A stroll through the 70’s, the time of inflation, optimism, Fuel Crisis and blackouts. In the 80’s I embarked on my decorating career. Went self-employed at 18, got trained up at college, studied Interior Design, made a diversion to the Sudan and came back to painting somewhat changed.
Born in the year of the Big Freeze and he Beatles
If you are of a certain age you will work that out as 1963. London saw massive snowfall which then froze. Traipsing around London was no fun, by all accounts.
Painters in the family
My great grandfather was a coach-painter and sign-writer and my gran’s abiding memory was that he painted the Bishop of London’s horse-drawn carriage. I did try to find out through a gild in London if he is on record, but to no avail. It adds up, though. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, it was common for prominent religious figures, including the Bishop of London, to be transported in carriages or other horse-drawn vehicles, especially for formal events, processions, or official duties.
On the Buses
Both my great grandfather and great uncle worked on the buses, not collecting tickets, but painting the famous London double-deckers. For paint nerds, the high-quality, durable oil-based red enamel paints were called London Bus Red or Traffic Red with RAL reference 3020.
- The early Routemaster models were steel chassis, frame and panels.
- The engine was an AEC 7.7-litre (472 cubic inches) inline-six 130 to 150HP diesel.
If you are interested in restoring one, check out the London Bus Museum.
Home ownership versus wages in the 70’s
As I noted in the video, 70’s Britain experienced rampant inflation, but across the board. In other words there was still a sense of optimism with wages keeping pace with general price rises. These price rises were caused by the extra money being willfully printed into the system by governments year on year.
This chart shows earning multiples for UK house buyers. In the 70’s you could buy a place based on 2-4 times earnings! Unlike now when the multiple can be up to 12x earnings.
What is money?
If you want a good picture of why the ratio of house prices to earnings has diverged, there is a useful website called WTF Happened in 1971. It is US-centric, but the basic story applies to us all:
The dollar has been the world’s reserve asset. In 1971, Nixon took the US off the Gold Standard and set up the economy on a fiat basis. Instead of trusting in gold, money was backed by “trust in the government”. The government could manage the money supply as they so wished, and people would accept £€$ because it was backed by the government.
Since 1971, we have been living and working in a debt-based economy. History says that after about 50 years a debt-based system reliant on inflation collapses in on itself. In other words the financial system has been on a trajectory to eventually fail for the vast majority of wage earners. If you were in early, you made out like a bandit. If you arrive late, there is no wage inflation to keep up with the other inflating prices.
For a layman’s level synopsis of how we got here, and more importantly, how to protect yourself from the fall-out of what is baked into the financial pie, check out The Big Print by Lawrence Lepard.
It would be great to hear from anyone who worked on London Transport or the Omnibuses as a coach painter. Share your memories.
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