Creating The At-Home Pregnancy Test

This episode first premiered in 2022, for members of 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 - where you can also DITCH THE ADS and get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!

In today's episode we explore the incredible history of the at-home pregnancy test, first made available to British women on 6th November, 1971. Although not at Boot’s.

Created by Margaret Crane, a graphic designer for New Jersey pharmaceutical company Organon, the test revolutionised the process of pregnancy detection, which had previously required a clinician to send samples to a laboratory - an exercise that could take up to a fortnight.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly learn how the ancient Egyptians were years ahead when it came to urine samples; explain why ‘the rabbit died’ had become the accepted euphemism for being up the duff; and watch old episodes of ‘The Dick Van Dyke Show’ and ‘Hill St Blues’ for their research (well, ok, that’s just Rebecca)... 

Further Reading:

• ‘History of the Home Pregnancy Test’ (The Atlantic, 2015): https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/06/history-home-pregnancy-test/396077/

• ‘The Unknown Designer of the First Home Pregnancy Test Is Finally Getting Her Due’ (Smithsonian Magazine, 2015): https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/unknown-designer-first-home-pregnancy-test-getting-her-due-180956684/

• ‘"Get dressed.... Dad" - Home Response TV Commercial’ (1987): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWLZC0q3isk

We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/retrospectors

 

The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices