What a bargain

THE TIMES WE LIVED IN:IT'S THAT MEXICAN sombrero that does it. There was a pretty grim caption to accompany this photograph, to the effect that north Dublin farmers were being forced to sell their vegetables at the side of the road "at a price which leaves no room for profit".

These days, of course, we’re used to seeing Wexford spuds for sale on the roadside and direct selling from farmer to customer, especially when the word “organic” is involved, is a plus for all sides.

In 1977, though, the idea was considered outlandish. Maybe that explains the distinctly Wild West flavour of this image, which seems to contain an entire reel of dramatic narrative. The sombrero’ed kid standing on the back of a pick-up in pouty gunslinger pose like an extra from Three Amigos. The telegraph poles at unruly angles are like cacti in the desert. The man standing watchfully towards the rear, arms behind his back, his expression unreadable.

The boy lugging the bag toward the camera, his angelic curls offset by the strain of his distinctly earthbound job. And then the fair-haired woman stepping forward to offer money, as if she was approaching the checkout in a supermarket. She strikes an incongruous note, as if she had strayed into the scene from another movie altogether.

As for the spuds themselves, well, in 1977, £1 for a big bag was a bargain. This very month a kerfuffle over pricy potatoes has broken out on the website donegaldaily.com, where a reader reported shelling out €5 for a 7lb bag on a road out of Letterkenny. The tubers were reportedly delicious, but were they, a witty follow-up post wanted to know, Kerr's Pinks or Records?

Spud-related puns aside, there is a serious side to it all. Talk of potential potato shortages has an emotional resonance in Ireland that it might not have elsewhere. Whatever happens with this year’s crop, we’re not going to starve the way people did in the 1840s. But if rain continues to decimate our soggy fields and farms, the chips may be down – and the prices up – for the foreseeable future.

Arminta Wallace

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Photographed on August 23rd, 1977