prince of Wales opened the £500,000 Marley Sports Centre at Sevenoaks School in April 1977 and had a few words of advice for Michael Robinson, 16, who was demonstrating equipment in the gymSimon and Maria Taylor with a telegram from Muhammad Ali's at the Miller's Arms in Canterbury in 1977, which they had renovated and reopened. The boxer was a a friend of Maria’s father, boxing promoter Mike Barrett, and the telegram read: “Please give your daughter, Maria, and husband, Simon, my best wishes and I wish them great success at the Miller’s Arms and hope it becomes The Greatest. The best of luck from The Greatest, Muhammad Ali.”The crowd watches Jack Warner open the Herne Bay fete in 1977Ann Burden and Carol Shilling at Lloyds Bank in Canterbury in 1977Herne Bay Secondary School girls in 1977Whitstable sea cadets lead the school parade in 1977Broadstairs Dickens Festival in 1977The Tufton Shopping Centre in Ashford in November 1977Inside Tufton Shopping Centre, Ashford, in February 1977
Sticking with roads, Junctions 1 and 2 of the M20 were completed in 1977.
In a sign of the times, even undertakers went on strike in October, leaving hundreds of corpses unburied.
1978
Herne Bay and Margate's piers were among four in the UK ruined by a North Sea storm surge in January.
And it was a tempestuous time in politics too, with the so-called Winter of Discontent of 1978-79 sparked by a series of strikes.
Peter Christofi sits outside his flooded Rendevous Restaurant at Herne Bay pier in January 1978Margate Jetty following the 1978 storm. Picture: Nick SmithMarshall of the Royal Air Force, Sir William Dickson, unveiled the memorial to the men and women who served at Hawkinge, the nearest aerodrome to the enemy in two World Wars. The memorial was dedicated by the Rev John Chittenden in 1978. The Union Jack is flown upside-down as a sign of distressCan you drink a yard of ale? Efforts to do so caused a lot of fun at the Kent County Agricultural Show in 1978In May 1978, a smiling Princess Alexandra waved to staff as she visited St Bartholomew's Hospital in RochesterHuge crowds gathered to welcome Prince Charles to Canterbury in November 1978 to receive the honorary freedom of the city a week before his 30th birthdayPrince Charles opened the Guildhall during his visit to the cityRhoda Evans with children at St Stephen's Young Wives Playgroup in Canterbury in 1978Brownie Revels at Sturry in 1978Emergency Centre at Springfield Library, Maidstone, in 1978The Duke of Kent opening Maidstone Bridge in 1978 and chatting to some of the workmenView of Gillingham High Street in February 1978Families enjoy the stalls at Whitstable Regatta in 1978
Grease was highest-grossing film in the UK and the soundtrack was also the second biggest-selling album of the year, only beaten by Saturday Night Fever.
A good year for John Travolta!
1979
The Queen Mother became the first and only woman to hold the title of Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports in 1979.
And in May, Margaret Thatcher became the UK's first female Prime Minister, as the Conservatives won a 43-seat majority at the General Election.
The Queen Mother arrived at Dover from Greenwich aboard the Royal Yatch Britannia for her installation as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports in July 1979The Queen Mother plants a tree at Walmer Castle to commemorate her acceptance of the invitation to become Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports in 1979Inside the Sava centre in Hempstead Valley, Gillingham, in October 1979Faversham market outside the town hall in February 1979The Intelligence Corps received the Freedom of the Borough of Ashford on May 16, 1979, and then marched through Ashford High Street with bayonets fixed, led by the Band of the Royal EngineersIn June 1979, Princess Margaret was guest of honour at a fashion show at Leeds Castle in aid of one of her favourite charities, The Dockland Settlement TrustGuides and cubs were among the thousands of people who welcomed the Queen Mother to Chatham in May 1979 for the official opening of the £8.5 million administrative headquarters of Lloyds of London in Dock Road, ChathamIn December 1979, Prince Charles made radio contact with ships in the Channel from Langdon Battery. the new coastguard station at Dover which he officially opened
Parallel Lines by Blondie was the biggest-selling album of the year.
And in TV, the finale of To The Manor Born was watched by 23.95 million people.
You can see more classic pictures of Kent in the 1980s and 1990s.
