In September 1969, the Sea Quest drilling rig made history by striking oil in the North Sea for the first time. Keen to prove the discovery as genuine, and under great secrecy, engineer Brendan McKeown grabbed a pickle jar from the rig’s canteen, filled it with a sample, and brought it back to Amoco’s office in Great Yarmouth. His boss, Mitch Watt, poured it into an ashtray, gave it a cursory sniff, and set it alight. “That’s it. It’s oil,” he said.