Electronic Dreams: How 1980s Britain Learned to Love the Computer
Tom Lean
May 2026 · Bloomsbury GB Audio · Narrated by Mark Meadows
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10 hr 25 min
Unabridged
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Bloomsbury presents Electronic Dreams by Tom Lean, read by Mark Meadows
Remember the ZX Spectrum? How about the BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, or Commodore 64? Did you marvel at the immense galaxies of Elite or master digital kung-fu in Way of the Exploding Fist?
For anyone growing up in the 1980s, these iconic computer brands are the stuff of legend. In Electronic Dreams, Tom Lean tells the story of how computers invaded British homes for the first time, charting the history of the rise and fall of the home computer, the machines that took computing from the realm of science and science fiction to being a user-friendly domestic technology. It is a tale of unexpected consequences, when the machines intended to help with homework ended up giving birth to the video games industry; and ultimately, it’s the story of the people who made the boom happen, the inventors and entrepreneurs like Clive Sinclair and Alan Sugar, bedroom programmers and computer hackers, and the millions of everyday folk who bought in to the electronic dream and let the computer into their lives.
Remember the ZX Spectrum? How about the BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, or Commodore 64? Did you marvel at the immense galaxies of Elite or master digital kung-fu in Way of the Exploding Fist?
For anyone growing up in the 1980s, these iconic computer brands are the stuff of legend. In Electronic Dreams, Tom Lean tells the story of how computers invaded British homes for the first time, charting the history of the rise and fall of the home computer, the machines that took computing from the realm of science and science fiction to being a user-friendly domestic technology. It is a tale of unexpected consequences, when the machines intended to help with homework ended up giving birth to the video games industry; and ultimately, it’s the story of the people who made the boom happen, the inventors and entrepreneurs like Clive Sinclair and Alan Sugar, bedroom programmers and computer hackers, and the millions of everyday folk who bought in to the electronic dream and let the computer into their lives.
Bloomsbury presents Electronic Dreams by Tom Lean, read by Mark Meadows
Remember the ZX Spectrum? How about the BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, or Commodore 64? Did you marvel at the immense galaxies of Elite or master digital kung-fu in Way of the Exploding Fist?
For anyone growing up in the 1980s,...
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About the author
Tom Lean is a historian of science currently based at the British Library, where he works on Oral History of British Science, a major project concerned with collecting and archiving life-story interviews with 100 figures from the recent history of science and technology. His fascination with computer technology is long-standing, culminating in his doctorate at the University of Manchester on popular computing in 1980s Britain.
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@reggitsti
Tom Lean is a historian of science currently based at the British Library, where he works on Oral History of British Science, a major project concerned with collecting and archiving life-story interviews with 100 figures from the recent history of science and technology. His fascination with comp...
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