Made In Eccles and Protecting The Olympic Flame
The problem is how do you transport an Olympic flame from Greece to the UK.
The answer is you use a version of the Davy lamp, developed by Sir Humphry Davy and others in the first two decades of the nineteenth century.
A Miners Safety Lamp Made in Eccles
All proper Davy lamps are made in Eccles and my version in the picture is an earlier version of that used for the Olympics. They use a modified version of the 6S lamp. Mine is a version 6 and it was bought in a junk shop in Liverpool.
If you want to find out more about the lamp used, there’s a lot of information here on the maker’s web site.
Sir Humphry must be laughing his socks off in his grave. Especially, as this year’s Olympic Torch Relay will start in Cornwall, the county of his birth.
Burglars Pick On Wrong Pensioner
Two thugs hit Michael Mather, 77, over the head and tried to burgle him. But they had done their research badly and hadn’t found out he’d sparred with Henry Cooper and the Krays. They didn’t come out of it well, as the Standard reports.
Greece Runs Out of Umbrellas
Poor Greece! They thought they’d stage a spectacular ceremony for the handover of the flame. And guess what? It rains!
They’re now giving a demonstration of what a tenor sounds like in the rain!
It Was The Scousers That Nicked It!
Congratulations all round to Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port fsctory for getting the nod to manufacture the new Astra, as reported here.
Duncan Aldred, the chairman of Vauxhall, who had a lot of say in the decision, is not exactly a scouser, as he was born in Bolton, but then Aldred is quite a common surname in Liverpool and one of the Senior Lecturers in Engineering at Liverpool University in the 1960s was another of the clan. So one way or another the man who took the decision was on the payroll of the Scouse Army.
I suspect though, that one drink in the Phil was enough to get the Americans on his side, as who could resist a city and its workforce after seeing some of the best pub toilets in the world.
Harringay Can’t Go To The Dogs Anymore!
A s child, I used to go here to the Harringay Arena to see the ice shows. There was also a dog and speedway track called Harringay Stadium. Now all that remains is the name, in that of the large retail park.
Where’s the Dog Track?
With the recent loss of Walthamstow dog track to developers and the abandoning of horse racing at Alexandra Palace, life has lost some excitement in that area of North London.
My great-uncle Charlie, who introduced me to cider lived somewhere locally. He had been some sort of minor official in the colonies.
The Perils of Alcohol
The Old Queen’s Head in the Essex Road, often chalks up a humorous message.
Notice Outside The Old Queen’s Head
This was yesterday’s philosophy.
London Bridge Bus Station Is Now Open
They said it would open on Monday. And it obviously did, as these pictures show!
The main bus routes are now on the station forecourt. The bus spider map for the station is here.
Because of space limitations, there are only four stands in front of the station, but they are all connected by a single zebra crossing.
- A – Handles both 48 and 149
- B – Handles the fast 521 to Waterloo
- C – Handles both 43 and 141
- D – Handles the 17 to Archway
Note that stands A and C handle more than one route, but go off in the same direction.
For some routes, you’ll need to go to London Bridge to stand M.
Court Uniform
There have been several letters in The Times lately on this subject. So I sent in this missive about C.
My late wife was a barrister for many years and although many ladies in the profession had problems with court uniform, she never did. Egged on by others and especially another barrister, with a love of elaborate footwear and a nickname of ‘Boots’, she pushed everything to the limit. Even twenty years ago, her suits might be blue and/or with trousers. Black as she said was for funerals not work!
Others pondered how she got away with it! Certainly, in one East Anglian Court, she had a stand-off with the late judge, because she liked his malodorous cocker-spaniel, which sat at his feet during cases, so he didn’t dare complain.
I suspect the two of them complete with the spaniel, are enjoying trying some of the Devil’s miscreants!
It has not been published yet, but I think they’ve closed the topic
Breaking The 9 % Barrier
This morning, I found that my investment in Zopa has now paid 9 % since the start of the year. The actual figure is 9.04 %, but of course this is before tax, although it does include bad debts and all charges.
I think this is because a lot of older loans from 2009 and 2010 have now been fully paid and these have been replaced with ones that have a higher interest rate from the past year or so.
I think too, that good, high quality borrowers are looking at Zopa rather than the banks, which are much more expensive and have onerous terms and conditions.
It may be too, that Zopa are getting their checks better. Bad debts from various years are as follows 2008 (3), 2009(5), 2010(5). 2008 is probably low, as most loans from that year are now paid up.
The Anonymous Widower 