Neon Vs Radio: The 1939 Commons Debate
Z Rozdíly.cz
The Day Westminster Debated Static and Glow
On paper it reads like satire: on the eve of the Second World War, MPs in Westminster were arguing about personalised neon signs London signs.
the outspoken Mr. Gallacher, stood up and asked the Postmaster-General a peculiar but pressing question. How many complaints had rolled in about wireless sets being ruined by neon signage?
The figure was no joke: the Department had received nearly one thousand reports from frustrated licence-payers.
Think about it: listeners straining to catch news bulletins, drowned out by the hum of glowing adverts on the high street.
Major Tryon confessed the problem was real. The difficulty?: there was no law compelling interference suppression.
He said legislation was being explored, but stressed that the problem was "complex".
Translation? Parliament was stalling.
The MP wasn’t satisfied. People were paying licence fees, he argued, and they deserved a clear signal.
From the backbenches came another jab. What about the Central Electricity Board and their high-tension cables?
The Minister squirmed, admitting it made the matter "difficult" but offering no real solution.
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Seen through modern eyes, it’s heritage comedy with a lesson. Neon was once painted as the noisy disruptor.
Eighty years on, the irony bites: the menace of 1939 is now the endangered beauty of 2025.
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What does it tell us?
First: neon has always rattled cages. It’s always pitted artisans against technology.
In truth, it’s been art all along.
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Our take at Smithers. We see the glow that wouldn’t be ignored.
So, yes, old is gold. And that’s why we keep bending glass and vintage neon signs London filling it with gas today.
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Don’t settle for plastic impostors. Real neon has been debated in Parliament for nearly a century.
If neon could jam the nation’s radios in 1939, it can sure as hell light your lounge, office, or storefront in 2025.
Choose the real thing.
We make it.
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