People talk about the 2000s as if it was the other day. When I was asked to host The Noughties for BBC Two I thought, hang on, wasn’t this 5 minutes ago!? Then you realise that it’s been a whole twenty years since the decade started and I finished school. So although it made me feel like an elder, of course I said yes. 2020 hasn’t been the best of years for a lot of people, so who doesn’t want to look back on the decade that has brought us everything from Big Brother to Obama? We all love a bit of nostalgia and since Covid has turned us upside down it feels pretty warm and fuzzy to just rewind time a bit, to go back to a time when Phil Mitchell made the evening news! In 2000, I was fresh faced out of school in Ireland ready for a brand-new decade. And while I may not be too keen to look back on some of my personal fashion choices (shout out to handkerchief tops and fake tan) or my fringe which had its own micro-climate, there are a handful of moments that really stand out to me and for one reason or another make me pine for a slightly simpler time!
Angela Scanlon's Top 5 Noughties Moments
1 of 5Beyoncé dropping Crazy in Love (2003)
I don't think I even need to explain why I chose this one. But does anyone remember what life was like before Beyoncé? Or what life would've been like if she didn't go solo? I don't even want to think about it. Few songs have the ability to make you channel your inner diva as much as Crazy in Love. Beyoncé has been such a powerhouse throughout the last two decades and I for one am looking forward to her continued reign.
2 of 5Victoria Beckham's chat show interview with Parkinson (2000)
The noughties properly established Brand Beckham. We wanted to know EVERYTHING about them; what they ate, when they slept, what they did, when they did it and more importantly what matching gear they were wearing while doing it. So maybe it shouldn't be a surprise that when Victoria Beckham did interviews at the time, nothing was considered private and there was no holding back. In a 2000 interview with Parkinson to promote her debut solo single, he kicked off the interview with; "Three questions-Is it true that David wears your knickers? Second, is it true that you wear the trousers in your house, and thirdly, are you anorexic?" Looking at the clip now, it's excruciating to watch. Just shocking. How was that acceptable on TV? There was no compassion and it was treated like a joke, and it's unfair that a young woman at the height of her fame was put in that position on national TV, like being thrown to the wolves. She handled it well, in true VB style. But you wouldn't get that anymore. In a relatively short space of time we've come a long way in terms of how we treat celebrities and how we deal with sensitive subjects.
3 of 5Strictly Come Dancing waltzed onto our screens (2004)
Few TV shows last as long as Strictly, especially now! When it started in 2004 with Bruce and Tess, it was completely different to anything on TV but ballroom dancing and its appeal was still deemed to be pretty niche! Cut to 10 million viewers every Saturday night 15 plus years on… The rights to the show have been sold all over the world and in against the odds they've managed to pull it off this year- some have even said it saved 2020! It's pure escape and exactly the soothing, sparkling balm we need right now. (P.S. Money on Amfo!)
4 of 5Who shot Phil Mitchell? (2001)
So I can't say I chose this nougthies moment because it had a life changing impact on me but the story of who shot Phil was EVERYWHERE – on the evening news, front page the papers, it was a national obsession. It felt like the most important thing happening in the country at the time. The final of the UEFA Cup Semi Final between Liverpool and Barcelona agreed to a late start to accommodate the conclusion! And over 20 million people sat around to see him go down… unbelievable! Also, isn't he still in Eastenders?!
5 of 5Obama got into power! (2008)
With the intensity of US politics over the last week, I couldn't not pick this and maybe there are echoes of that time right now - a sense of home and relief and possibility. America said 'Yes We Can' to Barack Obama, a defining moment of the 2000s – America's first black president. While I can sleep a bit easier knowing that the US has said 'you're fired!' to Donald Trump, the Obama era is one to look back on with fondness. But Joe Biden and Kamala Harris? I'm ready for that era.
Watch The Noughties every Monday at 10pm on BBC Two. Catchup now on BBC iPlayer__.