the summer of

What it was like to be 15 in 2008 in Britain

To be fifteen in Britain in 2008 was to have “Hallelujah” by Alexandra Burke everywhere, The Dark Knight on every screen, and The X Factor on after school. That year, gas cost £1.03/L and the iPhone 3G and the App Store was the new thing. Born in 1993? You turned 15 in 2008 — a teenager from 2006 to 2012, right in the window a soundtrack bonds to you for life.

Compiled by the Original Lore archive from period charts, box-office and price records. How we build these · sources noted throughout.

▶ Play your 2008 reel with sounda 30-second video of your year — the song, the screen, the turn.

the mixtape of 2008

Hallelujah — Alexandra Burke

  1. Hallelujah — Alexandra BurkeCohen filtered through a talent show, and suddenly a whole nation was crying at Alexandra Burke on a Saturday night.
  2. Sex on Fire — Kings of LeonBellowed hoarse in a muddy festival field, it was indie landfill's last gasp and our best drunk chorus.
  3. Viva la Vida — ColdplayThose tumbling strings turned every bedroom into a stadium; Coldplay made revolution sound like the biggest sky imaginable.
  4. The Promise — Girls AloudGirls Aloud in Motown drag, a glittering pop farewell that felt like the end of an era of Saturday telly.
  5. American Boy — Estelle feat. Kanye WestPure transatlantic swagger, all summer strut and Kanye guest verse, played on repeat off a scratched burned CD.

▶ Play your 2008 reel

why this one mattered

Alexandra won The X Factor and her cover of 'Hallelujah' detonated at Christmas 2008 — the fastest-selling single by a British female artist, the year's biggest seller, that gospel-choir climax pouring out of every telly and radio in the dark December of the credit crunch.

the year-end #1 was the UK's best-selling single of 2008.

the movies you are watching in 2008

  • The Dark Knight
  • Mamma Mia!
  • Quantum of Solace
  • WALL-E
  • Slumdog Millionaire

the tv shows you are binging in 2008

  • The X Factor
  • Britain's Got Talent
  • Gavin & Stacey
  • The Inbetweeners
  • Doctor Who

the games you are playing in 2008

  • Mario Kart Wii
  • FIFA 09
  • Wii Fit
  • Grand Theft Auto IV
  • Guitar Hero World Tour
  • Fallout 3

what things cost in 2008

What things cost in 2008
a litre of petrol£1.03
a cinema ticket£6.00
a pint of lager£2.80
a gallon of gas£1.03/L
minimum wage£5.73/hr
a first-class stamp£0.36
the average income£24,900

trending this year

The App Store
AI-generated illustration
The App Store
Spotify
Wikimedia Commons, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spotify_logo_2008%E2%80%932012.svg · Public domain
Spotify
Boris as London Mayor
Photo by Secretlondon (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Boris_Johnson_on_the_podium.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Boris as London Mayor
Bank bailouts
Photo by 84user (English Wikipedia) (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:UK_US_2008_October_bank_bailouts.png · CC BY-SA 3.0
Bank bailouts
Iron Man (MCU debut)
Saffron Blaze, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Iron Man (MCU debut)

the gadgets you just got

iPhone 3G
Photo by Feureau (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IPhone_3G_White.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0
iPhone 3G
BlackBerry Bold
Photo by Metrónomo (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BlackBerry_Bold_9000.JPG · CC BY-SA 2.5 ar
BlackBerry Bold
Nintendo Wii
Reza Almanda, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Nintendo Wii
Flip video camera
Photo by Parkrocker.com (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flip_UltraHD_03_500.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0
Flip video camera
Asus Eee PC netbook
Photo by Museo8bits (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ASUS_Eee_PC_01.JPG · CC BY-SA 2.5
Asus Eee PC netbook

what everyone is snacking on

Wispa
Photo by Evan-Amos (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wispa-Split.jpg · Public domain
Wispa
Pom-Bear
AI-generated illustration
Pom-Bear
Dairylea Lunchables
AI-generated illustration
Dairylea Lunchables
Freddo
Photo by Dan arndt (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dairy_Milk_Freddo.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Freddo
Yorkie
Wikimedia Commons, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yorkie-Bar.jpg · Public domain
Yorkie

what everyone is drinking

WKD
AI-generated illustration
WKD
Monster Energy
Bxxiaolin, edited by Pittigrilli, via Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Can_of_Monster_Energy_drink_sold_in_China_(0.33_l),_on_white_background.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Monster Energy
Frijj milkshake
Photo by Jaggery (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:M%C3%BCller_Frijj_advert,_Malpas,_Newport_-_geograph.org.uk_-_8303245.jpg · CC BY-SA 2.0
Frijj milkshake
Rockstar
Photo by Liggi953 (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_can_of_Rockstar_Enegy_drink.png · CC BY-SA 4.0
Rockstar
Vimto
Photo by GreaterPonce665 (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vimto_Can.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
Vimto

what made the news in 2008

  • The credit crunch hits: banks are bailed out and Britain slides toward recession
  • Boris Johnson beats Ken Livingstone to become Mayor of London
  • Baby P's death exposes catastrophic failures in Haringey child protection
  • Russell Brand resigns from BBC Radio 2, and Jonathan Ross is suspended for 12 weeks, over the 'Sachsgate' prank calls to Andrew Sachs
The credit crunch triggers bank bailouts and recession
Photo by Lcsrns (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Bank_of_Scotland_-_Nicolson_Street,_Edinburgh.jpg · CC BY-SA 4.0
The credit crunch triggers bank bailouts and recession
Boris Johnson elected Mayor of London
Photo by Raphaël Labbé (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:London_Mayor_Boris_Johnson_(2887723532).jpg · CC BY-SA 2.0
Boris Johnson elected Mayor of London
The death of Baby P shocks the nation
AI-generated illustration
The death of Baby P shocks the nation
Russell Brand resigns from BBC Radio 2; Jonathan Ross suspended over 'Sachsgate'
Photo by Mark Freeman (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Russell_Brand_2008.jpg · CC BY 2.0
Russell Brand resigns from BBC Radio 2; Jonathan Ross suspended over 'Sachsgate'
Team GB win a haul of golds at the Beijing Olympics
Photo by Frank800 (Wikimedia Commons), source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chris_Hoy_Returns.jpg · Public domain
Team GB win a haul of golds at the Beijing Olympics

what everyone is saying

  • "Credit crunch"the two words that defined a grim financial year
  • "Sachsgate"the Ross and Brand answerphone scandal
  • "Yes we can"Obama's slogan echoing across the Atlantic
  • "Long ting"grime-era slang for something tedious or drawn-out
  • "Buff"slang for good-looking, 'she's buff'

the summer of 2008.

the best of it still feels like it's coming.

…and then it cools. Play the reel to feel where 2008 goes.

Turn 2008 into a 30-second reel →

▶ Play your 2008 reel with sound