And the answer is that 30 years ago I had a mad idea.

My Children had just started playing computer games, and I suddenly thought, Why don't we make computer games for chemistry?

I hired two schoolboys during the summer.

They made a floppy disk with the games on it.

Just after that, there was a conference of science teachers at Nottingham.

So I set up a little Stoll selling the computer disks.

My Children were sitting my office, duplicating the disks as fast as they could, and I was selling them for £2 each.

And I got so much money in my pockets that the pockets gave way money pulled up down my trouser legs.

It's the only time I've owned real cash for the university.

And for 30 years I had the discs in my filing cabinet, and every so often I looked at it nostalgically convinced I would never see the games again.

And then a few weeks ago, Steve Bagley from the Computer Science came to my office and I showed him this disk and he said I might be able to make it work.

I haven't old computer.

So now I'm here in computer science to go to Steve's office to see if I can play the games from this disk on the computer.

I'm now in ST Michael's office in ah, computer science department.

Here is a BBC made crew or BBC master computer.

I spent too much money on eBay.

Probably it's the best of that.

Now.

I like collecting or computers that you've seen me on computer fire will probably seen my collection, I can say so.

Are these like a rarity, like hen's teeth or operating?

BBC's pretty common still.

So I think most BBC microbes are pretty common These still these days there are a lot of school, so it's still a lot that survived.

People collect them.

They were still in use, controlling that sort of timetable displays on British railway stations.

Up until a few years ago.

Steve, when someone gives you an old desk, what were you thinking?

Like you got no chance with disquiet.

That depends how it's been stored for two in March and gangly looking pretty pristine condition, but in his filing cabinets are pretty hopeful that it would work.

The danger is really are that it's been too hard.

It's been in the magnetic field or something, and it's white, the information sometimes a disintegrating.

We get mold growing on them.

But generally as long as you say about the media and confined to drive that still works to play it and you can usually try and get something off for easy will be up to see the damage.

If know, how do you I've gotten had to start?

Okay, so was first put into the district, which is he's been in dr Note.

So you put sitting on my clothes a little.

So now they see usual ways you hold down shift impressed the break key in the lock up, right?

Wow.

And it starts up.

This is really except that sound computer was a lot more visceral in those days.

They make noises and they sort of you heard of going So it's not quite centered on the screen, but yeah, they monitor for the BBC Micro.

Die until I had Thio wire up a little circuit.

Look into my Charlie.

One quite center.

This is the welcome screen for our video games.

The disc that you've actually got was They've Got Here was sponsored by the pharmaceutical company that then pharmaceutical companies black.

So who made enough disks so that we could send one to every school in the country?

And the picture shows a stylized picture of a university campus.

This is meant to be the chemistry department on some people boating on the lake.

And this is the tower where the computer science used to be.

Though when this was written, there wasn't a computer science department.

It was still taught in maths.

Martin, what was your You have seen this, Roy, What did it feel like saying it pop up with this?

Great, Wonderful.

I mean, it's like going back to my youth nearly 30 years state more critical, I Well, first in first impressions, I think I was going back to my youth, was being a school kid, and that's getting software like this to play.

I don't think I ever used this when I was doing my chemistry a level, but I certainly saw things similar to this.

So yeah, it brought back memories for me is you have to press the key, so we have three games here.

Periodic table, multiple choice and chemistry.

Nottingham.

The information on the courses.

I don't think we need to look at the chemistry of Nottingham at the moment.

You know what I want?

Multiple.

Okay, let's go.

Which should we train?

Perhaps we begin by displaying the full periodic table just to see what happened.

So should we try and seeing Let's have a look at Silicon Silicon course on DDE, then hit question mark.

Yeah, well, it's quite technical, isn't it?

And let's never go.

I think I think they've cheated.

I think they've got the same thing for quite a few elements here.

Perhaps they were running out to storage space.

I want to see what it says for friends.

Seem doesn't have very much on Francine, but it has something.

There's a game where you get to fill in the blanks on the periodic table.

Be number two.

I think so.

Three years of defined tables have a random the blank tables, for what percentage do you think I think we got to hide will take forever.

To do it in.

The vizier will go on longer than Dave Brown's words yet, so let's get about 5% of six.

Okay, we'll be adventurous.

6% is blank.

Aren't well 120 seconds.

Let's give him two minutes where there's a blank in the first room.

If I can find the person so that should be quite easy.

That's carbon.

I knew that One on then on DDE.

Uh, tin is a light Anthony's business routine.

The rest in element on, then cost me on.

Then this is That's up, plutonium.

I think that one's rather for him.

Was it rather for him then?

Um, Lawrence may have changed since then.

What number is that?

What numbers aren't starting.

That's 99.

Isn't 1930 seconds left?

It's not curium Simple nothing.

What happened?

You got five out of seven in 111 seconds.

You scored 232 hit space for the full of time.

This is the best part, Baldrick.

So I didn't I didn't make it something.

You're not in the period of City Hall of Professor.

Okay, if you want it in the period of City Hall, if I do is I don't know.

The reason they've had this chance to play these games is because I was talking to Steve, who is a star of one of our other channels.

Computer file about computing.

And she had the computer.

I had the disc and bingo, but he can't do the games.

And if you want to watch computer fail, there be links on screen on their links in the video description as well.

And there are opportunities to try and play this game online as well.

If you really want to, I think copy them via a floppy disk onto my Mac using the floppy drive over here.

Comment.

I can use a BBC emulator.

How many emulators confront the same time?

Um, quite a lot in front.