Thanks to Andrea for passing on the following information to us.
The famous HP Sauce tower situated on Tower Road, Aston Cross met its fate with the wrecking ball recently as the industrial development firm Chancerygate continued the demolition of the factory.
The fate of “Birminham’s most famous sign” however will be very different. Prior to the demolition of the tower, Chancerygate hired a local steeplejack firm to determine whether the sign could be safely removed in order that it could be placed in trust to a local museum.
July 25th, 2007Famous HP Sauce Sign Removed From Tower Source: Birmingham Mail
Charlie Withers, Director of Chancerygate:
“We are pleased to confirm that the HP sign can now be taken down and entrusted to the people of Birmingham, thus honouring the site’s industrial heritage.
The sign can be re-mounted on a comparable background so local people can celebrate the site’s history. It will then be entrusted to a local museum for future generations to view and appreciate.
Our involvement on this site has always been mindful of the site’s distinct heritage. This is why we commissioned specialist consultants to undertake a full historic building record of the site, prior to
commencement of demolition.”
The demolition of the factory commenced in July, 2007 marking the end to one of Birmingham’s last remaining world famous industrial sites.
July 26th, 2007Famous Birmingham Landmark Demolished Source: Birmingham Mail
The factory site is earmarked for the future home of Chancerygate Business Centre which will host small industrial and warehouse spaces for purchase or lease for local businesses. The Chancerygate Business Centre is expected to generate upward of 200 jobs. In comparison, the HP Sauce factory employed 120 jobs prior to its closure by H.J. Heinz in March, 2007.
If your name happens to be Adham Fisher, chances are you march to the beat of a very different drum. If you also happen to be in Birmingham, you do what comes naturally; dawn a towel, talk to some locals and stage a photo shoot outside the legendary Aston HP Sauce factory. Thus describes the scene one evening this past June when Adham and friend Jonathan Snaith hopped on the lichfield train to Aston. With towel and camera in hand, they were ready to take on a bit of history, Adham Fisher style.
Bio of Adham Fisher: Adham Fisher is a multi-talented individual who is always on the move. Described as Leicester’s oddest boy, Adham has undertaken such activities like attempting to break the world record for travelling the London tube and accidentally trying to destroy his seemingly indestructible glasses. However, it is fair to say, that nowadays he is garnering more of a reputation for his music. He has had mainstream radio play, a computer game soundtrack and an underground album recorded with electro-comedy band GRR. But it is as a solo artist, AFS, that Adham has his real tour de force – his single Mothers’ Day is now out in the UK and totally bewildering the critics. Coupling that with a live, “abstract†five week residency at Leicester Town Hall at Christmas 2006, recent and potential collaborations and remixes, and an upcoming appearance at the Masterpeace Festival on July 28, he’s doing quite well for someone who claims that he doesn’t want to be a musician.
Adham mixes well with people. The best example of this is probably him setting a song to play on his 2005 radio shows, running out of the studio and accosting unsuspecting persons, demanding that they come and be on the air with him before the song finished playing, even if he had no idea who they were. He recently took over the Chai Tea Radio Show on Oxide radio in May and June 2007.
But that for what we most love Adham here is him occasionally putting on the towel for a cause dear to all of us at www.brownsauce.org. Also, in case you didn’t know, he is the voice of the site too – he does the Brown Sauce Obsessions theme song.
Mixing With The Locals at O’Reillys Pub - Aston
Kim, landlady of O’Reilly’s Pub Birmingham
“Kim (left), the landlady of O’Reilly’s, a pub just down the road from the HP factory, where I popped in to borrow some sauce after my confederate forgot to bring his. When I told them what I was up to, they were happy to oblige, and even let me keep the bottle I borrowed, which, they say, was one of the last batch ever to be made at the factory. Also, a couple of the locals made their opinions on the moving of HP sauce quite clear.” - Adham Fisher
The locals at O’Reilly’s pub share their thoughts about the demise of the HP Sauce factory with Adham:
“The first thing I smelt in my life was HP.”
“Everything that was English seems to be gone.”
Photo Shoot: Adham dawns the towel for an exclusive photo shoot outside the closed Aston HP Sauce factory.
Q & A:
We sit down with Adham for a little one-on-one.
1.
There is a saying, “Was this the face that launched a thousand ships?” - a reference to Helen of Troy who’s beauty is said to be the cause of the Trojan Wars. Adham, yours is the face which launched www.brownsauce.org - how would you compare the impact of your intent gaze to that of Helen of Troy?
Well, since my inception, HP has had a bitter war with Heinz, so I guess it’s similar.
2.
If Helen’s beauty launched a thousand ships - how many Brown Sauce bottles do you think have been opened as a result of gazing upon your image?
As many bottles as there are saucy girls.
3.
Can you please tell us a bit about yourself? Who is Adham Fisher?
That will only be known to my wife, and as I will never get married, you don’t really have a chance do you?
4.
How did you initially get involved with www.brownsauce.org?
Brad announced this venture. I was bored one day and sent him a photo. The next thing I knew, I was the front cover.
5.
What was your purpose to do a photo shoot at the factory?
Well, everyone had shown themselves in the gallery except me. So I decided to go totally overboard and make a mountain out of a mole hill.
6.
People are curious. What’s up with the towel? What does the towel signify to you?
I look better with long hair.
7.
Your pictures were shot at dusk, did you intentionally pick this time of day for your photo shoot?
We were quite lazy that day and it took us until evening to get there. But then again, it does symbolise how the sun has set on HP Sauce production at the legendary factory.
8.
The rally to save the Aston HP Sauce factory in June 2006 attracted huge support from the people of Birmingham. Why did you pick now as the time to show your respects, to “wear the towel†as it were?
I didn’t have enough money at the time. The towel signifies yet another side to my incredibly complex personality. And with the impending demolition, well, we had to do it pronto.
9.
How did locals at O’Reilly’s Pub, Birmingham react when you, a lad from Leicester walked in and announced your intentions to do a photo shoot outside the legendary factory?
Well, my associate was quite incompetent, and, despite two reminders from me to bring his HP Sauce bottle, he didn’t. I believed that there were only so many shots of my face and a miniscule HP sign that the average person could stand, so after about half an hour I decided that we needed a bottle or we might as well forget the whole thing. There were no supermarkets nearby, so the only places that might have had HP Sauce were a chip shop and a pub. We went for the pub. The locals were baffled at first, but soon launched into what HP Sauce meant to them, which you can hear by clicking here.
10.
The manageress gave you the bottle which you then used in your photos! I hope you gave her a big hug as a thank you?
That was quite unexpected. Giving her a hug would have involved me vaulting the bar, so I just took her photo.
11.
You can hear some strong emotion in the voices of the locals whom you recorded in the pub. Can you describe what the loss of the factory means to you?
Well, I do like British institutions, and even though some of them are deplorable and unimportant (The Beatles), they are a great source (ahem) of British history. The HP Factory was like that. It’s a shame to see the end of something that meant a lot to many people.
12.
The HP Sauce factory was a fixture in the Birmingham skyline for more than 100 years yet its demolition is scheduled to only take a few weeks to complete. What are your thoughts of the factory site being turned into an Industrial Park?
There are enough industrial parks.
13.
You seem quite comfortable in front of the camera, any chance we’ll see Adham Fisher in his towel in future episodes of Birmingham’s Next Top Model?”
Absolutely not, even if it IS covering my sauce bottle…
14.
What is your favourite area of www.brownsauce.org?
The saucy girls, of course…
15.
What’s next for Adham Fisher?
Meeting Brad. It’s at number three on my “100 things to do before I’m 30†list.
Thank you Adham for submitting a tribute to the HP Sauce factory as only you can. It’s much appreciated!
July 25th, 2007Famous HP Sauce Sign Removed From Tower
July 26th, 2007Famous Birmingham Landmark Demolished
