We are familiar with the great 20th-century phenomena that have changed our world out of all recognition – airplanes and nuclear power, television and computers, spaceflight and the Internet. But what about all those other clever things of humbler origin that have also made our lives so different from those of our ancestors – the paperclip, the ballpoint pen, nylon stockings, the traffic light – not forgetting the bra.
The car seat belt has saved millions of lives. The washing machine has revolutionized life in the home. The Pill has changed attitudes to sex forever. Century Makers celebrates these unsung heroes of everyday life. Illustrated with fascinating and often famous images of our time, one hundred creations of the 20th century we can't do without are finally given their due.


David Hillman is a partner at the international design company Pentagram. In the 1960s and 1970s he was art editor at the Sunday Times Magazine, art director at Nova and at Le Matin in Paris. He was responsible for the redesign of the Guardian in 1988 and People Weekly in 1998. He has won many design awards on both sides of the Atlantic, he is a member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale and was elected a Royal Designer for Industry in 1997.

David Gibbs is a freelance writer and editorial consultant. He has collaborated with David Hillman on a number of books including The Compendium, a major survey of the work of Pentagram, Nova 1965-1975 and Taking His Time, a retrospective on the photographer Tony Evans. He is editorial consultant to King's College London and works for businesses and institutions in many parts of the world.