E’s, discos and studying sculpture: How Britain has changed since Pulp last released an album

Pulp are back with their first new album since 2001. New single “Spike Island” precedes the release of the album More, due on 6 June. It’s as good an excuse as any to dive into a back catalogue which chronicles Britain as it was for the outsiders downtrodden, and eccentric. 

From the pool tables and supermarket aisles of “Common People” to the raves of “Sorted for E’s & Wizz”, they’re time capsules in song.

But as friend of Big Issue Jarvis Cocker sang on “Do You Remember the First Time”, we’ve changed so much since then. Here’s how the Britain of 2025 compares to the country when Pulp released their last proper album.

• Jarvis Cocker: ‘We’re all just getting through it the best we can’
• Britpop’s returning heroes remain a different class 
• Pulp star Nick Banks explains how Jarvis Cocker incident with Michael Jackson changed everything

Study sculpture at St Martin’s College

Recently-introduced tuition fees of £1,000 a year caused a huge stir for those going to university in 2001. Undergraduate fees now stand at £9,250 a year, although Central St Martins do a short course introduction to sculpture, for £740, if you’ve got a thirst for knowledge.

Smoke some fags and play some pool

Forget the pocket change needed to get the balls out of the pool table, it’s cigarettes which make the most “Common People” pastime of all that little bit more out of reach. In January 2000, a 20-pack cost £4.01. Nowadays, it’ll set you back an average of £16.60.

Rent a flat above a shop

In “Common People”, this was the simple option. Renting in London, however, has become ever-more expensive. The weekly rent for a local authority flat in the capital in 2001 was £63. By 2023, that would be £114.31.

If you called your dad he could stop it all

Being bailed out of the travails of insecure life in the capital is an increasingly common phenomenon. Some 37% of first time buyers used the Bank of Mum and Dad for help with deposit in 2023, up from 27% a year earlier.

Disco 2000

Anyone looking for a disco in 2000 was well served. The UK had 2,800 nightclubs that year, according to the NTIA.

By 2022, that had fallen 60% to 1,130. By June 2024, that had fallen again to 787, with 11 closures a month in the first half of 2024.

Babies

“I wanna take you home,” sang Jarvis Cocker on Pulp classic “Babies”. “I wanna give you children.” But that sentiment appears to be on the wane. 

In 2001, there were 1.63 births per woman. In 2023, it had fallen to 1.44, the lowest rate on record. Research suggests it’s down, often, due to financial pressures.

E’s and wizz

For all Pulp’s problems, things were OK because they’re all “Sorted For E’s and Wizz”. One thing surprisingly resistant to inflation is drugs, with illicit substances often immune to rising prices elsewhere.

The price of an E fell sharply in the decade up to 2001. In 1990, an ecstasy pill would have set you back £18.80. By 2000, that had fallen to £7. Today, a pill will set you back £10 in a club and £5 outside, according to the Welsh Senedd.

Leaving an important part of your brain somewhere in a field in Hampshire

The cheapest new season ticket to watch Southampton FC become the earliest side ever relegated from the Premier League was £499. Forget field raves, regularly attending St Mary’s is the easiest way to lose an important part of your brain in a field in Hampshire.

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