Watch Nellie, the British School Computer of 1969

In 1969, the Forest Grammar School in England was home to "Nellie," a modified National Elliott 405 computer. Nellie was obsolete even then, but the boys at the school got to program it, play with it, and maintain it—because the silly thing broke down on average once every 12 hours.

In this vintage clip from Tomorrow's World, we visit Forest Grammar School and meet the kids who work with Nellie. Just booting the computer requires multiple multiple in various rooms, throwing giant levers and checking the oil in the disk unit. They describe the programs they've made, including an unbeatable noughts-and-crosses ("tic-tac-toe") game. Check it out:

For more on Nellie, read this article.