4 days ago
I found a Sainsbury's receipt from 1981 in a second-hand bag - people can't believe how much prices have changed
A receipt dating back to 1981 was found inside a vintage bag bought by a charity shopper.
The anonymous shopper took to Reddit, where they shared their fascinating find with others.
They posted an image of the now 44-year-old sales slip in the r/CasualUK forum, accompanying it with a short post.
Their post simply read: 'Got a vintage bag from a charity shop, got more excited about the sainsbury receipt left inside from 1981.'
The receipt was a fascinated throwback, and a good reminder of how much everyday items have changed over recent decades.
One Reddit commenter pointed out how well the item was maintained - despite being around 44-years-old.
They wrote: 'I'm impressed at how well the ink held up and they were still using the half penny.'
Another noted that this is because the retro receipt was printed with traditional ink (as opposed to the thermal ink now used on receipts).
They explained: 'It's proper ink, will last forever if properly stored. Not like the thermal receipts you get now which fade after a few years or less if exposed to sun or heat.'
A further commenter was intrigued by the use of old currency.
They wrote: 'Love the fact stuff appears to be be priced in some cases at a half penny.'
In response, another Redditor said: 'Because there were 1/2 pennys then.'
This observation prompted a conversation about new currency.
February 15, 1971 is known as 'Decimal Day', as it marks the day British currency changed from the old system of pence, shillings and pounds, to the decimal system of pennies and pounds.
However, as another Redditor pointed out: 'It's half a new pence, different from an old pre decimal ha'penny. They're what you bought sweets with in the 70s.'
Half pennies were phased out after decimalisation - in 1984 - as inflation and the cost of production meant they were no longer considered economically viable.
Meanwhile, another Reddit user was shocked that the sales bill only dated back to the 80s, as they initial thought it was much older.
They wrote: 'It's like we are looking at a war time receipt. It's 1981 for God's sake lol. I was born a year after this was printed. I was reading the post thinking "do they mean 1940's receipt?". I thought currency was in its current form at this point with maybe the old pound coin and bigger 50 and ten pence coins. That's what I remember from my childhood, but I guess the change happened when I was very young.'
Others noted that the total bill came to a considerable amount of money when converted to reflect how much it would be worth now.
One said: '£41 in today's money is around £205.'
Another was curious about the purchases made, which are not identified on the receipt.
They wrote: 'Ahh right. Would be even better if we could see what they actually bought to confirm value but that's no small amount of cash. Thank you.'
'There are some pretty expensive things on there. I'm guessing that they are meat. I can't think of anything else that would be over £5 in a supermarket. It's not as if they sold clothes or household appliances then,' one mused.
Other suggested the more expensive items could be alcohol.
'Bottles of spirits would have been 5 or 6 quid,' one commenter suggested.
