For 42 years Derek Wills has had the same television – and not once has he had to call out the repair man. The 22 inch TV was among the first color sets in Britain. Indeed, with an infra-red remote it was the last word in home entertainment. The set has weathered the video age, the arrival of DVDs, satellite, cable and digital and not once has it so much as blinked.

Derek Wills with Britain's oldest colour telly

Mr Wills has watched everything from the first man walking on the moon to the fall of the Berlin Wall to England's 2005 Ashes victory on his trusty 42-year-old telly It may be the oldest working color TV in Britain but, says 69-year-old Mr Wills, the picture is still so good that only HD TV betters it.

He bought the set in 1968 for more than £300 so that he could watch the likes of Dixon of Dock Green and Z Cars. The BBC had only just begun its color broadcasts in 1967.

Buzz Aldrin walking on the surface of the moon on July 20, 1969

Since then, he estimates he has watched as many as 70,000 hours on it, witnessing milestones such as the fall of the Berlin Wall and the freeing of Nelson Mandela, not to mention 11 World Cups. Mr Wills, a former engineer, said: ‘It was far, far ahead of its time. It's got a beautiful picture. It takes a Free view box and gives all the stations. It was a lot of money in those days but it was really good. ‘The neighbors used to come round to see it. We had a great big H aerial on the roof and used to get quite a good signal.

Bobby Charlton leading out Manchester United in the European Cup Final against Benfica in 1968 ‘Obviously, HD knocks spots off it today, but for its day it was brilliant. ‘The telly's in great order. The back's never been off it.