The Crown has returned to Netflix for its third season (which incidentally, you can view for free for the next month).
From the Aberfan disaster to the miners’ strike, to Prince Charles‘ love affair with Camilla: the Royal Family had a lot to deal with in the 1970s.
While it was a difficult time, it sure as hell makes for good viewing.
The newest series covers the three-day working week in the UK, a government-enforced rule where electricity supplies were only available for three consecutive days per week.
But when, and why did this initiative come about? Find out here.
When was the 3 day week in the UK?
The three-day week lasted from 1 January to 6 March 1974.
During this time, people could only use commercial electricity services on three consecutive days per week.
It meant that people could not work longer hours, and that television stations stopped broadcasting at 10:30pm.
Essential services such as hospitals and supermarkets were exempt from the restrictions.
Why did the Conservatives introduce the blackouts?
The three-day week was introduced following the 1973 oil crisis and was offered as a solution to the dwindling supply of electricity, following industrial action by coal miners.
At that time, most of the UK electricity was produced by coal burning stations, so the initiative was brought in to conserve the stocks.
The Conservative PM at the time, Edward Heath, introduced the measures in order to avoid a total shutdown, which would have impacted the currency, rate of inflation, and businesses.
Labour’s minority government victory in February 1974 brought the miners’ strikes to a halt after negotiating pay.
Following this, the three-day week came to an end in March 1974.
The Crown season 3 is available to stream on Netflix now.
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