tomparryharry

if the gent can ad-lib straight off the bat, then it's the sort of person that any TV organisation would want to employ. The Beeb are notoriously 'careful' with their money until you join the hierarchy, where money is apparently no object. Personally, I hope he gets his just rewards. The BBC thinks it's a funny clip. at the gents expense, no less. After all, they're happy to repeat this, so why mot? Good luck to him, I say.

I wouldn't be surprised if the stump of the tree is hollowed out, and a sapling replanted into the stump. The root structure of the parent tree should be alive & well, and support new growth

Mrs Smith & myself have walked the Wall many times, and the tree in question. My reaction here is to replant x10. Then, when the replant is completed, fence it off, and post a plaque so people can interpret what's happened, and why. There is a mile fort not far from the location, so my first thought was 'have they dropped the tree onto the fort? Sad days indeed. Keilder is only up the road, why didn't they go there? W@nkers....

The earlier series f Top Gear was just about right. Hammond, May & Clarkson worked well together. The latest series? Oh dear..... I hope Mr. Flintoff recovers, but the 'oop North person aught to stay presenting those lovely ladies. At least the background visage was infinitely more interesting!

Thank you. You can rest assured that I delete more material than I send. The 'submit reply' button is there for a reason.... With the demise of these stores, I wondered if the surviving enterprises seize the opportunity to expand their profit margins.

Ah, well done! B&Q sell the same stuff. Some of it is good, some indifferent, and some isn't worth the writ when I accurately describe it.

B&Q & Screwfix are both Kingfisher, and Toolstation & Wickes are related. (Jewson?).

Down here in Newport, we're seeing both Homebase, and Wilko, closing down. Whilst they won't directly affect me, the competition for both companies has diminished somewhat. This means that companies like Q&B will be able to more-or less charge what they like. After all, where are you going to go? I strongly suspect that the gap will allow another competitor to start up, and I suspect it will be German. In the interim, I suggest that if you are planning a project, start now, before the prices go up.

Cold hoses? Collapsible hoses? With collapsible, ensure the both ends are disconnected, even the sprayer valve, etc. This allows any retained pressure to escape. Plastic or cold hoses. Put some warm water down the pipe before you use it. When you finish it, make sure they're drained, as per the collapsible ones.

I would think the Speaking Clock still has a use for blind people.... I was going to interject a joke there, but it wasn't particularly funny. Even the delete key has a use.

My word, it's hot; very hot. It got so hot, I had to strip off, lie on the bed, with all the windows open. Banned from Furniture Village now.......

A bit off-beat, but here goes.... "Shall I take the M25...? "No, not really, use the 1" Whit instead...." If you know, you'll know....

Bachmann 03 from here, and.... Bachmann 04 (split chassis. Heljan D95xx A later Bachmann 87xx Hornby 08. I used to operate my puzzle, and required a change of stock & loco every year. All of them were (are) pretty good runners.

Hello Dave, it might prove cheaper to use some brass wire, to make your own. I've made mine from small staples, but in steel. It's vary good for manual dexterity, in either metal. Cheers, Ian.

It's a 4-wheeler, so pay particular attention to the coupling rods on the drivers. It 'might' be that a coupling rod is out of sync with the model, but in one direction only. If the drivers are coming off, then check the quality of the quartering. Check the relation betwixt axle(s) and driving wheels. Does it crab? If running, the loco favours one side of your track; reversing, and the loco has a tendency to 'move over'. I hope that might help. Cheers, Ian.

I think you need to check it in RCTS, John. It might well be red, but I think it's actually black, with white, blue & yellow lining. I could be wrong, however....

Work-experience employee... "Hey! I wonder what this button does...."

I can never, ever understand peoples' fascination with the intimate gritty details of Hornby. Little wonder that other companies keep information sewn up tight until it's ready. Mr. Kohler has had a glittering tenure at Hornby, and in time, I'll even forget the mess-up with the 42-72xx tanks... Miss Hoern leaving? Well, it's Thanet, really. It does that to people. The all-embracing aroma of cabbage & cauliflower... I doubt very much that Ms Hoern will be changing Hornby to Tescos at Westwood. 3-4 positions over an 8-year period will always look good on a CV, so good for her, I say. It's crude to mention salary figures on a public forum such as this; I'd be bloody annoyed as well. One less customer for the rock & sweetshop down along the seafront....

Vote #2 from here.

I've worked since I was 15, and right from the off, the taxman has looked for what he wants, and left me the rest. The perception is that 'they' have first dibs on 'my' money. I was unemployed for a while in the late 70's-early 80's, and going to sign on was, for some, quite traumatic. Having to justify my existence to someone who knows nothing about me, or judging me, is tantamount to an insult. I didn't want to be unemployed, but I was, and had to suffer the visit to the dole once a fortnight to 'sign on' is degrading, which, or whatever you want to call it, is exactly what it was. The turnover of office ladies at our local DSS was very high indeed. Why? Seeing the desperate faces every day, and asking the same invasive questions, removed any sheen of the job. It's all-pervading in some parts of the country. I don't know where you are, but seeing 439 of my friends losing their jobs is a bitter situation I had to witness. I worked with some of the finest people I ever broke bread with; They were a tight-knit bunch, but even now, I wouldn't change one of them. And then, some teenage snotty will ask highly invasive questions. The applicant says he doesn't have any money, But! the person will say "It says here that you did have money, where's it gone? Little wonder the office staff had 4" glass to protect them... If you re local to Tilmanstone, go and ask...

I haven't seen one in the flesh:-Yet. So far, it's looking very good. Just observations... Coat hangers on the sander rail, some with a Mackintosh. Kettle on the stove (these were blessed heavy, with a spigot on the bottom). Certain jobs had an upholstered seat. Fag-ash & cinders in the stove baseplate, water jack in the corner, and an ex WW2 gas mask bag, suspended by a bit of signal wire... A lot of them were clean; some were not. Will I buy one? Silly question!

Some vacuum fitted vans went over to departmental use, and as such, were repainted drab olive. Local conversions were very much 'ad hoc' in nature, and depended upon what department (or payment/cost centre). Remember that at about 30 years, stock became superannuated for accountancy purposes.

He he! I reported a call to BT to report a line break... "We need to check the line" Ok, off you go, sez I... "It's ok, there's no fault on the line..." "I've just said to you it's a line break" "How do you know it's a line break? "Because half the wires are trailed across the garden, and the other half are whistling in the wind, like I am..." Then; oh yes, there's more... Sez operator.... "If it's a line break, how come you're taking to me? "Have you ever heard of a mobile phone....?

I Means testing can be extremely degrading. Some people can cope with the interviews, but a lot of people can't. I know; I'm one of those people.

The Havenstreet guys did some 'offset planting' when the new carriage sidings were installed. I can't remember offhand, but I'm fairly sure the replant ratio was roughly 10-1. Mostly oak as well, and the stand there is self-seeding.