Recently, when sorting through the files of customer letters and testimonials, we came across a clipping of an article from The Guardian Weekend, published on March 4th 2000!
Guardian columnist Alexander Chancellor (now with The Spectator) was sharing his views on country living and topping the page was this wonderful cartoonist’s impression of a Grenadier Firelighter. The original article is still accessible online, but sadly without this wonderful illustration.
As the conclusion of his column, he passed on some useful tips about how to enjoy weekends in the country.
Fourth on his list, after ‘take no luggage’, ‘have a well-stocked freezer’ and ‘have plenty of wine’, was to have ‘plentiful supplies of coal and firewood’.
He then concluded…..
“And finally, have a machine called a Grenadier Firelighter. It looks like a large electric hair-dryer, and it blows out immensely hot air. Just pour some coal into the grate without paper or kindling wood, point the Grenadier at it, and within two minutes you have a roaring fire. It is frightening, but wonderful.”
And those sentiments were beautifully encapsulated by the illustrator.
