Where would we be without inventions? Without those who dare to dream, to tinker, to figure out a way around the obstacle in front of them.
Think of the trusty lighter, the cat’s eye in the road, the dovetail joint, the ball-point pen. Hoorah for the inventors.
One such character was a thoughtful and rather wealthy Victorian gentleman by the name of John Henry Knight. He did his best to be first - and more often than not ended up second. Still, that never seemed to deter him. Good on you, John Henry.
Despite reportedly receiving one of the UK’s very first speeding tickets, and paying late a visit to the patent office for his speedometer, setbacks didn’t slow him down. From a small engineering works in Farnham, Surrey, he hammered and bolted together one of the world’s earliest petrol-driven cars - quite fittingly in the very same town where he picked up that speeding fine.
Time and again, from humble garden sheds and modest workshops, some of the greatest brainwaves in history have burst into life.
The constant search for a different approach has brought us to where we are today, and onward we march goes. Leaving aside the philosophical debate about whether we’re any happier now than before the electric light or flushing toilet, it does feel wonderful to have a hot shower at the turn of a tap. Not so long ago, many would never have known the luxury of a running hot water.
Back to John Henry. As I wandered past the steady elegance of Farnham’s Georgian townhouses, I spotted a small red brick building on the town’s edge - a residual to a bold idea that forward motion from a combustion engine was not only possible, but inevitable.
John Henry Knight I salute you, and commiserations on the brick-laying machine that never took off - they can’t all be winners.