Perrier had a long history in Britain, introduced as early as 1863, holding a Royal Warrant, and consumed by the royal family and upper classes. By 1908, it had sold 5 million bottles in England and its colonies. However, this early market presence declined dramatically after World War II. By the 1960s, bottled water in Britain was essentially non-existent as a mass-market product. Multiple sources confirm this: - A specialist blog on British mineral water history states: "the market by the 1960's had declined to a non existent level in the U.K." - The Financial Times in 1974 called Perrier's UK advertising campaign "a waste of time" because bottled waters "would be drunk only by cranks and foreigners." - The BBC reported that "When Perrier UK was looking to increase its sales in the early 1970's, it faced a sceptical public" and that "Many questioned why anyone would buy water when you could get it free from the tap." - The Independent described the period around 1970: "the British drank tea, beer and water from the tap. Bottled water, particularly that fizzy French stuff in the funny green bottle, was thought a waste of good money and best left to cranks and foreigners." - Total UK bottled water sales were only 3 million litres in 1976 for a population of over 50 million. - Perrier's UK sales were approximately 5 million bottles in 1974, only beginning meaningful growth with advertising campaigns from 1979 onward, reaching 12 million bottles by 1980 and exploding thereafter. Assessment: The claim captures a broadly accurate cultural reality — fizzy water was extremely uncommon on English tables in the 1960s and 1970s, and the vast majority of the population did not consume it. Farage (born 1964) recalling surprise at seeing Perrier as a teenager in France (around 1977–78) is entirely consistent with the evidence. However, the claim's absolute phrasing ("people did not do things like that") overstates the case: Perrier remained available in Britain throughout this period, held a Royal Warrant, and was consumed by a small elite segment of the population. The claim is thus a generalization that is well-supported for mainstream England but not literally true for all English people. Sources: - BBC News, "Bottled water has become liquid gold" — https://www.bbc.com/news/business-11813975 - The Independent, "Water: Glass struggle" — https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/water-glass-struggle-1190886.html - The Independent, "Still waters run deeper: The Perrier predicament" — https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/still-waters-run-deeper-the-perrier-predicament-salewise-it-has-lost-its-fizz-designwise-it-has-slightly-lost-its-bottle-can-it-burst-back-jonathan-glancey-reports-1367177.html - "Why Buy Bottled Water? Part 1: The bottled water fad" — http://www.second-opinions.co.uk/bottle.html - "Bottled Water" (holyandhealingwells blog) — https://insearchofholywellsandhealingsprings.wordpress.com/source-first-series-contents/bottled-water/ - Campaign, "Perrier" — https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/perrier/1127024 - Perrier official history, "Perrier says, Bonjour Britain" — https://www.perrier.com/uk/since-1863/history/perrier-says-bonjour-britain