Six things from the 90s Front Row has outlived

6 April 2018

1998 was the year Google came into our lives and when moviegoers flocked to see Bruce Willis fight an asteroid. But more than that, it was also the year that Front Row premiered on our airwaves. Twenty years on from its debut we look at six 90s greats that Front Row has outlived.

The cast of Dawson's Creek. Left to right: Katie Holmes, James Van Der Beek, Michelle Williams, and Joshua Jackson | Photo by Warner Bros.

If you were coming of age in the 90s in the pre-social media era then chances are a lot of your time was spent discussing whether Joey (Katie Holmes) belonged with Dawson (James Van Der Beer) or Pacey (Joshua Jackson). And who could forget - Spoiler Alert, by the way - the heartbreak of Jen (Michelle Williams) passing away leaving behind her daughter Amy, in an episode that gave 90s teenagers a valuable lesson in life’s tragedies and cruelties.

Aside from the emotional pull of this pre-Netflix wonder, it launched the careers of its principal cast members who would each, to a greater or lesser extent, enjoy a successful careers in film. Williams arguably went on to outdo them all, winning a Golden Globe for her role in My Week with Marilyn in 2012 and marrying 90s heart-throb, the late Heath Ledger.

What you may not know is that Dawson’s Creek was creator Kevin Williamson’s first TV show, having previously written the screenplay for 90s slasher film Scream, and the part of Jen was nearly played by Katherine Heigl rather than Williams.

The last episode was broadcast in the US on May 14, 2003.

20th anniversary special
Celebrating two decades of the radio show, live from Radio Theatre, Broadcasting House.
Front Row Late Series 2
The 20th anniversary coincides with the return of Front Row Late on BBC Two, hosted by Mary Beard.

Brad Pitt with Jennifer Aniston in 1998 (left) and Angelina Jolie in 2009 (right) | Image credits: Barry King/WireImage (left), Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images (right)

Magazines in the 90s devoted acres of coverage to dating gossip about Hollywood’s hottest celebs. Ben Affleck was with Gwyneth Paltrow and Matt Damon had still to dump Minnie Driver on Oprah. Yes he really did do that!

But the real 'it' couple of '98 was Brad Pitt and Jennifer Anniston, who allegedly met after their agents reportedly set them up on a blind date. Cue the beginning of the Brad–Jen–Jolie love triangle.

Two years later Brad and Jen were married and in 2001 he even had a cameo appears in Aniston’s sitcom Friends. Three years later, in 2004, Pitt began working on the now infamous film Mr and Mrs Smith with Angelina Jolie. If the rumours are to be believed, this was the beginning of the end for Brad and Jen and they announced their split at the beginning of 2005.

'Brangelina' made their first red carpet appearance in 2006 and Jolie announced that they were expecting their first child. However, after a decade as the Hollywood 'it' couple the Brangelina fairytale ended when Jolie filed for divorce in 2016.

Now the rumour mill is in full swing once again, speculating about a Brad and Jen reunion. Only time will tell if Brad really has gone back to '98.

B*Witched in 1998. Left to right: Edele and Keavy Lynch, Sinéad O'Carroll and Lindsay Armaou | Photo by Patrick Ford/Redferns

The 90s were certainly the decade for boy bands and girl groups. Many came and went and in some cases came again; 911, S Club 7, Spice Girls, Boyzone, Atomic Kitten, Sugababes and 5ive to name a few.

But B*Witched would become the youngest girl group ever to have a number one in the UK. The Irish girl group consisted of Lindsay Armaou, Sinéad O’Carroll, and twins Edele and Keavy Lynch - the sisters of Shane Lynch from 90s boy band Boyzone.

Their debut single C'est la Vie was released on 25 May 1998 and it spent two weeks at the top of the charts, until it was knocked off the number one spot by Baddiel & Skinner’s Three Lions ’98 World Cup song.

The band split in 2002, though rumour has it that they may be making a 20th anniversary comeback, although sadly without the Irish jigs and C’est la Vie nostalgia. But beware 2018 - double denim could be back!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvjLgjtJKsc

Napster founder Shawn Fanning at a press conference in 2000 | Photo by Chris Hondros/Newsmakers

Back in '98 the newest technology in music was MP3 players and files, though many teens still relied on cassette tapes to share music.

That all changed in '99 when teenagers Shawn Fanning and Sean Parker founded Napster which allowed people to easily share their MP3 files for the first time. It was hugely popular, and by March 2000 there were over 20 million users. That reached its peak at 57 million - much to the annoyance of the music industry.

Plagued by several high-profile copyright battles the company ceased trading in 2002 but it was the precursor to the music streaming services we use today. It was the first time that music became digitally available at the touch of a button – something that we take for granted now.

While their file-sharing technology permanently changed the music industry, the company as it was set up in '99 has not survived, with the Napster brand currently being used by streaming service Rhapsody. Shawn Fanning went on to found the games company Rupture, while Sean Parker - as portrayed by Justin Timberlake in the film The Social Network - joined forces with Mark Zuckerberg in the early days of Facebook.

Left to right: Matt Damon, Tom Cruise and David Beckham in 1998 | Image credits: SGranitz/WireImage (left) / Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage (centre) / Shaun Botterill/Allsport (right)

The 90s were a thrilling time to be a hairdresser, with styles including butterfly clips, mini-buns, The Rachel, and the ever-popular frosted tips.

But if you close your eyes and think back to all those 90s heart-throbs I’ll bet they have one thing in common – curtains! Think Leo in Titanic.

The leading men of the movie world all sported curtains at some point, including Matt Damon and Tom Cruise. Even Dawson’s Creek's James Van Der Beek was another '98 star to adopt the look.

While the curtains hairstyle was around in the early 90s, if you were British their moment in the spotlight arguably came in '98 when David Beckham sported his parted locks in the World Cup. So although it was heart-breaking when he received a red card in the final against Argentina, at least his hair looked fantastic on his way to the bench.

England footballer David Beckham is sent off during England's 1998 World Cup match against Argentina | Photo by Bob Thomas/Getty Images

Before you had a Facebook to check and long before Instagraming your food became a thing, phones were just that - a phone. Texting involved pressing through each letter option on your numbered keypad (cue sore thumbs) and cameras were just on the horizon.

The most exciting thing your phone had – if you were lucky - was the video game Snake. When Nokia released their 5110 in '98 it was one of the first mobiles to feature not only the Snake game but also a replaceable face plate, meaning young fashionistas of the 90s could match their phone colours to their outfits.

Its sister phones, the famously indestructible Nokia 3210 and the ‘Matrix' 8110 phone, are enjoying a revival with new updated versions now on the market, but sadly the 5110 has been left to gather dust in pre-smartphone heaven.