Brentford. Griffin Park Fine Art Print

Alongside the British Airways ‘Fly The Flag’ commercials, the 1970s Brentford Nylons TV ads rate right up there with some of the finest of the era. Alan Freeman was recruited to become the face of the company and continually reminded the British public through their black and white (colour I they were posh) televisions that the more Brentford Nylon products they purchased, the bigger the likelihood of the price staying the same. Very good. I had dozens of ageing relatives who were obsessed with Brentford Nylons. Interestingly, they were all quite thin folk which was likely because they sweated half their body weight every night in their nylon cocoons. The company went into administration in 1976. Over the next year, the average weight of adults in the South of England doubled. Fatalities from domestic static lightning strikes also decreased one hundred-fold. No sooner than the wheels had fallen off the Brentford Nylons ‘Cart Of Happiness’, Reliant Cars left off the front wheel of their ‘Bond Bug’. The Robin Reliant, on which the Bond Bug was based, was inherently unstable and had a reputation for falling over when going around corners. So, it was a ‘Stroke of Genius’ to fit it with a ‘Souped-Up’ engine. A young male teacher at my junior school had one. I think my mum fancied him. He had a leather jacket and smoked ‘Gitanes’ The car has nothing to do with Brentford. It was built in Tamworth, but I have always wanted to get one in a painting. As I write this, Brentford are fourteenth in the Premier Division, having been promoted to the top flight for the first time this season. I hope they survive. They are a well-run family club. They recently left Griffin Park and moved to the Brentford Community Stadium, leaving behind a wonderful, old ground with a pub at each corner. Strange.