Ahead of a switch to a decimal currency the public are tested on their knowledge of the new system.
In advance of Ireland's changeover to decimal currency on 15 February 1971, '7 Days' conducts vox pops to test the people of Ireland on their knowledge of the imminent change.
Reporter Denis Mitchell asks shopkeepers, including a butcher, shop-assistants in the Kylemore Bakery and a stall-holder in Moore Street, as well as members of the general public, to convert between the old and the new currency. The results are a plethora of answers, much hilarity and a lot of confusion among young and old alike.
One woman sums up the general mood when she states,
Would you believe now, and I am not telling you a lie I don't know one thing about decimal coins and they are coming in in February.
When Denis Mitchell also asks his RTÉ colleagues, including economics reporter John Feeney, to see if they know how to convert into decimal currency. Reporter Bill O’Herlihy when challenged declares,
I haven't the faintest idea.
This episode of ‘7 Days’ was broadcast on 5 January 1971. The reporter is Denis Mitchell.
