Death of a Friend
The trip to York yesterday was to visit my old boss from ICI and his wife. He has not been too well lately after a stroke and some complications, but his mind is still all there and just as when I went to Liverpool, we discussed engineering and put the world to rights. He also filled in some of the gaps in some of my stories, like the invention of plastic string.
However, the trip was overshadowed by learning about the death of one of my colleagues in Metier in a phone call on the trip north. Brian was the Finance Director and we couldn’t have wanted for a better one. Or a funnier and witty one for that matter! He had also been a good friend and confidant since the death of my wife and until a few months before his death, he could be relied upon to call regularly.
He will be missed by all who knew him.
The Minotaur Lives
Imagine my surprise, when a parcel appeared on my doorstep carried by a man who looked like he was doing an impression of Pete Henry, except that he was a few years older than my last recollection.
In the parcel, was about a hundred copies of the infamous Metier Minotaur. This was the edition that had the tall Pete’s picture where he was trying to get into a compromising position with the diminutive Karen, in what looked like the dining room of my old house at Debach with the infamous wallpaper. It was also probably the laste edition as it had Metier’s obituary. On the last page it asked if the hamster really did it.
Pete told me that he had had a vision from God and this had sent him to a dark, satanic print works in Clerkenwell, where in exchange for a fistfull of used notes, he had received these magazines from an atttractive young lady.
So what am I to do with this manna from heaven?
My son died of pancreatic cancer, so these priceless works of great literature will be sold with all proceeds going towards research into the cancer at Liverpool University, where a world-class team has been assembled.
I am not restricting the sales, as the excellent printer, has informed me that if need be he can print enough copies to completely cover every window of the gherkin.
The Masons Arms
This pub in Devonshire Street played a major part in my life in the 1970s.
The Masons Arms
It was just round the corner from the offices of Time Sharing Ltd., the company we were all associated with in the early 1970s, so often if you needed anyone they were drinking in the Masons, as it was always called. One of our staff, who later joined Metier, even developed a long-term relationship with the landlord, which still flourishes today.
But it’s not just me, that has pleasant memories of the pub One of my friends, who sadly died a few years ago, had a part-time job in the pub, whilst he worked for AEI. He claimed that someone from AEI New Zealand, the landlord of the Mason’s and himself, enjoyed themselves immensely on a spree in London. Now this was after AEI had been taken over by GEC and all expenses had to be approved by Arnold Weinstock‘s office. It was queried by asking who they had taken out for the evening. The reply was that it was the New Zealand High Commissioner. And to prove it he gave the office, the personal telephone number of the Commissioner. The expenses were paid.
Business is very different these days, but I’ll always remember the Masons Arms with fondness.
The Price of an Artemis 1000 System in 1984
In going through my papers for possibly the last time, I found this invoice for an Artemis system. Or at least for the hardware required.
A Metier Invoice for an Artemis System
Effectively, my recollection is that this was about the time we sold the company to Lockheed and it was for old-times sake more than anything. I have a feeling I actually bought my old development mchine from the attic. It’s still in my shed now and I suspect it is the only one left!
Winning a Queen’s Award
Metier Management Systems, the company behind Artemis, won two Queen’s Awards for Export Achievement. I think they were in 1981 and 1982. There is surprisingly little on the Internet and all I can find at present is this page from the London Gazette. There isn’t even a list in Wikipedia, which shows how much we celebrate success in the UK.
I don’t even have any photos of either the presentations or the parties at Buckingham Palace, where I met the Queen.
Towards The Olympic Park
When I left Dullingam, I had had the vague intention of taking the newly rebuilt North London Line, either to Richmond or Stratford to see the Olympic Park for 2012. Access to the line is just one stop away from King’s Cross at Highbury and Islington.
A few minutes later, I was on the platform there waiting for my brand-new train to Stratford.
What impressed me was the attention to detail. Look at this staircase for example.
Stairs at Highbury and Islington
Now I am not disabled, but the grip in my left hand is not good and I have some issues with my eyesight, in that I miss objects at a low level. But here the rails and step edges are in bright orange, so I had no difficulty negotiating them at all.
Have they also have decided that on an outdoor station, that flowers rather than art is the best way to decorate the stations. Note the hanging baskets shown here as the train arrives.
The Stratford Train arrives at Highbury and Islington
The trains are a far cry from the old stock that used to creep around the North London Line, when I used to take it from Broad Street to Willesden to get to Metier at Stonebridge Park. They were third rail electric trains then, but now they are fed from an overhead catenary. This is a first for London Underground or Overground, but it is so they can get freight trains from East London to the main West Coast Main Line.
Here a load of containers are trundelling towards Stratford and then probably up the Norwich line to the port of Felixstowe.
My train was on time and I took it all the way. The last part of the journey is through the Olympic Park.
Here the main stadium is rising towards completion.
The Olympic Stadium Rises
And this is the aquatic centre.
Aquatic Centre
It is all very different from when as a child, I used to go to Stratford to bunk the engine sheds to collect engine numbers. I don’t think kids do that any more!
At Stratford, you have several choices about how to continue your journey.
- North London Line – You could take the line across the city, with its superb views of central London, to have a walk in Hampstead Heath.Kew Gardens or along the river at Richmond.
- Central Line – This is the quickest way back to the City and central London.
- Jubilee Line – This will take you to Greenwich, Canary Wharf and the West End, through some of the most spectacular stations on the planet.
- Docklands Light Railway – This is the route for people, who like to explore. Get a good guide book and just go to a station and walk around what I say is the real London, with its markets, churches, canals and historic buildings. And of course, its rich tapestry of people!
I chose the last and took the driverless train to Canary Wharf.
Are Redundancies Responsible for a Surge in New Companies?
This was posed by Robert Watts in today’s Sunday Times, but I can’t find it on-line. Is this because The Times are restricting what they put on-line?
But it’s not even mentioned in othe web sites, that we are now having a real surge in new company registrations.
But this is understandable as recessions are one of the best times to start a business, as companies are trying to outsource goods and services, there is a good supply of quality people, machinery, premises and other things available. Often from companies that have gone bust! We started Metier in the depth of a recession and you can’t say, that that wasn’t a success!
The only problem with this recession, is the attitude of the banks, but then, it would appear that many are using redundancy money as seed capital for their businesses.
Around the World in 33 Days
Well not quite thirty-three days, but a give or take a night or two, that is how long I’ll take to go round the world.
The purpose includes the following.
- I need a holiday and want to have some fun and relaxation.
- I want to see a few old friends.
- I want to take pictures of any old Heidelberg printing machines, still working.
- I want to talk to various people about my new project management system.
The last reason is probably not as serious as the others, as I don’t need the money and the hassle. But if I can find the model that makes the software sell and get market share, then I’ll go for it like a rat up a drain pipe!
So what is the route?
Stop 1 – Hong Kong – Arrive Wednesday, May 12th at 16:05
I need to break the journey and what better place than Hong Kong. I will probably stay in the Mandarin Oriental. My late wife and I always did and it’s worth every penny.
Stop 2 – Melbourne – Arrive Saturday, May 15th at 06:15
Of all the major cities in the greater south-east of Australia, Melbourne is the only one I haven’t visited. I suppose I haven’t visited Canberra either, but then my Aussie friends say it isn’t worth it.
I also want to play real tennis in the city and see the sights. I’m also going to see some old Metier mates.
Stop 3 – Brisbane – Arrive Tuesday, 18th May at 14:15
Seeing an old mate that I’ve never met! We’ll talk about Artemis, Metier and the new project management system.
Stop 4 – Hawaii – Arrive Friday, 21st May at 09:25
Now I’ve never been to Hawaii, but it looks like a place that is worth a stopover as I make my way across the Pacific. I also want to visit Pearl Harbor. After all, I’ve stood on the dock at Taranto, where the Fleet Air Arm proved the concept for the Japanese. Read the Attack on Taranto by Lowry and Wellham for more details. Note that the book is an American publication.
Stop 5 – San Francisco – Arrive Monday, 24th May at 20:35
I’ll probably spend a day or so in San Francisco and then it will be a mix of trains, plains and automobiles across the United States until I get to the other side at Boston.
The first leg is planned to be a drive to Las Vegas
Stop 6 – Las Vegas – Arrive Thursday, 27th May
I was in the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, when I heard about the massacre at the real Luxor in Egypt. To me it has the ultimate bad-taste that sums up Vegas to me. I don’t gamble, except occasionally on horses, so it will be a short stay.
Stop 7 – Route 66/Grand Canyon – Arrive Friday 28th May
There are places in this area that I want to visit again, like the Hoover Dam, the Grand Canyon, Route 66, the meteor crater at Winslow and the ruins of the pueblas.
Stop 8 – Phoenix – Arrive Saturday 29th May
Phoenix is somewhere I’ve been before but only for a change of flights.
Stop 9 – Houston – Arrive Monday 31st May
This will be a flight from Phoenix, probably getting in around lunchtime.
Stop 10 – New Orleans – Arrive Thursday 3rd June
I’ve never been to New Orleans, so I’ll drive from Houston.
Stop 11 – Washington – Arrive Sunday 6th June
A flight here to the capital.
Stop 12 – New York – Arrive Tuesday 8th June
I’ll probably take the train.
Stop 13 – Boston – Arrive Friday 11th June
I’ll probably drive from New York, going slowly from New York.
Stop 14 – London- Leave Boston on Saturday, 12th June at 21:30
And then it’s back to London.
This will get filled out as the time unfolds.
A Pen that Signed the Deal
This is one of the Cross pens that was used by Lockheed and ourselves when we sold Metier.
The Cross Pen that Signed the Metier Deal
You can just see the Lockheed logo.
Sealed With a Tie Clip
The picture show the Bullocks Wilshire tie clip that was presented to all of us by Lockheed, when we sold Metier.
Bullocks Wilshire Tie Clip
The Anonymous Widower 