2. Apple iMac
15 years ago, Apple were nowhere near as huge as they are now, and were still struggling against Microsoft to make an impression on the public. Oh, how times have changed: if you're seen walking the streets nowadays with anything non-Apple branded in your mitts, prepare to be made fun of by everyone, from children to the elderly (well, not really - but in a few more years this could be reality, people). Apple's secret seems to be that they just put the letter "i" in front of normal words and suddenly it makes things cool. AND IT DOES. Anyway, this is what the first ever iMac looked like when it was unveiled in 1998. It looks vaguely... childproof... but you can at least see how Apple were even trying to make computers look cool 15 years back.
Obscure Fact: The translucent design (which allowed you to see inside the computer) started something of a trend in the digital hardware department, which was nice.
1. Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?
This. Now this is what we're talking about. Most people probably can't trace back to the point where they first caught a glimpse of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? but we've all seen it, haven't we? Yeah, we have - c'mon. The first episode aired in the UK on September 4th 1998, an incredible 15 years ago, and since then every country ever bought up the rights to air their own version (the US version did particularly well). There's no denying that this is without a doubt the most influential game show of the past two decades or so, and it's really no surprise - given the high-stakes format of the show - that it became so popular for family viewing. Rooting for somebody to win such an insane amount of money made for perfect Saturday night entertainment - it's just crazy to consider that this show been around for such a ruddy long time.
Obscure Fact: Chris Tarrant, who hosted the UK version for every one of its 15 years, recently decided that he couldn't be bothered with it all anymore and quit. As a result, Millionaire - after 588 episodes - will cease to exist come 2014. Before he left the TV studio, the producers asked him: "Is that your final answer?", to sent Chris mad and resulted in a series of fistfights (well, that probably happened - there's no evidence or anything).
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