Looking through the Metro today I came across this:
“When most people burn a pie they throw it in the bin. Not Tony Johnson.
He has kept his meaty treat for almost 40 years and has taken it around the world on family holidays.
The 73-year-old says the Holland’s pie, which overcooked back in 1972, has become an heirloom which takes pride of place on the mantelpiece when it’s not clocking up air miles.
The pastry has been to the US, Barbados, Egypt, Morocco, Syria, Kuwait and Thailand. It has even travelled to the Falklands with Mr Johnson’s son-in-law, who serves in the RAF, and to Iraq with his two grandsons, who are also in the armed forces. It is believed to have travelled 800,000km (500,000 miles).
Mr Johnson also claims the bakery staple brought him and his wife Alicia luck when they won $6,666 while on holiday in Las Vegas in 1998.
‘My son was given the pie as a bit of a joke but I immediately thought that we could have some fun and we’ve been having a laugh with it ever since,’ said Mr Johnson, of Bacup, Lancashire.
‘Wherever we go, the pie comes with us. It’s been on holiday with us every year and it even has its own deckchair, fly hat and sombrero. As a family, we have had some real giggles with it.’
Mrs Johnson said: ‘I think the whole situation is a little crazy to be honest, as do our friends. I must admit though, it has provided the family with many laughs over the years, so it’s not too much of a bad thing, I guess.”
Article by Fred Attewill
London Metro – 13th March, 2011
