David Bonds (Christopher Fairbank) says, "Hitler couldn't drive my dad out of this pub," and "no poxy Docklands Development is going to succeed where the luftwaffe failed. We ain't going nowhere." German bombing of London during World War II caused massive damage to the docklands area. Following post-war rebuilding in the 50s, the area became very profitable. From 1960-1980 all of London's docks were closed, leaving eight square miles of derelict land in East London. In 1981, the London Docklands Development Corporation was formed by Michael Heseltine to redevelop the area. The LDDC was accused of favouring elitist luxury developments rather than affordable housing for local communities who felt their needs were not being addressed. The LDDC was wound up in 1998.
Steve Strange, who appears as himself, was in the music video for the David Bowie song "Ashes to Ashes" in 1980, which the series is named after.
This episode begins with Alex (Keeley Hawes) watching BBC's Nine O'Clock News presented by John Humphrys. He presented the programme from 1981-1987. She then changes channels to Panorama (1953), the BBC's long-running current affairs and documentary show (1953 to present) presented by David Dimbleby (1974-1981). The clip is in black and white which the BBC had stopped using by the mid-seventies. David's father Richard Dimbleby had commentated on the Queen's coronation in 1953. Next, Alex sees Angela Rippon's intro to the BBC programme "Wedding Interview", broadcast at 6.00pm on Tuesday 28 July 1981, a fifteen minute programme containing a five minute interview with King Charles III and Princess Diana on the eve of the The Royal Wedding (1981) conducted by Angela Rippon and Andrew Gardener. Also seen is a brief clip of the opening sequence of Nationwide: A Royal Celebration broadcast on Wednesday 29 July 1981 at 3.30pm. Later in this episode, a clip from this show featuring Sue Lawley is shown.
Chris (Marshall Lancaster) says, "this is the last place left Guv. All the rest have been compulse-compulse...? They didn't want to leave but they had to." Chris is trying to refer to a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) which allows councils to obtain land or property without the consent of the owners, usually in the case of motorway construction and town or city redevelopment.
Gene (Philip Glenister) says, "all talk and no trousers," mixing the northern expression, "all mouth and trousers" which means to engage in empty boastful talk but with no real substance to back it up, with the expression, "all talk and no action," which means the same thing.