Page 91 - Demo

89When I was a kid, Christmas Day at my grandparents%u2019 meant one of the hapless men present being called upon to carve the meat. However, the carving knife was always blunt. The man of the hour, resplendent in short shorts and high socks, would pull an ancient sharpener out of the bottom drawer and enthusiastically try to emulate the local butcher %u2013 but the knife would be none the sharper. Then someone bought Nanna a Wiltshire Staysharp knife and everything changed forever.In the mid-1960s, Dennis Jackson, a designer for Australian kitchenware brand Wiltshire, decided to tackle the problem of blunt knives. He came up with a mechanism that had %u2018a springloaded sharpening block inside a sheath or scabbard, which sharpened the knife every time it was taken out or replaced%u2019.To pretty things up, in 1970 they enlisted Stuart Devlin to design a version that was ready for roast meat%u2013loving Australians. Four years earlier, Devlin%u2019s much-loved designs for Australia%u2019s new decimal coins had been released, and this knife sharpener was to be another item that would find itself in the hands of people all over the country.Unfortunately, the new product trapped the knife shavings. Peter Bayly was enlisted to fix the%u00a0 problem, and thus the Mark II was born. Former model and TV personality Maggie Tabberer came on board to promote the product. The nation was bamboozled when Maggie assured them that the product was %u2018permanently sharp%u2019 and explained that it was all possible because %u2018the unique sharpening cassette, with its hidden tungsten carbide cutters, actually sharpens the blade every time the knife is taken from it or returned%u2019.Naturally %u2013 it was the 1970s, after all %u2013 they came in orange, avocado, brown and, for those who were scared of the wild side, white.Suddenly, the knives were a permanent%u00a0fixture in our kitchens, and even made headlines when then ACTU president Bob Hawke had to settle a dispute between Wiltshire and a distributor that was selling severely discounted knives. The distributor subsequently had their supply cut o%u00a0.Mediation aside, the knives became an unheralded Aussie icon, with millions sold both here and overseas. Variations are still sold today, including Staysharp scissors.Almost every Australian from that era knows the distinct sound of the Wiltshire Staysharp knife being taken out of the scabbard. That knife has played a part in many of our significant family celebrations. My dad once put the whole unit inside the dishwasher %u2013 and it survived!It%u2019s a bloody ripper.YEAR 1972DESIGNER Peter BaylyMANUFACTURER WiltshireFormer model and TV personality Maggie Tabberer came on board to promote the product. The nation was bamboozled when Maggie assured them that the product was %u2018permanently sharp%u2019.