Brownie's Breaking Bad

13.10.2026

Last time we saw Nigel and John Wilcock, better known to his mates as Brownie, they were having a lovely civilised morning on a barge. There was a fire, a brew, a bit of Ralph Lauren and enough chatting to keep the Canal & River Trust informed for the foreseeable future.

Naturally, things have taken a turn.

This time, we find ourselves somewhere out by Trafford Park, near to where Nigel's family used to work, making engines for Foden trucks. We followed Brownie into the sort of abandoned building that looks like it’s got a few stories to tell, but no intention of telling them to the police. You know the sort of place. Windows hanging on for dear life, peeling walls, a floor that’s probably best not to ask about and an atmosphere that says somebody left in a hurry. Or they’d just had enough of the rent. Hard to say round these parts.

John Wilcock (Brownie) in a beige jacket and Nigel Lawson in a cream cardigan inside an abandoned building near Trafford Park.

Brownie, meanwhile, seems perfectly at home. Which, if we’re honest, raises more questions than it answers.

There’s a definite Breaking Bad feel to the whole affair. The sort of location where a man in a hazmat suit wouldn’t look entirely out of place, although Brownie’s more likely to be negotiating the price of a second-hand lawnmower than running an underground empire. Probably.

Brownie in a beige padded jacket points to a storage hatch on an old caravan while Nigel Lawson looks on outside.

Nigel follows along, having a nosey at what’s been left behind. Bits of forgotten furniture, the odd relic from a life that’s long since packed up and gone, and enough general dereliction to make a property developer weep into his flat white. Every room feels like the opening scene of a crime documentary, except nobody’s found anything particularly incriminating yet.

Give it time.

There’s something brilliant about places like this, mind. Once upon a time, somebody had plans for these rooms. People came and went, things got used, things got broken, and eventually the whole lot was abandoned to the elements. Now the place is just sat there, slowly returning to nature, waiting for somebody to come along and have a good old rummage.

Two photographs of Brownie and Nigel Lawson exploring a derelict building, from a cluttered room to a dark stairwell.

Enter Brownie and Nigel.

Two old pals having a mooch, taking in the surroundings and making a day of it. The clothes are along for the ride, the building provides the backdrop, and the whole thing feels a bit like we’ve stumbled across something we probably weren’t supposed to see. Which is always a good start.

So, is Brownie up to something? Has Nigel finally uncovered the secret operation? Is there a dodgy laboratory in the basement, or is it just a room full of damp cardboard and an old microwave?