dialling 54321....

[katieb73]

When we were kids in the 80's, we used to go up to the phone box, it was the old style where you dialled the number and only put the money in when someone answered...anyway... we used to dial 54321 and someone always used to answer...? (If you're reading this i'm really sorry for wasting your time!!!) what could this number have been???? Lived in Shropshire at the time.

[NORMANTHEDOG]

it would have been just a local number to you,as you dident dial enough numbers for it to go any further

[funkylad20]

Well when I was a kid we used to always ring free-phone numbers in America. Oh, it was fun...!

[Iggle Piggle]

Most numbers now have area code of usually 5 digits, and then maybe 6 digits. If you look at numbers in the Shropshire area, they will be (as Telford) 01952, then one number then your 54321.
In the 80's most numbers were 5 digits long, then BT included a number to increase the number capacity of the network.
I'm guessing a nice easy number to remember such as this one would be a taxi firm, or a prominent company.

[thundercrack]

I lived in london in the 50s and on the old phones with letters and numbers we used to dial F E D , and a voice would answer "federal" ( or something similar), we used to say ,"sorry wrong number" but they would question who we were and why we were ringing them.
never did find out who they were, but they sounded rather nasty.

[almcd007]

I remember my barmy Uncle grabbing the phone book once - looking at the "Z" section - finding a Mr Zebedee, phoning the number and shouting "Boooiiinnnggg !" down the phone !

Sorry if you are out there Mr Zebedee.

We also used to tap out the numbers for the dialling clock and also there used to be a similar one with the top five selling singles that week (In the late 70's & early 80's) - All before I bought a ZX Spectrum and discovered Jet Set Willy !!

[tigga]

We didnt have a landline back then, i used to get the operator to reverse the charges to a phone box near my friends house at a certain time and then talk for ages ! Or we would do it to a box up the road mimicking that old b&q advert - someone would walk by and answer, we would then say "2lb of nails, 99p at b&q". God we were little ******* !

[tigga]

bug.... ers !. god it brings back memorioes, wasnt it 5p minimum call too ?

[Panic Button]

After decimalisation the boxes only had 2p and 10p slots so I guess at that time it was 2p minimum.

I remember the older boxes with A and B buttons, but I don't know what the charges were.

[EverClean]

There was a number you could call and then put the received down and it would ring back 5 seconds later.

A passer by always answered.

I think it was 828 or a similar number.

[kevo2k7]

if u go 2 a bt phone box an dial 141 an repeat this quite fast about 20 times then dial a landline numba straight away it actually connects an starts 2 ring but when person answers they cant hear u only u can hear them lol i avent tried this for a couple of years but cant see any reason why it dnt work anymore. it might work with mobile numbas 2 ive neva tried diallin 1.try it guys an let me know if it still works .