Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
“Absolutely foolproof”
On 21 November 1960, ITN’s Tom St John Barry reported on a new ‘burglar-proof’ anti-theft bag designed by inventor Mr John Fisher of Farnham, Surrey. After treating the camera to a demonstration of the unusual device, Mr Fisher explained the thinking behind it. If the bag was removed from the hand of its carrier – say, the courier of a bank or post office – it would shoot out three telescopic 'legs', some as long as 10 feet, thereby preventing the thief from fitting his loot in any escape vehicle, and making it considerably more difficult to escape on foot. Mr Fisher told Barry that, while the device had been endorsed by the police and several large firms and banks had shown interest, he was keen to market the bag to small business owners.
It seems, for whatever reason, Mr Fisher's invention did not catch on. A shame – we think it had legs.
#ITNArchive #1960s #Inventions #RetroTech #VintageNews #HistoryShorts #BritishHistory #ThrowbackTech #WeirdInventions #AntiTheft
To license the footage featured in this clip, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/detail/video/burglar-proof-bag-england-surrey-chertsey-extcms-tom-st-news-footage/1352285097?adppopup=true
To search the ITN Archive collection on Getty Images, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/footage/itn
🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube channel (tap the bell icon and stay up to date with all the latest ITN Archive videos!) - youtube.com/@FrontlinebyITN
🎥 Follow us on Twitter - twitter.com/ITNArchive
🎥 Like us on Facebook - facebook.com/ITNArchiveITNP
🎥 Check out our TikTok - tiktok.com/@itnarchive1955
“Absolutely foolproof”
On 21 November 1960, ITN’s Tom St John Barry reported on a new ‘burglar-proof’ anti-theft bag designed by inventor Mr John Fisher of Farnham, Surrey. After treating the camera to a demonstration of the unusual device, Mr Fisher explained the thinking behind it. If the bag was removed from the hand of its carrier – say, the courier of a bank or post office – it would shoot out three telescopic 'legs', some as long as 10 feet, thereby preventing the thief from fitting his loot in any escape vehicle, and making it considerably more difficult to escape on foot. Mr Fisher told Barry that, while the device had been endorsed by the police and several large firms and banks had shown interest, he was keen to market the bag to small business owners.
It seems, for whatever reason, Mr Fisher's invention did not catch on. A shame – we think it had legs.
#ITNArchive #1960s #Inventions #RetroTech #VintageNews #HistoryShorts #BritishHistory #ThrowbackTech #WeirdInventions #AntiTheft
To license the footage featured in this clip, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/detail/video/burglar-proof-bag-england-surrey-chertsey-extcms-tom-st-news-footage/1352285097?adppopup=true
To search the ITN Archive collection on Getty Images, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/footage/itn
🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube channel (tap the bell icon and stay up to date with all the latest ITN Archive videos!) - youtube.com/@FrontlinebyITN
🎥 Follow us on Twitter - twitter.com/ITNArchive
🎥 Like us on Facebook - facebook.com/ITNArchiveITNP
🎥 Check out our TikTok - tiktok.com/@itnarchive1955
