A convoy of Commer camper vans took a trip into the past in Dunstable a little while ago.
Heads turned as the quirky cavalcade made its way through the town.
If you spotted them and wondered what it was all about, then wonder no longer.
For a helpful chap called Andy Green has emailed me to bring me up to speed on the visiting vehicles.
Pure nostalgia lay behind the trip by a group of Commer camper van owners.
They came to Dunstable to see the place where the long-gone Commer Cars factory once stood, in Boscombe Road.
Andy kindly sent this photo of the camper vans, pictured in that area.
He wrote: “On our drive through Dunstable, there was quite a lot of attention from passers-by, especially when we stopped to refuel at Tesco.
“Although it is now a long time since these vans were manufactured in Dunstable, the oldest present being a 1967 vehicle and the newest a 1975 vehicle, there might be some interest in this in your publication, given that a large amount of people from the local area worked there.
“We were camping locally in Ivinghoe, and made the trip to Dunstable specifically to visit the place where all our vehicles were made.”
So there you go. The camper vans were doing a spot of time travelling.
Not so much a road trip, more a pilgrimage.
Commer Cars may be gone from Dunstable, but they certainly aren’t forgotten.
Christmas is definitely coming.
The signs have been there since, oh, last January.
I’ve been moaning non-stop about people jumping the gun all year about the festive season.
But the sight of the Christmas street light decorations in place in Dunstable’s High Street means it really is time to stop grumbling and start gathering in the gifts. Yikes.
The street decorations aren’t switched on yet, of course.
But it’s all still an illuminating reminder to get set to spread a little pre-Christmas cheer among our local shops with some festive spending sprees.
Use them or lose them...
Talking about Christmas, a friend recalls a funny telly mention for this part of the world, in the TV favourite The Vicar of Dibley.
You know – the one where Dawn French plays the vicar, Geraldine Granger.
I’m told that in one episode, Geraldine asks a child: “And where was Jesus born?”
The child replies: “In Dunstable.”
Geraldine says: “Who told you that?”
Another character, Alice, chips in: “My mum told me that Jesus was born in Dunstable.”
Geraldine groans: “In a stable!”
Ho, ho, ho!
Drivers are sure to have had a chuckle at a joke in November’s edition of Team Spirit, the Parish of Dunstable Church Magazine.
Here goes. “As the coffin was being lowered into the ground at a traffic warden’s funeral, a voice from inside screamed: ‘I’m not dead, I just passed out for a moment! Let me out!’
“The vicar smiled and leaned forward, sucking his teeth. He muttered: ‘Too late, the paperwork’s already done...”