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06/16/2006: "Tell your newsagent to reserve People's Friend"

I was browsing through the latest edition of The People's Friend and spotted - between the ads for Daxon lightweight summer sandals and Heather Valley Comfort Stretch Waist Trousers - this rather quaint coupon. I seem to remember things like this from my childhood, where you'd fill out a form, asking your newsagent to reserve something for you. In my case, it was probably a comic about the Second World War.

Well, anyway, it's still going on. The coupon business that is. Not the Second World War. (Unless you're a renegade Japanese soldier in a very distant part of the jungle.) But I digress. Here's the proposition:

If you currently purchase "The People's Friend" from a newsagent, from time to time you may experience difficulties in obtaining a copy. To avoid this, and to guarantee you receive each issue, just ask your newsagent to place a regular order for you. Once set up, your copy of the "Friend" will be held for you to collect, saving you having to search the shelves.

A pitiful image is now running through my mind of an old age pensioner who's banking on the "Friend" being available, as she ambles down to the heart of the village. A fruitless search, perhaps over a period as long as 20 minutes, reveals nothing more than Nuts, Hello and Pick me up. The newsagent shakes his head in sympathy. If only she'd considered the coupon.