This beautiful photograph by Jules Smith from Lincoln caught my eye today. It’s almost like looking back in time. Does anyone ever use a red phone box these days . I remember dialling my Uncle in Wimbledon and his number Liberty 640, pressing button A with coins to get through or button B to get my money back. The booths were clean until they were infiltrated by members of the public posting offerings of all descriptions. The phone box soon became the place not to be seen. Once in Kensington I saw a man taking all the postcards down and he looked like he was going on a binge. Alas he was just trying to keep the place clean and free for even children to use.
The mobile phone killed phone boxes and today some are used as libraries stuffed with books . They are lovely by design and a recognizable landscape of 20th Century Britain. Its neighbour the post box stands still squat and useful although not many write letters we still post bill payments. The mail box is however dying and it won’t survive much longer as digital digs up the dirt. I remember once posting a letter but forgot to put the cheque in the envelope and my arm to retrieve couldn’t quite fit the slot. Passers buy looking at me trying to do so must have thought I was desperate.
Santa Claus still wears red costume of course but he became another redundant red aged 8 when I no longer believed in him. Red is running out and there are times I begin to see red when I think of all the damage progress has done. When we are embarrassed we turn red but with everything in the open does embarrassment ever rise these days. Talking of red it’s the colour of the Labour Party and they are coming back 2024 for sure not because of their credentials but because of the lack of the blue credentials and what will be 14 years of decline. Some of those blue MPs may be posting their services in phone boxes or posting their CV for the next job. Whatever happens Santa will still come in 2024. Oddly enough Christmas cards though in decline , Britain still sends out 8 billion cards a year keeping alive the hope for post box survival. The red Robin lives on of course featured in a previous blog and the London red bus fills the capital streets. Don’t you just love red ?
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