Were you THERE? What did you SEE? Did you KNOW?

[aclivity]

History in the making?

Sort of prompted by the events in Cumbria last week, have you ever been there when history - or at least news - was in the making? Were you at Orgreave when the police charged? Did you watch as the Berlin wall came down? Were you in a white fiat uno in Paris in 1997? If you were there when something momentous happened, did you realise it was going to be important?

For my part I have been in the place, but at the wrong time - like in Hungerford high street the week before Michael Ryan walked through - or didn't notice what was going on, like 1994 at Glastonbury with the Orbital set. I was at Queens last major UK concert at Knebworth, which is probably the closest I have come to history in the making.

Anyone been there for anything really important?

[timlongs]

I was at Rage Against the Machine yesterday, for their victory gig for getting Christmas Number 1.

I'd say that was a pretty historical gig?

[DB7 pilot]

I was there when the wife admitted she was wrong. Once in a lifetime, never to be repeated experience.

[GTIR]

40 years ago I was in the same room when I was born.

A day either side and I'd have missed it!

Crazy.

[Raverbaby]

DB7 pilot said:

I was there when the wife admitted she was wrong. Once in a lifetime, never to be repeated experience.

[aclivity]

DB7 pilot said:

I was there when the wife admitted she was wrong. Once in a lifetime, never to be repeated experience.

no-one will ever believe you though ... I bet there were no witnesses

[williamp]

I've been in an earthquake, but thats about it. What this thread will show is,a apart from the willy-waving is that 99.9% of the population lead normal, uneventful lives.

[Conian]

timlongs said:

I was at Rage Against the Machine yesterday, for their victory gig for getting Christmas Number 1.

I'd say that was a pretty historical gig?

it's a gig, you logged on, got tickets, you knew where it was, when it was
a great concert maybe but a great event in history, geddoudda heeeeeeeere!

[clarkmagpie]

I saw Jimmy Glass score for Carlisle against Plymouth to keep us in the football league.
Epic day

[Sheets Tabuer]

I was there when Stuart found out the bird he'd been snogging in the club all night was actually called Graham.

[mybrainhurts]

You ain't seen me, right...?

[Flintstone]

aclivity said:

DB7 pilot said:

I was there when the wife admitted she was wrong. Once in a lifetime, never to be repeated experience.

no-one will ever believe you though ... I bet there were no witnesses

If a man speaks and there are no women around to hear him, is he still wrong?

[Original Poster]

Sheets Tabuer said:

I was there when Stuart found out the bird he'd been snogging in the club all night was actually called Graham.

Sorry to hear,



I was in NY days before 9/11, not really relevant to this story but worth mentioning none the less.

I also found out at the weekend my mate was in Thailand during the Tsunami.

[Flanders.]

I was in Boscastle when it flooded, I knew it was big when the water was over the Wheels of my Dads Ford Mondeo. The old girl didn't miss a trick though. We had only just arrived when it all kicked off.

[cazzer]

I was stuck in the traffic jam on the A74 after the lockerbie bomb.
Hadn't a clue what had caused it at the time.

Not really "there" though.

[Emsman]

I was in sri lanka when the tsunami hit.

We had left the Eden hotel at Beruwela en route to go and visit the elephant sanctuary.

[mybrainhurts]

I was on the bog when Emsman blew up....

[petrolveins]

We were on a school trip to the tower of london the morning of the 7th July bombings, we got as far as the entrance, bemused by all the helicopters, sirens all around, before making a sharp turn around and back on the coach to school.

[CivicMan]

The Grand Hotel Bombing of 1987 - was there about about 15 minutes after the explosion as I was living right behind the hotel at the time. Police had cordoned off the area, including the beach, as they thought there may have been a second device. To get round the cordon, I waded into the sea with my cameras and got in front of the hotel on the then putting green, using a low wall as a shield ( and tripod - my breathing was off the scale!). Managed to get the earliest shots of the bomb damaged hotel that most people recognise from the papers. Trouble was, not thinking clearly, I gave my exposed rolls of Tri-X to the local paper who paid me about £50 for the pics - Lord knows what they got for them as they got syndicated worldwide......

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/gallery/2009/oct/13/b...

is an example, credited to the PA.

[Teppic]

aclivity said:

For my part I have been in the place, but at the wrong time - like in Hungerford high street the week before Michael Ryan walked through

I'd argue that in that case you were actually there at the right time.