Monday 29 August 2016

Brighton Bun


John sounds as though he needs cheering up - or at least things being put into perspective to make his life seem more bearable than it is at the moment - so here is a candlestick post.

You can see why it has been nick-named a 'Brighton Bun', but you would need to know what the original edible variety looked like to fully understand. Maybe Cro could enlighten us, now that the cat is out of the wall.

So along with the writing desk, foldable table and a rudimentary set of cutlery, one of these would be packed in the saddle bag ready for use in the tent or hovel you were compelled to spend the night in. They were made and used between 1740 and 1925 - the Army and Navy store stocked them right up until then.


Not being one for camping, I have never used them, but I would imagine it is very satisfying to unscrew the arrangement, reassemble it - or them - put candles in, then let the feeling of self-sufficient cosiness pervade your tent as you write postcards home from the battlefield.


I bought this set as a pair of rather uninteresting candlesticks, and I don't think that the seller knew that he could have posted them to me screwed together as in the above photo, so they arrived in two as advertised.

If you look out for them, they are quite often sold as a pair like this, but are very easily identified for what they really are if you know what to look for. I recently spotted a much older pair being sold as a job lot along with a load of sticks which I was not interested in, so I made the seller an offer that they could not - and did not - refuse, to sell me that little pair on their own.

When they arrived, they were just what I thought they were, and I immediately unscrewed them, put the holders in one half and tried to screw them back together again. The thread on the male side could not quite reach the thread on the female side, so they remain - for the time being - in two pieces. Story of my later life - the male not being able to screw the female, I mean.

Now I cannot help but wonder if the seller had tried to do this as well, but decided that the best sales policy was to feign ignorance of both their purpose and their inability to fulfill it.

I sent the seller a glowing refernce and effusive thanks, saying how pleased I was with the deal. I did not want him to have the satisfaction of thinking he had got away with tricking me into thinking I had got a bargain.

They will - and must - screw together again, otherwise I will not get my money back. More stories of my life.

23 comments:

  1. WD40 and an Irish Screwdriver should do the trick. As for the origin of the BB, I have no idea.

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    1. WD40 - Bollocks. The Brighton Bun must have been similar to the Bath Bun, I would have thought.

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  2. A drop of vaseline might help. I cant help you with the candlesticks

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    1. Entry has never been a problem. Permission for such is now witheld.

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    2. Perhaps a Phillips Screw might help. (Only joking).

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    3. Too late. I am coming in (whoohay!) on the 9.15 to Norwich. Grease yerself up, darlin'.

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    4. And I'll end up smelling of fish - as usual.

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    5. Ha ha Heard the one about the blind man going past the fish market?

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  3. Cro made my day. An Irish Screwdriver is nothing more than a BFH(ammer). Now I must go to work.

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    1. Cro cannot even assemble a flat-packed wheelbarrow. He is talking out of his arse - and has never eaten a Brighton Bun either.

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  4. I just can't compete with the naughty nuances above Tom - wish I could though. (must be getting past it)

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    1. Oh, come on Weave - you must have some dim and distant memory of nuance - I seem to remember that you embarrassed you son with it not so long ago!

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  5. There is something very Freudian about all this.

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    1. There is something very Freudian about everything if you look hard enough - even this comment...

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  6. I think that I shall be reporting a couple of people on here to Google for making racist comments.

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    1. As a third-party, not being anything other than English yourself?

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    2. There is no excuse for racist remarks no matter how they are phrased or to who they are directed. So I removed an offending person from my followers list. My nationality does not come into the equation Tom and nor does theirs.

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    3. Well that must have been a massive blow to them, whoever it was. I know it was to me when I barred you from this blog. Oh hang on, didn't you pretend bar me then immediately sneak back here without my even noticing you had gone of your own accord? Ah, those were the days.

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  7. Very clever candlesticks! Some of the comments clever too….. Gave me a laugh anyway!

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