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World alerted to Middleton’s siren

Miles Skinner
9/12/2004

LOVE it or hate it, you can not deny that the Middleton traders' air raid siren has made a big impact - it has, in fact, received international coverage.

After interviews with BBC television and radio, and an appearance on GMTV, local shopkeeper, Tony Collier, has even been seen whirring the siren on TV screens across the Atlantic, on the ABC News Network.

Since the story was first published in the Guardian, interest has become so intense that Mr Collier has become one of Middleton's most recognizable faces.

We asked another well-known face from Middleton what he made of the battle that is grabbing people's imagination from here to the States.

Comedian Bernard Manning, said: "It's fine as long as it goes no further than it has done. Traffic wardens are a necessary evil to stop congestion, but all this is a good bit of fun. Anything that brings us a laugh has to be a good thing."

Mr Collier, who clubbed together with other independent traders from Middleton to purchase the siren on eBay, said: "The last couple of weeks have been the most fun in my life.

"The only hiccough was on the GMTV interview, when this voice kept shouting 'cut it' in my earpiece. It threw me completely and I must have looked like a right pratt in front of eight million people!"

"But I've had people ringing from Canada to talk on radio, and a customer with children in America said the story had been on in LA. The response had been fantastic."

Mr Collier added that takings for businesses in the area had universally benefited from the publicity. He added: "One of the traffic wardens told us they had been instructed to give a period of five minutes grace now - so it looks like we're winning. The Council have yet to set up another meeting with us, but whatever they come up with, it has to beat the best tourist attraction we're had up here for ages!"