Silicon Fen

In the 1980s, Cambridgeshire had a concentration of individuals and businesses working on computer technology, often connected with the University of Cambridge. This earned it the nickname Silicon Fen, linking the East England fenland to California's high-tech Silicon Valley. Clive Sinclair, Acorn's BBC Micro and Alan Sugar of Amstrad became household names, but many smaller companies contributed to the regional success story. Silicon Fen was and still is at the cutting edge of UK information technology, credited with innovations in integrated circuits, computer hardware and software, graphics, games and information resources, not to mention launching Britain's first affordable home computers. This selection of news items from Anglia Television's About Anglia highlights some key developments and examples of early adoption of computers for work and home.