Meanwhile, somewhere in Scotland

A few hundred miles away from all this A3 congestion, the Turner family was enjoying some roadside refreshment, en route to a short break on the west coast of Scotland. Or, at least, enjoying the prospect of some refreshment, as the little camping gas stove battled against prevailing breezes to bring a small kettle to the boil.

There are many, many photos in my family archive of thirsty-looking people glaring at this particular piece of kit, which nowadays would be described as ‘not fit for purpose’. I’m not really sure why we never invested in a more powerful version of this French-designed waste of space – perhaps because it didn’t waste much, but most likely because the anticipation was actually better than the lukewarm, tinny-tasting brews it eventually presented us with.

Transport was the faithful Wolseley Fifteen-Hundred, which by 1959 was starting its second summer with us and would soldier on until we replaced it with a new-fangled MG 1100 a couple of years later. Quite a perky little car for its time, the Wolseley could hold its own on European roads as well as back home in Blighty, its lightly-stressed B-series engine being destined for the later (and larger) Farina range, as well as the MGA and B in twin-carb form.