‘Fingertip shopping will be one of the many homemakers’ conveniences. This video console will be channelled into the store of her choice …” I’ve always been fascinated by this 1967 video (not 1969, as the label says) which accurately foresaw the advent of online shopping, CCTV, fax/email and electronic banking. (It was a little less prescient in its assumption of gender roles – wife shops, husband pays – but we’ll let that slide.)
The video, entitled 1999AD, was made by the Philco-Ford company, an American electronics firm that started off in radios and moved into appliances and TVs. I’ve often wished the writer of this short film could see the world as it is in 2026. What are some other predictions that have come spookily close to the truth? Ann, Devon
Post your answers (and new questions) below or send them to [email protected]. A selection will be published next Sunday.
