Before I was running a nostalgia blog, before I was dissecting CBBC plotlines and worshipping JLS, I had another obsession: old adverts.
Yep. Somewhere between my MSN phase and my “let’s upload S Club concert clips” era, I discovered the weirdly comforting world of vintage commercials on YouTube. And not just watching them — oh no — I was part of the community. We traded VHS rips like rare artefacts, commented “I THOUGHT I DREAMED THIS!” under jingles, and treated every 90s washing-up liquid ad like an Oscar contender.
I even made videos. Compilations. Reviews. And my proudest creation? Something I called Expert Opinions.
The premise was simple: find an ad about a topic you know loads about, and give it your expert opinion.
My first one was about a PSA on allergies. The ad said, with full seriousness, “Always avoid your allergens.”
And I, aged 18, said with full sarcasm, “NO SHIT.”
Iconic behaviour, honestly.
Looking back, those early videos were the roots of what I do now — mixing humour, curiosity, and a little bit of heart. They were my first taste of analysing nostalgia, of turning the weird corners of pop culture into something worth remembering.
So here’s to the old YouTube ad nerds. To the people who kept the jingles alive, who remembered the jingles before remembering jingles was cool. We walked so modern nostalgia TikTok could run.
Asten Does Nostalgia 
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