In the 1980s nuclear weapons were a burning issue. What to do in the event of an impending strike was the subject of both idle discussions and serious debate, from schoolyards to building sites. Head for the hills to avoid being vaporised, or to a major city to get it over and done with?
Then, the feeling that the Cold War was warming helped the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament to reach its zenith.
Launched in 1958, it sowed the seeds of one of its most famous protests in August 1981 when a small group of women set up a peace camp at Greenham Common base, where cruise missiles were due to be sited.
The cause was unilateral nuclear disarmament, the notion that the UK scrapping its arsenal would encourage others to do the same. But critics dismissed disarmament groups as naive, or stupid, or even a tool of the Soviet Union. Far from driving us towards war, they said, Britain's nuclear arsenal was the only guarantee against another world war.
Labour took up the cause but were obliterated at the polls in 1983 by Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government. Labour MP Gerald Kaufman memorably described his party's manifesto as "the longest suicide note in history".
Undeterred, the 25-year-old CND held its largest demonstration that autumn, claiming an attendance of 400,000 (critics said 100,000) and two years later membership peaked at 110,000.
Since then numbers have been in steady decline, the group's profile mirroring that of the Cold War. As the Iron Curtain came down, it became harder to imagine nuclear death raining from the skies.
Today, the CND has 32,000 members, with new battles to fight.
"In the 1980s people did genuinely fear that they themselves would be killed," says chairwoman Kate Hudson. "Although we don't necessarily fear that we ourselves are going to be the direct target, people are increasingly aware that there is a danger."
As well as opposing the Iraq war, CND has been campaigning for a year against Trident, lobbying MPs, trade unions and churches, and maintaining low-key protests. And there are fears that the US might deploy battlefield nuclear weapons in its efforts to stop Iran building the bomb.
Uncertain world
While the "Son of Star Wars" missile defence scheme has faded into the political background, the debate over the ageing Trident fleet offers a special opportunity for CND and its allies.
Many question whether a Trident replacement is needed in a world security situation dominated by the fight against terrorism, and "rogue states" trying to build small numbers of warheads.
But Professor Sir Michael Quinlan, former Permanent Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Defence, and a consultant fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, says replacing Trident is a rational decision.
"We live in an uncertain world. If we renew it, it will be related to the world in the 2030s or 2040s. It is not directed against anybody in particular. It is an insurance policy. There is a possibility of having hostile states wanting to do very bad things. Is Iran going to be the first of several?"
But the cost is likely to be what sparks the fiercest initial debate. Sir Michael says a £50bn price tag would be hard to justify, while a £10-15bn bill would find support.
Ms Hudson and CND would be overjoyed by any decision not to renew Trident, whatever drove it.
"We often make the legal and moral arguments but many politicians are immune to legal and moral arguments. We're not interested in revisiting Cold War arguments. That is a different age. The question is, is it going to contribute to Britain's safety?"
For today's radicals, issues like Iraq and anti-globalisation dominate. But with Trident in the news, CND expects a rapid dividend. Ms Hudson says 200 people have joined in the past week.
At the Faslane naval base in Scotland - where the Trident submarines are housed - the long-standing "peace camp" has yet to benefit. Apart from occasional arrests for minor offences after protests, it's rarely in the news. There are only half a dozen protesters there, but a 365-day a year blockade of the base is planned, starting in October.
As CND gets ready to take advantage of the current wave of publicity, so too are their opponents. Those who have faced off over the Iraq war may return to a much older issue, and CND and its distinctive symbol may become fashionable again.
