Frank collects mannequins. He now has about forty of them, but his wife Jan has given him an ultimatum: get rid of them by Christmas or else...
Frank works in Blaenavon in the Welsh Valleys, one of the most derelict conservation areas in Britain. He tries to find new uses for unwanted buildings and has just designed a twenties Italian coffee house. His wife Jan runs a small farm in Gloucestershire.
Frank say, "it’s hard opening a new business in the Valleys. So I thought if I could get two sitting-down lady mannequins and dress them up, I could sit them at the window and people would see that there’s someone there and come in".
Frank found one mannequin in Malvern. He bought it from a ladies outfitters for £10, but she only had one arm. Then things started to get a bit out of control.
He had been negotiating for the fittings from a shop in Gloucester but he didn't realise that seven lady mannequins and eleven children were part of deal. In the end, the thing just snowballed and he's ended up about forty lounging around his house. He says, it's got a bit out of hand. Every time he and Jan turned a corner, they were confronted with a child or a nude woman.
Initially, Jan thought that just a couple of mannequins in the window was a good idea but now it's causing a domestic crisis. Jan likes a tidy house, but Frank thinks she wants them to go because she's jealous! "The mannequins are born in prime of life and never speak in fact they are the perfect women". So Jan has given Frank an ultimatum. They are having guests for Christmas and there's no room for the mannequins too!
