1982 · Dragon · UK · computer
Dragon 32/64
A Welsh-built home computer, capable at heart and outgunned on price.
Mixed Trivial to run Needs a keyboard ▶ Watch on YouTube ↗
Image: Liftarn , Editing by: Bill Bertram ( Pixel8 ) · CC BY-SA 2.0
A Welsh-built home computer of 1982, closely modelled on the Tandy Color Computer and sharing its Motorola 6809 — a genuinely capable processor wrapped in a machine that struggled against the Spectrum on price and library.
Its mascot, such as it was, was Cuthbert; ports of Chuckie Egg and the sprawling Time Bandit rounded out its better days.
What it cost
about a quarter of a month’s pay in 1982 · about $996 today
| UK launch price (£175 for Dragon 32) |
£175 (1982)
Welsh microcomputer based on the Motorola 6809 CPU. |
|---|---|
| Typical street price | — No verified mass-market street price recorded yet. |
| Units sold | ≈200,000 estimate Approximately 200,000 units sold in the UK. |
Why it mattered
The Dragon is a small chapter in Britain's home-computer boom, a capable 6809 machine that shows how a good processor could still lose to a bigger software library and a lower price.
Emulating it today
| Emulators | XRoar, MAME |
|---|---|
| Setup effort | Trivial to run (1 on this site's scale) |
| Controls | This is a computer-like platform: games may use a joystick or pad, but launching and configuring software often needs a keyboard. |
| Runs on a handheld | Yes |
The emulator names above are starting points, not a promise that every title or accessory behaves identically. Computer platforms usually add model selection, disk handling and keyboard setup even when CPU emulation itself is mature.
Firmware
This system needs no firmware file. Install an emulator, open a game, and it runs.
How many files you need: none to go and find. No separate firmware file is needed for an ordinary setup.
Firmware details checked 2026-08. Emulator requirements change — see Libretro documentation for the current list.
Where the software is
TOSEC catalogues computer disks and tapes broadly, including many revisions. It is useful for preservation, while a smaller curated selection is usually easier to play.
Copyright: Commercial software remains copyrighted unless its owner explicitly released or relicensed it. Homebrew, public-domain programs and current reissues should be treated separately from abandoned commercial titles.
This site names preservation projects and explains what they are. It does not link to ROM downloads.
Where to start
- Cuthbert Goes Walkabout 1983 action
The Dragon's mascot, such as it was.
- Chuckie Egg 1984 platformer
- Time Bandit 1983 action adventure
- Jet Set Willy 1984 platformer
The verdict
A few ports and the Cuthbert games are pleasant; the library is modest.
Most Dragon software has a better home on the Tandy CoCo or a rival British machine — this is one for the curious.
- Worth it if
- Players curious about acorn and the british micro scene and willing to learn how the original machine worked.
- Not for
- Anyone who wants a large, instantly accessible library and no model, firmware or control decisions.
Scored 3/5 for fun today and 3/5 for historical importance. Those two scores decide the label at the top — a machine can matter enormously and still be no fun.
Read more & watch
This page is 50% complete against the facts we try to record for every system. Gaps are shown as gaps.