Static And Glow: Parliament’s Strange Neon Row
When Neon Crashed the Airwaves
It sounds bizarre today: in the shadow of looming global conflict, MPs in Westminster were arguing about neon signs.
Labour firebrand Gallacher, stood up and asked the Postmaster-General a peculiar but pressing question. How many complaints had rolled in about wireless sets being ruined by neon signage?
The figure was no joke: around a thousand complaints in 1938 alone.
Picture it: listeners straining to catch news bulletins, drowned out by the hum of glowing adverts on the high street.
Postmaster-General Major Tryon admitted the scale of the headache. The difficulty?: order neon signs London shopkeepers could volunteer to add suppression devices, but they couldn’t be forced.
He promised consultations were underway, but admitted consultations would take "some time".
Translation? Parliament was stalling.
Gallacher pressed harder. He said listeners were getting a raw deal.
From the backbenches came another jab. What about the Central Electricity Board and their high-tension cables?
The Postmaster-General ducked the blow, admitting it made the matter "difficult" but offering no real solution.
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Seen through modern eyes, it’s heritage comedy with a lesson. In 1939 neon was the villain of the airwaves.
Jump ahead eight decades and the roles have flipped: the menace of 1939 is now the endangered beauty of 2025.
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Why does it matter?
Neon has never been neutral. From crashing radios to clashing with LED neon signs London - mouse click the up coming webpage -, it’s always been about authenticity vs convenience.
In truth, it’s been art all along.
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Our take at Smithers. We see the glow that wouldn’t be ignored.
So, yes, old is gold. And it always will.
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Don’t settle for plastic impostors. Glass and gas are the original and the best.
If neon could jam the nation’s radios in 1939, it can sure as hell light your lounge, office, or storefront in 2025.
Choose glow.
We make it.
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