‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us,’ though this is famously how Dickens opened A Tale of Two Cities it would make total sense if he was actually using this anaphora about Skins. Bear with me.
In the years since Skins first aired a lot has happened, namely social media. How teenage years were once lived - via house-phones, dial-up internet and MSN messenger - is a thing of the past. No more wild nights roaming around British raves, like Cassie and Tony did, because now every movement you make is accountable and trackable. No more living in the moment and dancing like no one is watching because Snapchat and Instagram are. Though we didn’t know it at the time, Skins has fast become a relic of a bygone simpler era. It signifies the days before wellness and avocado brunches, mesmerizingly inspiring scattiness and messy relationships, of teenage years sadly spent.
Look at these seven pictures and try not to get nostalgic
Debrief Flashback Friday Skins
1 of 61. The Jewelry Bandit Look
While the reason remains unknown, your place in the hierarchy of popularity was signified in the mid-Noughties by how many cheap necklaces and bangles you could layer up at once. Ideally, your neck should feel like it's on breaking point and carpal tunnel imminent. Bonus points if your mum lets you out the house in torn tights or fishnets, like Effy.
2 of 62. Boy Band Fringes And Beanie Hats2. Boy Band Fringes And Beanie Hats
These days, teenagers look so slick, like they've paid for an expensive haircut. In 2008, every boy you knew looked like a hybrid of Sid and Maxxie - shit blonde highlights with a drawer full of under-washed beanie hats.
3 of 63. Poorly Chosen Headwear
There was the fedora phase, the headband moment, the backwards cap era and lets never forget the bucket hat period. Everyone knew they looked like a dorky vision of Liam Gallagher in them but did that stop, anyone? No.
4 of 64. Boys In Scoop Neck Tees
I blame both Johnny Borrell and AllSaints for this one. Nobody needed to see that much of scrawny teenage-boy chest, yet we all did.
5 of 65. American Apparel Worship
What signifies the mid-2000's relationship with fashion quite like American Apparel? On the surface it was easy-to-wear affordable basics, in reality, it was a dark corporation struck down by dodgy ethics. Yet, we'd struggle to name someone who didn't at some point steal this grey AA hoodie from a mate.
6 of 66. Last Night’s Eyeliner And Bedhead Hair
Perfecting your skincare routine so that it's 12 steps long and requires hundreds of pounds worth of obscure Korean products just wasn't a thing back then. Instead, the aim was to have perfectly smudgy-smokey eyeliner and bedhead hair like Effy.
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.