Post-HAVING BEEN ON THE WRONG END OF THE FUNERAL ACTIVITY routine.

[Risso]

In the 70s, certain garages (BP I think) gave away Smurf figurines. There was a story that went round (it was the 70s so probably true) that they were painted with lead paint. If your Smurf had a coloured dot on the base it was fine. I forget the exact details. For a while they gave away Smurf car window stickers as well. Me and my sister went round a car park in Barmouth and nicked about 20 where they'd put the sticker on the outside.

[Nunkin1965]

What's all this smurf malarkey? Were they free with petrol or something back in the day? My Saturday night treat was a bottle of vimto (with straw) and a bag of RTP crisps from the outdoor of the pub.

Ah the outdoor of the pub!
I used to go to the one in the Longbridge pub.
You could hear the noise from the bar in the distance when you went in and although I couldn't see over the counter I'd ask for 20 Silk Cut for my Mom and get served every time.

[pauliewalnuts]

In the 70s, certain garages (BP I think) gave away Smurf figurines. There was a story that went round (it was the 70s so probably true) that they were painted with lead paint. If your Smurf had a coloured dot on the base it was fine. I forget the exact details. For a while they gave away Smurf car window stickers as well. Me and my sister went round a car park in Barmouth and nicked about 20 where they'd put the sticker on the outside.

In about 1978 my mate - who was 12 at the time but back then it was no big deal to get a pocket money job - worked at Birch’s Garage on Stratford Road.

There was a massive Father Christmas lookalike called Paddy - Irish bloke, unsurprisingly- who ran the place. He must have been about 70 (although the way these things usually work out he was probably in fact only about 40 but hey ho)

My mates job was to go out and help people out if needed as Paddy was about 30 stone and not moving.

Jesus, the fun we had there, mooching about the store room and nicking stuff - they had those smurfs there, fucking hundreds of them, we nicked so many of them. I remember my mom saying “what have you been up to, where have all these smurfs come from?” 

We also used to have whole boxes of chocolates away. One of our sports was to chat with Paddy - who was a lovely bloke, it was never malicious - and see how blatantly we could steal and eat the chocolates in the forecourt shop.

I remember one thing we used to do sometimes. He used to go on and on, in the strongest Irish accent I’d ever heard (with the exception of the mother of the friend who worked there, ironically) and never stop talking, so sometimes we’d surreptitiously put sellotape on the PA microphone button for a bit and the entire forecourt would hear him going on and on for twenty minutes about god knows what.

Happy days. Being a kid was so great.

We were such ****** though.

[Risso]

My wife’s dad used to run a petrol station in Bolton. They’ve still got a house full of the glasses you got with Tiger Tokens.

[Archbishop Herbert Cockthrottle]

World Cup coins from 1970 that looked nothing like the England players. Esso I think.

[Percy McCarthy]

World Cup coins from 1970 that looked nothing like the England players. Esso I think.

I had the full set, but I’ve lost it now. Moving, leaving wives etc. I always thought it might be worth a few quid one day.

[Axl Rose]

I think the 1990 Esso coin collection had both England and Scotland squads.

[Rory]

I think the 1990 Esso coin collection had both England and Scotland squads.

Like the little 3D motion things in cereal for Euro 96. I got so many of Colin Hendry, I gave up.

[Axl Rose]

I think the 1990 Esso coin collection had both England and Scotland squads.

Like the little 3D motion things in cereal for Euro 96. I got so many of Colin Hendry, I gave up.

😂

Don't remember them, mate. I was going through an addiction to Country Crisp cereal at 13 when Euro 96 was on, so didn't have the fortune of seeing Colin Henry mixed in with a dried strawberry!

[chrisw1]

In the 70s, certain garages (BP I think) gave away Smurf figurines. There was a story that went round (it was the 70s so probably true) that they were painted with lead paint. If your Smurf had a coloured dot on the base it was fine. I forget the exact details. For a while they gave away Smurf car window stickers as well. Me and my sister went round a car park in Barmouth and nicked about 20 where they'd put the sticker on the outside.

BP and National I think.  They got quite expensive in the end as there were 'super smurfs' with equipment - surfboards that sort of thing.

[Axl Rose]

In the 70s, certain garages (BP I think) gave away Smurf figurines. There was a story that went round (it was the 70s so probably true) that they were painted with lead paint. If your Smurf had a coloured dot on the base it was fine. I forget the exact details. For a while they gave away Smurf car window stickers as well. Me and my sister went round a car park in Barmouth and nicked about 20 where they'd put the sticker on the outside.

BP and National I think.  They got quite expensive in the end as there were 'super smurfs' with equipment - surfboards that sort of thing.

In having flashbacks to the Teeny Terrapins from Kinder Eggs, now!

[pauliewalnuts]

In the 70s, certain garages (BP I think) gave away Smurf figurines. There was a story that went round (it was the 70s so probably true) that they were painted with lead paint. If your Smurf had a coloured dot on the base it was fine. I forget the exact details. For a while they gave away Smurf car window stickers as well. Me and my sister went round a car park in Barmouth and nicked about 20 where they'd put the sticker on the outside.

BP and National I think.  They got quite expensive in the end as there were 'super smurfs' with equipment - surfboards that sort of thing.

Nowadays stuff like that would be done via NFTs and in 40 years time, absolutely nobody would remember them.

[Risso]

God that picture of the Smurfs takes me right back. I always wanted the fencing (ie posh swordsman rather than wooden garden panels) one, and was absolutely delighted when I got it, as I think it was quite rare. I lost it not long after to my great dismay, I think a lad called Colin nicked it.

[chrisw1]

God that picture of the Smurfs takes me right back. I always wanted the fencing (ie posh swordsman rather than wooden garden panels) one, and was absolutely delighted when I got it, as I think it was quite rare. I lost it not long after to my great dismay, I think a lad called Colin nicked it.

Fuck Colin, what a knob.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

World Cup coins from 1970 that looked nothing like the England players. Esso I think.

There was also Joe Mercer's Great Britain Soccer Squad 1971 football busts from Cleveland Petrol (Esso).
No Villa players as you'd expect.