• The history of plastics goes back more than 100 years.• Their usage over the past century has enabled society to make huge technological advances to take us towards the new Millennium. • Pre-20th Century Although we think of plastic as a modern invention, there have always been "natural polymers" such as amber, tortoiseshell and horn.• These materials behaved very much like manufactured plastics and were often put to similar uses to today's materials - for example, horn, which becomes transparent and pale yellow when heated, was used to replace glass in the 18th century.

• It was the game of billiards that provided the unlikely cause for its eventual commercial success.• The American Hyatt brothers were attempting to develop a substitute for the ivory billiard ball and in so doing came up with a process for manufacturers using a nitrate cellulose composition.• Celluloid was thus born and was patented in 1870 .

• Bakelite - a hard, dark plastic - was discovered by Leo Baekeland, a Belgian-born chemist in 1907 and was the first truly synthetic plastic to be patented.• Bakelite brought plastics into consumers' lives in a variety of ways.• Its excellent insulating properties made it an ideal material for hairdryers, radio cabinets, ashtrays and cameras.

• In 1922 a German chemist, Hermann Staudinger, made a discovery which would change the whole face of the plastics industry.• Through working with synthesized rubber, he found that plastics are made from chains of thousands of molecules linked together, known as "superpolymers" - a find which prompted the invention of many new plastics.• 1922 - first spectacles molded in cellulose acetate (in France)

• World War II meant a huge boost for plastics.• The production of plastics which are still used widely today - such as polyethylene, polystyrene, polyester, PET and silicones - all grew during the wartime period.• Nylon, the first totally man-made fiber, had been discovered at the end of the 20s, but was not put to great use until the 40s.

• PVC really took off during this decade and into the 1950s.• The 1950s The 50s saw the growth of decorative laminates such as Formica, first popular in the United States where they were used widely in espresso bars and dinettes.• A first for the car industry: 1956 saw the major use of plastics in car body design when the roof of a Citroen DS was made from unsaturated polyester reinforced with fiberglass.

• During the 50s plastics became a major force in the clothing industry.• Polyester, Lycra and nylon were easy to wash, needed no ironing and were often cheaper than their natural alternatives and, as a result, were hugely popular with consumers tired of the tyranny of housework.

• 1960 saw the first use of PVC to bottle mineral water.• The first domestic items made from molded polypropylene were developed from 1963 onwards - including combs, lemon squeezers and bottle stoppers.

• The explosion in global communications during the 80s and 90s has been made largely possible through the use of plastics.• Equipment such as computers, fiber optic cables and telephones all use plastics widely in their design to provide strength, light weight, insulation and flexibility.• Transport also has started using plastics more widely.

Fada Radio model 652, "The Temple", 1946

Wind-up Toy Baby, 1960s

Teddy Bear, 1960s

Olivetti Lettera 31 Typewriter, 1965

Rubik Cube, 1980s