Oldddudders

Will there be a video of this ritual punishment on YouTube?

Quite. From the same theme as "Even a black hole can't eat three Shredded Wheat!"

Son, This Is She - John Leyton

Morning all Sorry to hear Jim had a bad day. Mum being in dock is frightening, so let's hope there is an easy remedy. As for the trick-cyclist, even though you were innocent, seeing someone on the floor is never nice. I'm glad she took it in good part. Pity about the cornettos, I suppose. Yesterday afternoon I did some mowing at Alison's place. After two weekends away, and with her regular volunteer on holiday in his native Holland, things have got out of hand. So I ran the push-mower about on the lawn opposite the house. Sadly the motion-assist doesn't do much, the grass-catcher seems to have been lost, the grass was long and a bit wet, so the thing, even on a high cutter setting, was clogging and bloomin' hard work. Almost all of Alison's kit is in poor order if it works at all, a legacy of her ex who increasingly hated the place, didn't enjoy garden maintenance, and seemed to revel in damaging things. Meanwhile, the one bit of kit that was bought new and seems to work ok is the tractor. Not quite Farmer Giles size (Sherry and I really do know a Farmer Giles, with a lovely wife) but much bigger than a lawn-tractor, having a front bucket and a rear power take-off. Alison said it wouldn't start, but it started for me, so she set off with the mower attachment on the back. This is serious kit, and again the long grass in that field needed it. The grass was so long it hid the permanent hose that runs to the poly-tunnel - but of course the tractor found it, and so did the mower attachment, so that was that. I spent about 15 minutes under the thing unwrapping the hose. I think she was grateful. Some may vaguely recall that I am slowly building a layout, although like many, I have bits and pieces that would enable various layouts to be built, in OO, HO and On30. This is the OO bit, for which I have several fine buildings courtesy of iL Dottore. It is set in post-war times, but as it represents the former LSWR in far Devon, it is occasionally nice to think that line was still open, and modern trains running over it. So I've been looking out for a Class 159 in SWT colours, and one popped up on ebay, with sound. It seemed a good price, all things considered, and I am not disappointed - but the sound is dire. Probably a better speaker would help. I do know a bit about sound, as I must have 40 or more HO and On30 locos with it, more than half installed by me. I have resisted the temptation to put sound in my UK and European models due to cost. I think this 159 will remain unique in that respect. A gloomy morning with a gloomier forecast, but it isn't actually raining yet. I must do some shopping today. Hope midweek finds you ok.

Turn, turn, turn - The Byrds

The Boys of Johnson Street - Stanley Clark

You are much too generous, Adrian. In fact I signed the book at Shepherd’s Lane box on occasions in 1978, while covering the post of SM Herne Hill, and again in 1981, as Divisional Operating Assistant. Indeed, I visited the box the day it was abolished. A long time ago now!

Love For Sale - Martin Denny

Morning all Sorry to hear there is sadness at the Hippodrome. A poor night after being really angry at bedtime - never a good thing - despite Sherry's best efforts to coax me down off the ceiling. The communication skills of A.N.Other were revealed to be at their brilliant worst, and I was left fuming. I like the thoughts about how long "our" sort of music has been around. Back in the early '60s I took New Musical Express every week, keeping up with the pop music scene. I recall a review of a single by someone called, I think, Russ Morgan. Not sure I ever heard it, but the reviewer pointed out that the artist had had a great big hit way back in 1947, called So Tired, which I have heard and it was dire. Since that was before I was born (just!) it seemed an implausibly long time - a whole 15 years! 15 years ago now is still in the present Century. I left skool 50 years ago, and 50 years before that the trenches were still witnessing gross and pointless loss of life. Perception of time does alter with age. This afternoon I visit Alison, back from another long weekend with her boys chez her new bloke. It hasn't all gone swimmingly, it seems, but I think it's been patched up now. We'll see. Not my business but I begin to doubt he is much fun, and that is something she needs. As France awakens from the long weekend, I hope your week is going well.

last chance to turn around

Quite stellar, that sketch. The willingness of great people to humiliate themselves is very endearing. The Muppet Show had the same draw to performers of all sorts. A few years before this broadcast, Andre Previn and then-wife Mia Farrow had purchased a BR brakevan as a Xmas present for their bambini. It was shipped by road from Redhill Goods to their home in Leigh, Surrey, just before Xmas 1968, I think. My Control days. Then there was the pic in the local paper of the couple just emerging from a restaurant in my/our native Dorking - called Little Dudley House!

Andy - I tend to think of Padstow etc as North Cornwall. West Cornwall sounds like St Ives, maybe even Penzance?

I think this is the disease of our time, just as tuberculosis was for previous generations. We are all surrounded by it. And the medical advances mentioned by others have been truly remarkable in combatting several forms, so there is lots of good news, too. Breast cancer, which killed my mother in 1973, is a particular triumph, with the drug Tamoxifen being a worldwide British success, I think, and better than 90% of cases being treated successfully to the extent of at least 10 years survival. Other lady cancers are tougher to detect until too late, including the ovarian form that killed Deb at 57. One of my brothers formerly worked for a Cancer Research charity, and I think ran a lab for them in Drury Lane for a while. But now his twin has a brain tumour, and treatment to date has not prospered. Adrian was Best Man at our wedding only last October, so it's all a bit sudden. My two best friends from skool both succumbed. Peter at 26, to mesothelioma, probably from blue asbestos in the electronics lab he worked in in Hayes, Middx, while Mike lasted until almost 64, when pancreatic cancer took him. He'd fought a doughty fight, mind, lasting well over two years from initial diagnosis. Addenbrooke's did well. The subject of this thread has a lot of scope for producing prodigious amounts of doomy-gloomy stuff. But simply pouring out our sad memories can also make us think fondly of the victims. Warmth out of misery. Thanks again Jock.

It's worse than that. Sherry was born in Wiltshire, formative years in Surrey - where we kinda met at skool - and most of her adult life in Staffs. At least we got married in Torquay! Her first wedding was in Michigan, but to a Brit.

Ghost Town - The Specials

I believe that the world population of circa 7 billion and rising (ooh!) is testimony to just how pleasant docking with a woman is found by most men.

Sherry, in our important chat this morning, attributed some of my problem to my relative solitude in the dreary years following Deb's accident and eventual demise. Grandadbob has identified how bottling things up didn't do him any good either. Your ability to be most useful to Is in this horrid period may be helped by being able to squeeze out all the nasty inner feelings to a friend or family member, leaving you - as I felt today - cleansed. We are not machines, and while I think you are rather younger than me, the same holds true.

The fiver's in the post!

A clue - there is 18 months between our ages.

Now then! A lady's age is her secret. The fact that I know when she joined our skool is neither here nor there....

Morning all Gosh, Flavio, that sounds like a hell of a menu to prepare for 30 souls. but you enjoy cooking, whereas for me it's a means to not dying of hunger! And 30 is a huge number of faces at once. Deb organised a surprise pub party for my 40th, did not do so again. A poor night meant I was on the road to Alison's place by 7, although the car needed de-icing, to my amazement. A beautiful morning, but the sun was in my eyes for all 11 km, most of which is uphill! I do wonder if I've been suffering from depression. A particular issue - substance not relevant here - has been weighing on me for some weeks, if not months. So engaging with my usual activities, including RMweb to a degree, has been less enjoyable - if I could be bothered at all. This weekend has seen the matter assume gigantic proportions, but, despite the issue having a potentially negative impact on us, rather than just me, finally talking it through with Sherry demonstrated why I married the Right Woman. An hour or so on the phone and I feel a lot more comfy - cleansed even. So mowing in the sunshine has been particularly enjoyable. The grass is coming up at an indecent rate at present, and once a week is a minimum. Lewis is on pole in just over an hour. Here's hoping. Hope Sunday is doing the biz for you.

I think it is about 21 years since the barmaid (Chloe, 21 and must have been nudging 6' tall) in our local - The Windmill in Cranbrook, Kent - christened me The King of Smut. It is an accolade I have been happy to bear into my dotage.

I'm with Spams. Set 239 was originally 2802, 5688, 5689 and 2803. In the early/mid 40s 5689 was removed - initially to become a loose vehicle, then remarshalled into Set 236 - so the set was then a three-car. The BCK being at the front is fine, but the brakes should be either side of 5688. The Southern was very fussy about vehicles in sets, hence the set numbers on the outer ends of the brakes. As it happens, 2803, the vehicle nearest the camera, was damaged by enemy action at Hastings, but was rebuilt.

The Great Arrival - Sergio Mendes

take that to the bank