Opticians are called upon for more services than you would think, so we’ve been reminiscing over the mad, bad, and downright dangerous tasks heaped upon us during our years in Optics….you really couldn’t make it up!

A regular plea around this time of year is for emergency help with dressing up – well would you expect to see Santa without his cute little specs? We’ve supplied vintage and second hand frames for Father Christmas, numerous Harry Potter fancy dress outfits, Dr Who, that chap in the wheelchair in Little Britain and Eric Morecambe. Then there are historical re-enactments, the Sealed Knot, and an Elvis look-alike who was here to do a gig and had forgotten his shades. All of this takes many hours scrabbling around our archives, and trawling the net for pictures so we hand out the right thing.

Santa in Vintage Specs

Then there are the emergency situations where people lose or forget their specs. We’ve had then run over, eaten by dogs, put through the washing machine, and wrapped up in a present and then not found until Boxing Day! With so much to think about people do this kind of thing and then are desperate for specs so they can see what they’re carving at Christmas lunch.

Our other favourite is fanatics who know exactly what they want. We’ve sourced snooker frames as an ingenious present for a fan, and tracked down the exact frame that Heston Blumenthal wears for a wife who knew her husband loved them. We found a vintage Gucci for a lady who wanted to replace her beloved five year old pair, and hand glazed an antique tortoiseshell frame for a chap who had always wanted to wear them.

These jobs are always urgent of course, and we end up running down to the Post Office or even dropping them off ourselves if it’s local. All part of the service, and part of what makes our job fun. Santa would be proud of us for bringing our own little hint of Christmas magic!