The recent news that General Motors will retire (a nice way of saying Axe!!!) the iconic Holden brand from it’s international stable was justifiably met with sadness and anger from many parts of our community, however for most in the know, it was always a case of not “will it happen”, rather “when will it happen”. And that when is by early 2021.

Just three years after ceasing manufacture in Australia, GM said it will wind down Holden sales, design and engineering operations in Australia and New Zealand by next year and that China’s Great Wall Motors had agreed to buy its manufacturing plant in Thailand.

Even the Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison weighed into the discussion with, “I am disappointed but not surprised. But I am angry, like I think many Australians would be. Australian taxpayers put millions into this multinational company. They let the brand just wither away on their watch. Now they are leaving it behind.”

Now if you’re feeling a little nostalgic for the Lion and what it used to mean to Australians, you’d be interested in the following two-part Qantum series that aired on the ABC in 1986, titled “The Holden Story”.

In particular, the piece at the end of Part 2, where Joe Thompson MLC and former Secretary of the Vehicle Builders Union, gives his thoughts on the future of the Australian Car Manufacturing Industry if the government wasn’t careful.

It’s been 35 years since these shows were produced, so really, nobody can say we weren’t warned.