Excerpt from the 1971 short Granny Gets the Point.
The introduction of decimalisation on 15 February 1971 marked the beginning of the end for guineas, ten-bob notes, half-crowns and those chunky brass threepenny bits. But the changeover to the supposedly simplified system, based on 100 new pence in a pound rather than 20 shillings to the pound, was fraught with much confusion for many. The transfer took the Decimal Currency Board five years to plan and an 18-month period of dual pricing was decreed to allow people time to adjust to the new system.
Centering around the Collins family, who occupy a flat on the 13th floor of a London high-rise, this film breaks no conventions in its depiction of the varying degrees of understanding and acceptance of the currency revolution by different generations. For the teenage son, Peter, with his youthful voracity for change and an aptitude for maths, the adjustment is painless. However, old habits die hard for Granny Collins, (played by Doris Hare of On the Buses (ITV, 1969-73) fame), and the notion of a floating decimal point proves somewhat impenetrable.