The Modern Gentleman

[seamus]

There must be some grave turning in the Midlands after the news today showing the wholesale shifting of the MG plant to China.

How long before we are being asked to put down our orders for the latest ‘Modern Gentleman’? Yuk!

[ifm]

Well seeing as there have been none built in the midlands for a year and the plant has been empty with no employees for that time and nobody actually believed it would reopen, none.

[seamus]

Well seeing as there have been none built in the midlands for a year and the plant has been empty with no employees for that time and nobody actually believed it would reopen, none.

What is it that makes you think that a plant in the Midlands is necessary for the MG to make a re-appearance?

[ifm]

I was saying that nobody actually thought it would reopen so not too many hopes have been dashed here.
I live in Birmingham and had a few friends at Longbridge.

[tikay]

It is rather surreal that they removed every single piece of machinery, lock, stock & barrel, to China. If BBC News is to be believed, it took 2,000 Containers to ship the lot across to China - 2,000!

What is happening to the Longbridge property now? I happen to own a good few shares in a Company by the name of St Modwen Properties - a superbly managed Company - and I believe they purchased all, or most, of the land on which the Plant sits at Longbridge from the Administrators. They specialise in "brown field" Housing - i.e., they regenerate old Industial Land & make it suitable for housing, or new Light Industry or Commercial Ofice space.

Just curious, really - it must be an absolutely enormous plot of land.

[tikay]

I was saying that nobody actually thought it would reopen so not too many hopes have been dashed here.
I live in Birmingham and had a few friends at Longbridge.

So let's get this right - you have friends - plural - is that what you are saying?

Extraordinary.

Is Flushy one of them? Who is the other one?

[ifm]

I've been there, in a former life i used to do subcontract metalwork on car bodies (dent removal on the line/flaws in the material etc.) and have been at every major car manufacturer in the country.
I was there with a mate and i had to go somewhere, i didn't drive at the time so had to walk to the gate to get a bus.
It took me half an hour doh!!

[ifm]

Can i just point out the "mate" in the last post was a workmate, anything else would be unbelievable.

[seamus]

I was saying that nobody actually thought it would reopen so not too many hopes have been dashed here.
I live in Birmingham and had a few friends at Longbridge.

Hello ifm

I am sure your friends at Longbridge are pretty sick at the way thing turned out.
Shafted springs to mind.

My ‘grave turning’ reference was an attempt to illustrate yet another sad event in the UK’s engineering demise.

My own family was heavily involved in 19thC manufacturing in Wolverhampton.

[Colchester Kev]

My own family was heavily involved in 19thC manufacturing in Wolverhampton.

They must have worked with tikay then .... I think he was an apprentice around that time.

[RED-DOG]

I went to Coventry transport museum last week, they have exhibits from the 300+ bicycle manufacturers that were based in Coventry, and vehicles from the 1800s to the present day, arranged by decade.

I loved the 1960s section, so nostalgic.

[ifm]

Is that the National motorcycle museum Tom?
I've been there it's 10 mins from my house on the island of the A45 where the A452 joins, very good, if it's different i recommend you go there too.

[RED-DOG]

Is that the National motorcycle museum Tom?
I've been there it's 10 mins from my house on the island of the A45 where the A452 joins, very good, if it's different i recommend you go there too.

No it's different, you go to mine, and I'll go to yours.

[patman]

Moving factories is not really original.

during the dismantling of the uk steel industry the clydesdale tube mill was dismantled in its entirety by imported chinese workers and shipped bit by bit to china where it is in full operation....rumour has it the guy that slept on the nightshift was shipped too.

[RED-DOG]

When I say vehicles, mean cars and commercials