You all know the moment. That strange occurrence when you’re talking to your friend about X, Y or Z and they have no idea what you’re chatting about. And then you realise. They weren’t even born when that happened. Or they were 9 and still playing dress up while you were out drinking with your mates.That moment when you realise all your friends are younger than you, and you and your best mate are years apart. Literally.

Since leaving school, I’ve always been the oldest in my friend group. I took a couple of years ‘out’ to travel and work out what I actually wanted to do with my life, so by the time I went to uni, I suddenly found myself two years out of the loop, as the majority of people on my course were 18 and just out of school. Not that this has been a problem at all – my best friend is 4 years younger than me and the age thing doesn’t really ever come up, apart from in random conversations when I realise she’s a total baby! So here are some of those hilarious moments that I’m sure anyone with younger friends can relate to.

1. You start talking about your favourite TV shows as a kid and they have no idea what you’re going on about. You: “How could you not have seen the Crystal Maze?! It was the best thing that ever happened on TV, ever. The bald presenter guy, what was his name? I loved him. And they always lost. Even if they got all the crystals. I don’t think I ever saw anyone win a big prize.Wow, I can’t believe you’ve never seen the Crystal Maze. I feel sorry for you.” Them: “Ok. You are aware I have no idea what you’re talking about right?”

The Crystal Maze: The best TV show ever?

2. They were 8 when Bring It On was the best thing that ever happened in your life. “Um, no I didn’t like watching things about teenagers cheer-leading and making out. I was too busy keeping my tamagotchi alive”

“Spirit Fingers!”

3. Pokémon was just not a thing in their life. It came out in 1996. They were 4. You were busy collecting all the cards and growing Charmander into Charizard and the best fighter he could be while they were learning how to read. But actually.

Gotta Catch ‘Em All

4. When you talk about that time you travelled to an amazing country and you try to remember what year it was. Then they tell you that they weren’t even out of nappies. You: “I went on the coolest family trip to London once, we saw [insert landmark/show here] and it was awesome. Gosh when was that? 1994 I think. I was 8.” Them: “I was 2”.

5. Pogs. They’ve never even heard of it. How have they never even heard of it? Pogs was the game that dictated who your friends were on any given day – whoever won the most Pogs would have a trail of kids following them around. Until they lost all their Pogs in the next game that is. Oh children are so fickle. You: “I can’t believe you don’t know what Pogs is! I feel sorry for you. It was the best game ever. Wait, I think I’ve still got my slammer somewhere”. Them: “I really don’t care. You are such a weirdo. WTF is Pogs!?”

Do any of these sound familiar? What other things have you noticed that can define the age gap in your friendships?