Harold Wilson's famous reference to 'white heat' captured the optimistic spirit
of a society in the midst of breathtaking change. From the gaudy pleasures of Sw
inging London to the tragic bloodshed in Northern Ireland, from the intrigues of
Westminster to the drama of the World Cup, British life seemed to have taken on
a dramatic new momentum. The memories, images and colourful personalities of th
ose heady times still resonate today: mop-tops and mini-skirts, strikes and demo
nstrations, Carnaby Street and Kings Road, Harold Wilson and Edward Heath, Mary
Quant and Jean Shrimpton, Enoch Powell and Mary Whitehouse, Marianne Faithfull a
nd Mick Jagger.
