Radio Times: Review by:; Alison Graham

Professor Brendan Walker sets out to create a groovy 1950s living room that’s free from stultifying postwar drabness; no more horrible sprung steel and horsehair-filled sofas or nasty rugs that needed a jolly good beating to remove the dust.

It’s an entertaining little show, though the Blue Peter-level science experiments are wearing. But anyone with an interest in the evolution of interior design and the revolution sparked by mass production will enjoy watching Walker refurbish a once dreary and little-used part of the house. The arrival of the television changed the geography of the home, according to Tony Robinson: “It was like putting an altar into a house.”

About this programme

2/4. Engineer Brendan Walker continues to explore the changes around the home in post-war Britain, reconstructing an entire house with the decor, furniture and gadgets of the era and investigating how these innovations affected the wider world. He focuses on the living room, which saw the introduction of the television set, wallpaper paste and vinyl emulsion, and the curvy dining chair for ever linked to a memorable 1960s image featuring Christine Keeler, the woman at the centre of a political scandal.