When ‘the future’ arrives, then what happens to tomorrow? These are the questions I ask myself in the shower. Important questions. Stupid questions. Questions that have you chewing a tile. But the future is where we’re all headed so its worth giving it some minor consideration at least. I don’t mean fucking pension planning, I mean THE FUTURE. Its always been a place of interest. So we look to fiction to create possibilities for us, then laugh at them half a century later.

Phones went from big bulky things wired permanently to the wall in a horribly analogue, sound-only kind of way, to being smart phones without any of the sci-fi predictions of ‘video phones!!’ which were always depicted also being hard wired to a wall, in black-and-white. And all within 25 years. Evolution happens fast in the techno-world.

Breaking the genetic code was a monstrously big tidal wave of futurism, enabling a complete re-writing of the medical cure book.

Then there were the Big Brother type visions of the future. Dark, nihilistic worlds ruled by all-seeing bastards. That’s in a way more accurate. As is Brave New World where there’s nothing to do all day so the population is just kept drugged up with happy pills to dull it into inertia. Terminator is more accurate still; the computers take over and start the nuclear holocaust. Cheery.

But that’s only because ‘cheery’ doesn’t sell books and films whereas Blade Runner sells and sells and sells.

When ‘the future arrives’, as with smart phones and self-driving cars (God help us), it does give you a buzz. But only if you’re old enough to remember the past.

Nostradamus made loads of predictions, most about the end of the world, but he was just a self-publicising tosser so no-one listens to him any more.

Whereas just last week I spoke of the 3-dimensional taxis in the Fifth Dimension, as driven by Bruce Willis. Ok, seemed a bit chaotic but at least it gives more space. And now Vertical Aerospace have built a ‘taxi’ that is essentially a drone, driven by four horizontal propellers at the corners, which will whizz you over the traffic to a landing strip or helipad near where you need to be. You wanna go to Cornwall (why?) take a vertical taxi drone thing. They’ll have drivers/pilots but only for a while, then… driverless/pilotless!!! You could get across London in minutes and fuck the traffic.

“‘ere, you’ll never guess oo I ‘ad in me drone the uvver day…”

Happy Present

A xxxx