The Apprentice

Luton was today's destination. I drove there to attend a meeting at Vauxhall's UK headquarters, not far from the airport. It was a gathering that happens periodically, between chairmen of regional motoring writers groups and leading motor industry PR people. It is held at a different venue each time, and this one was hosted by Vauxhall. It was a very useful discussion, we covered a lot of mutual ground.

Afterwards we chatted over a sandwich lunch in the heritage centre behind the company offices. I have blipped this on a previous visit, featuring some of the oldest models. This view is a small part of a long line-up of classic mid-20th century models, featuring cars that some of us at the meeting remember from childhood.

One of them was being worked on, having its dynamo changed by a new apprentice showing a senior technician what he could do. I loved the sturdy chunk of wood propping up the bonnet, to save any strain on the elderly car's tired old metal struts. No wonder the pristine tool kit looked so shiny, it was brand new!