Pickled Egg Quiz

[NewcastleFalcon]

Time for my weekly dive into my birthday quiz book, the subject is the Great North Road (GNR) between Brampton and Great Casterton:

1 Which pantomime hero famously travelled the GNR to find fortune in London? 10pts
Got to be Dick Whittington
2 Which railway line stops at Ferry Meadows? 10pts
Nene Valley Railway
3 The GNR was allegedly the escape route for which notorious highwayman who supposedly achieved what unlikely feat? 20ptsDick Turpin supposedly rode from London to York 200 miles overnight. Impossible on a horse!

4 Which National Nature Reserve situated close to the A1(M) is an important lowland wood? 10pts
Monks wood Cambridgeshire
5 Which interchange on the A1 was once the site of a prisoner of war camp built during the Napoleonic Wars? 10pts
Norman Cross Junction 16

Thats my paper done for marking Mick!

REgards Neil

[mickthemaverick]

100% Neil, well done, take 60 points. I didn't know about Norman Cross and found that story interesting!! Despite its proximity I've not made it to the Nene Valley railway yet but I will do at some point!

[NewcastleFalcon]

This is specialist, but findable by the non-specialist.

What is the inscription on this without any clues....50 points

Regards Neil

[mickthemaverick]

Might that be "Quaecunque" or similar from the BBC?

[NewcastleFalcon]

Might that be "Ouaecunque" or similar from the BBC?

50 Points Mick well done!

From the BBC Coat of Arms

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_arms_of_the_BBC
Quaecunque in Latin....."Whatsoever" taken from this passage from St Paul's Epistle to the Philippians

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

and above the door at Pontop Pike

You probably know first hand of these things Mick but excellent site here on television and radio masts
Details for Pontop Pike here
https://www.thebigtower.com/live/PontopPike/Index.htm

Regards Neil

[mickthemaverick]

If you look at the Big Tower at PP you will see a line of sight microwave dish just above the building. Above that used to be 4 or 5 dipole aerials the second of which, going up, was the one I installed, if its still there of course!!

[mickthemaverick]

The arrow here shows where my aerial was mounted but it would appear to have been replaced with a horizontal Yagi.:

Own work from base pic

[NewcastleFalcon]

Don't risk climbing the fence Mick to get a closer look!



Regards Neil

[mickthemaverick]

I think I've still got my DTI all sites pass upstairs. Issued in 1982 to allow access to all transmitting sites in the country, I wonder if they'd let me in now?
Come to think of it my BT ID was a significant component and that I handed back when I retired!!

[NewcastleFalcon]

Top of the head stuff please with no lookies up. Tonights question springs from a Citrojim Quote.

Another random link from a Citrojim quote about the head gasket on an AX

I had to have the job done on my AX around 1996 because oil was pouring out but as I say, if it's not looking like the Torrey Canyon then leave it be...

So the question/Questions

TOH.......What Can you remember about the Torrey Canyon

eg.
What Was it?
When Was it?
Where Was it?
What Happened?
Any other memories?

Look it up afterwards and see how accurate your TOH was. Mine wont be that accurate!

REgards Neil

[Hell Razor5543]

The Torrey Canyon was a tanker that ran aground (Channel Islands?) and broke in two (1960s?). Her contents started leaking into the sea, and the RAF then bombed her to burn off them off. All of this is TOH.

OK, not all was correct, but some of it is. I am NOT saying which is which.

[mickthemaverick]

TOH it is, I remember the Torrey Canyon which was a huge oil tanker which grounded and split in the western end of the English Channel, off the Scilly Isles if I remember correctly. I think it happened in 63 or 64 and numerous techniques were used to cope with the pollution from spraying the sea with detergent from crop spraying aircraft to actually attacking the ship in an attempt to sink it with tanks intact. I think the RAF were involved but I can't remember exactly how. I know the ship lay broken on the rocks for a considerable time, 3-4 weeks I think, while they emptied the tanks into other vessels and then I believe it was towed out to deepwater for sinking, that may have been when the RAF got involved!! The pollution along the south coast was horrendous and I remember film of the seabird rescue mission in Weymouth and along Torbay. That's about it I think!!

[NewcastleFalcon]

Well I have read both your comments Mick and James.

I obviously knew what Jim meant, and a nice way of putting it It was a big news event probably the first time I was aware of pollution and what it did to seabirds and the cleaning of birds/beaches. If I had to guess a year it would be 1968 a touch later than you Mick. I'm sure the rocks would have a name. The ones off the tyne are known as the Black Midden rocks. Again if I had to guess I would have sea it was off Devon somewhere although I wouldnt be surprised if it wrecked itself on the needles. Wonder where it was going from/to. The oil I think was "crude oil" so no doubt heading for a refinery. Is the south coast a bit devoid of oil refineries? Anyway thats enough warbling time to look it up!

Regards Neil

[NewcastleFalcon]

Well some bits almost there but quite far out really.

I've put British Pathe's take on it in the spoiler No sound! This has more detail on the story

Spoiler: show

REgards Neil

[mickthemaverick]

Here's the wiki account:

Spoiler: show

On 19 February 1967, Torrey Canyon left the Kuwait National Petroleum Company refinery, at Mina, Kuwait (later Al Ahmadi) on her final voyage with a full cargo of crude oil. The ship reached the Canary Islands on 14 March. From there the planned route was to Milford Haven in Wales.[citation needed]

Torrey Canyon struck Pollard's Rock on Seven Stones reef, between the Cornish mainland and the Isles of Scilly, on 18 March. It became grounded and, several days later, began to break up.

In an effort to reduce the size of the oil spill, the British government decided to set the wreck on fire, by means of air strikes from the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) and Royal Air Force (RAF). On 28 March 1967, FAA Blackburn Buccaneers from RNAS Lossiemouth dropped 1,000-pound bombs on the ship. Afterwards RAF Hawker Hunter from RAF Chivenor dropped cans of jet fuel (kerosene), to fuel the blaze.[3] However, the fire was put out by high tides,[clarification needed] and further strikes were needed to re-ignite the oil, by FAA de Havilland Sea Vixens from RNAS Yeovilton and Buccaneers from the RNAS Brawdy, as well as Hunters of No 1(F) Squadron RAF from RAF West Raynham with napalm. Bombing continued into the next day, until Torrey Canyon finally sank.[4] A total of 161 bombs, 16 rockets, 1,500 long tons (1,500 t) of napalm and 44,500 litres (9,800 imp gal) of kerosene were used.[1]

Attempts to contain the oil using foam-filled containment booms were largely unsuccessful, due to the booms' fragility in high seas.