Scottish premiere of ZX Spectrum documentary comes to Dundee

The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the history of the ZX Spectrum

A new documentary charting the history of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum will have its Scottish premiere in Dundee on Sunday 24 November.

Abertay University is partnering with Gracious Films, GEL and MusicFilmNetwork to support the launch of The Rubber-Keyed Wonder at the DCA, as well as a special Q&A event with its filmmakers.

The ZX Spectrum has more significance for Dundee than any other city across the United Kingdom, as the machines were manufactured at the former Timex factory in the city in the 1980s, playing an important role in the development of the local games development industry.

The film tells the story of Clive Sinclair’s now legendary ZX Spectrum home computer, which was first released in 1982 and sold millions of units worldwide and because of its low cost and accessibility.

It became one of the most important technological innovations of its time, enabling many users to learn how to program and create their own games and contributing to the rise of the UK video games industry.

Charting the development and creation of the computer and the financial and reputational success it brought creator Clive Sinclair, the film also examines the impact of subsequent versions and the huge array of games including Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.

Ryan Locke, Head of the Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education at Abertay University said:

The ZX Spectrum is an absolutely integral piece of Dundee’s rich reputation in video games and its impact on the growth of the city’s games cluster shouldn’t be underestimated. We’re really pleased to be supporting the launch of the documentary and to be celebrating the impact the ZX Spectrum has had on generations of gamers here in Scotland and across the world.

The premiere follows a unique research project led by Abertay University academic Dr Mona Bozog - Generation ZX(X) - which features hours of interviews with women who worked in the Timex factory where the ZX Spectrum was produced and saw members of the public able to listen to them while connecting with the local area near the factory.

Tickets are on sale now at: https://www.dca.org.uk/events/o2m-the-rubber-keyed-wonder-qa/