What will life look like in 2050?

We may not have known it at the time, but life in 1976 was relatively uncomplicated.

Punk had swept all before it and youngsters around the UK were tuning into their radios to listen to The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Stranglers and The Undertones.

They found out how their favourite bands were doing by tuning into Radio 1's chart show each Sunday evening, when all 40 singles in the top 40 were played.

The only chance many got to see their idols was during Thursday night broadcasts of Top of the Pops.

If they wanted to find out about breaking new bands they'd buy copies of the three weekly music papers – Sounds, Melody Maker and New Musical Express.

Parents wanting to see the latest Hollywood movie would plan trips to the large High Street cinemas at weekends to see such films as Star Wars, Saturday Night Fever and Smokey And The Bandit.

• Intelligent robots will replicate the emotion of humans. As well as being useful around the house, they will be able to take part in intellectual debate and be brought into the homes of the elderly and lonely to offer comfort and companionship.

• Forget BBC and ITV. Those channels as we know them could be gone – replaced with a network of on-demand services. BBC iPlayer is just the start. Scheduling as we know it will be consigned to history.

• Earphones will be as old hat as the Walkman. Instead minute ear inserts or adapted jewellery will bring us our music and information. There may even be the chance to have your own ear microchip, bringing you your favourite tracks in the most direct way possible

• Holidays will be transformed. Space tourism is likely to be a reality – and developments in virtual reality will enable you to take a short break from the comfort of your home.

• The lines between entertainment and reality will blur. Put on a special suit and goggles be transported virtually to your favourite concert. Or transport your favourite band, alive your dead, to your home.

Most families had now upgraded to colour TVs and sitting rooms would fill as people tuned into Corrie, Opportunity Knocks, Z-Cars, Match of the Day and Crossroads.

The year's biggest books, such as The Thorn Birds, were consumed in hardback or paperback and when people wanted to chat to friends or relatives, they made calls on Bakelite telephones.

The cutting edge technologies of the day were digital watches with built-in calculators, clunky, slow-paced Apple II computers and record players with automatic arms. If that little lot provided too much excitement, it was time to lie down with the nation's favourite obsession, the Rubik's Cube.

Fast forward to 2017 and we are living in a different paradigm. The way we consume entertainment has changed beyond recognition. Books are now served up electronically on e-readers. Films are streamed straight into households via home computers. If a TV programme coincides with something more important – like, erm, washing our hair – we simply press the pause button and catch up later.

Smart lamps can now paint your living room any colour you like, Lego bricks can be turned into actual robots, OLED TV sets sit totally flush against living room walls and desktop personal assistants talk back to us and remind us about important appointments.

Catch your breath. That's a lot to take in.

The worrying thing is, when our successors sit down to write similar articles 33 years from now, they'll look back at the way we consumed our media and entertainment in 2017 and laugh. We'll no longer buy kindles from shops, or via Amazon, they'll be delivered to us by drones. Our TV channels will be a thing of the past, with schedules replaced by blanket on-demand shows.

Artificial intelligence will also have allowed machines to start thinking like humans. Though don't expect to wait until 2050 for that to happen.

Ian Pearson, a futurist with an 85 per cent accuracy record, says it is feasible that computers could gain consciousness by 2025, or perhaps by 2020. He says: "Google's DeepMind isn't there yet, but really I'm sure they'll probably discover those things along the way, and by 2020, it's possible their computer could be superhuman and could be conscious. That could be the beginning of the end, really."

Adrian Letts, co-founder and managing director of Blinkbox Movies and TVs, believes the future of entertainment will be in our pocket – and he thinks it's coming within 10 years.

"I predict the mobile device will be at the centre of people's lives. People will be watching television and movie programming even more than they already do on their tablets and mobiles, and these will be the doorway to both entertainment and commerce."

So what does this all mean for the TV in the living room?

"There will still be a place for it, but I am not convinced its technology will continue to shape the development of the industry."

In 1977, those who weren't waving flags and celebrating the Silver Jubilee might have been jetting off to Spain, then one of the world's most exotic holiday destinations.

This year, millions of Brits will fly around the world, taking advantage of an era of cheap air travel, with fares to Spain from £10. But in 2050, our expectations will have changed. Space trips will be happening regularly. Tesla CEO Elon Musk believes tourists will eventually be travelling to Mars.

By 2050 clothing and prosthetics will give people superhuman skills. Those who need to do heavy lifting will wear exoskeleton suits while hi-tech leggings will make it easier to walk or run.

The lines between entertainment and reality will blur.

A Google spokesman said: "I think entertainment will feel more like it's in the real world and less like something we sit and consume through a screen. We'll walk into the action, be part of the theatre, and create simultaneously. You may one day be able to have your favourite band come and perform in your home for your birthday."

Some of the technology that we now rely on and think of cutting edge will have been made obsolete and will have disappeared – look no further than the story of CDs for proof.

Those who still own smartphones will be considered old-fashioned. Instead, we'll be wearing tiny bracelets or other pieces of jewellery that provide all of the information we need – without the need to carry a clunky old handset.

Self-driving vehicles will be ubiquitous while 3D printing will have become so advanced that it'll be used to build houses for $5,000 USD – a major asset as cities become over-crowded.

Robots will be doing the washing up and providing companionship for the lonely and advancements in nanotechonology mean we'll be able to plug our brains into computers and live in a simulated world.

So while in 2017, people watch films like The Matrix – by 2050, they'll actually live in one.