Once upon a time in Arcadia, when you never had it so good, ladies would buy gentlemen presents for Christmas and do so by queueing by the factory shop door at The Intrepid Works on Sunningdale Road in Cheam on the Outskirts of Pandemonium. Sadly, in this the year of Arcadia 2012 Intrepid has long gone, the last of the work to come off its production line having been dumped in Plymouth Sound from the decks of three landing craft after their relocated factory closed in the decade known as the Eighties.
However, it is still customary for a lady to buy a Christmas present for a gentleman, or indeed for a gentleman to buy a Christmas present for lady, so do not look so baleful, proceed with mirth to my stall at Spitalfields Antiques Market, where, on Thursdays between the hours of 8am and 3 I sell Vintage Fishing Tackle for the Soul.
