1.
Military Cross
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The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and used to be awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC is granted in recognition of an act or acts of gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land to all members. In 1979, the Queen approved a proposal that a number of awards, including the Military Cross, the award was created on 28 December 1914 for commissioned officers of the substantive rank of Captain or below and for Warrant Officers. In August 1916, Bars were awarded to the MC in recognition of the performance of acts of gallantry meriting the award. In 1931 the award was extended to Majors and also to members of the Royal Air Force for actions on the ground, the MC now serves as the third-level award for gallantry on land for all ranks of the British Armed Forces. 46 mm max height,44 mm max width, ornamental silver cross with straight arms terminating in broad finials, suspended from plain suspension bar. Obverse decorated with crowns, with the Royal Cypher in centre. Reverse is plain, but from 1938 the name of the recipient, the ribbon width is 32 mm and consists of three equal vertical moire stripes of white, purple, and white. During World War I, Acting Captain Francis Wallington of the Royal Field Artillery was the first person to be awarded the MC, during World War II Captain Sam Manekshaw, Indian Army, was leading a counter-offensive operation against the invading Japanese Army in Burma. During the course of the offensive, he was hit by a burst of machine-gun fire, Major General D. T. Cowan spotted Manekshaw holding on to life and was aware of his valour in face of stiff resistance from the Japanese. Fearing the worst, Major General Cowan quickly pinned his own Military Cross ribbon on to Manekshaw saying, the first posthumous Military Cross was that awarded to Captain Herbert Westmacott, Grenadier Guards for gallantry in Northern Ireland during the period 1 February 1980 to 30 April 1980. The first woman to be awarded the Military Cross was Private Michelle Norris of the Royal Army Medical Corps, Norris was awarded her medal personally by Queen Elizabeth II on 21 March 2007 as the result of her actions in Iraq on 11 June 2006. Able Seaman Kate Nesbitt, second woman, first in the Royal Navy, sergeant Michael Lockett MC was the first holder of the MC to be killed in action since World War II. Database of Australian Awardees at the Australian Government Honours website Search recommendations for the Military Cross on The UK National Archives website, the Kings Own Royal Regiment Museum, Military Cross
2.
Order of Merit
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The Order of Merit is an order of merit recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. While all members are awarded the right to use the post-nominal letters OM and a medallion for life, however, Sir Frederic Leighton, President of the Royal Academy, advised against the new order, primarily because of its selection process. From its inception, the order has been open to women, Florence Nightingale being the first woman to receive the honour, several individuals have refused admission into the Order of Merit, such as Rudyard Kipling, A. E. Housman, and George Bernard Shaw. To date, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, remains the youngest person inducted into the Order of Merit, having been admitted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1968. All citizens of the Commonwealth realms are eligible for appointment to the Order of Merit, since 1991, it has been required that the insignia be returned upon the recipients death. However, it has been claimed by Stanley Martin, in his book The Order of Merit 1902–2002, One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour, that the Order of Merit is the pinnacle of the British honours system. Some orders of precedence are as follows, Martin, Stanley, The Order of Merit, One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour, New York City, I. B
3.
The Avengers (TV series)
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The Avengers is an espionage British television series created in 1961. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed, Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. Steeds most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish and assertive women, Cathy Gale, Emma Peel, the Avengers ran from 1961 until 1969, screening as one-hour episodes its entire run. The pilot episode, Hot Snow, aired on 7 January 1961, the final episode, Bizarre, aired on 21 May 1969. The Avengers was produced by Associated British Corporation, a contractor within the ITV network, after a merger in July 1968 ABC Television became Thames Television, which continued production of the series although it was still broadcast under the ABC name. By 1969 The Avengers was shown in more than 90 countries, ITV produced a sequel series The New Avengers with Patrick Macnee returning as John Steed, and two new partners. In 2007 The Avengers was ranked #20 on TV Guides Top Cult Shows Ever, the Avengers was marked by different eras as co-stars came and went. The only constant was John Steed, played by Patrick Macnee, the Associated British Corporation produced a single series of Police Surgeon, in which Ian Hendry played police surgeon Geoffrey Brent, from September through December 1960. While Police Surgeon did not last long, viewers praised Hendry, and ABC Television cast him for their new series, The Avengers, which replaced Police Surgeon in January 1961. The Avengers began with episode Hot Snow, in which medical doctor Dr David Keel investigates the murder of his fiancée, a stranger named John Steed, who was investigating the ring, appeared and together they set out to avenge her death in the first two episodes. Afterwards, Steed asked Keel to partner him as needed to solve crimes, Hendry was considered the star of the new series, receiving top billing over Macnee, and Steed did not appear in two episodes. As the first series of The Avengers progressed, Steeds importance increased, while Steed and Keel used wit while discussing crimes and dangers, the series also depicted the interplay—and often tension—between Keels idealism and Steeds professionalism. The other regular in the first series was Carol Wilson, the nurse, Carol assisted Keel and Steed in cases, and in at least one episode being very much in the thick of the action, but without being part of Steeds inner circle. Hafner had played opposite Hendry as a nurse in one episode of Police Surgeon, the series was shot on 405-line videotape using a multicamera setup. There was little provision for editing and virtually no location footage, as was standard practice at the time, videotapes of early episodes of The Avengers were reused. Keel and Lucy Briggs-Owen as Carol Wilson, production of the first series was cut short by a strike. By the time production could begin on the series, Hendry had quit to pursue a film career. Macnee was promoted to star and Steed became the focus of the series, Dr Martin King, a thinly disguised rewriting of Keel, saw action in only three episodes produced from scripts written for the first series
4.
Linda Thorson
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Linda Thorson is a Canadian actress, best known for playing Tara King in The Avengers. For her role in The Avengers, Thorson received a special BAFTA at the 2000 BAFTA TV Awards along with the three actresses from the series, Honor Blackman, Joanna Lumley and Diana Rigg. Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, she attended Bishop Strachan School and she graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art with an Honours Diploma, including speaking and singing honors, on 1 July 1967. Her professional name is based upon her first married name, Mrs Barry Bergthorson and she was married to the American news anchorman and producer Bill Boggs with whom she has a son, they divorced. She was married to production designer Gavin Mitchell in November 2005, Thorson is bi-dialectal, speaking in her native Canadian accent when she is in North America, and received pronunciation when she is in the United Kingdom. Thorson is best known for her role as Tara King in the last season of the British TV adventure series, The Avengers, with the original star Patrick Macnee. She was reunited with Macnee in a commercial for Laurent-Perrier champagne in the mid 1970s which led to the series reappearing as The New Avengers and she appeared from 1989 to 1992 in the daytime drama One Life to Live as Julia Wheaton Medina. She also appeared in Star Trek, The Next Generation, playing female Cardassian starship commander Gul Ocett in the 6th season episode The Chase, from 1998-2000, she played Isabel in the Canadian series Emily of New Moon. In 2002, she portrayed a Supreme Court Justice in the movie Half Past Dead with Steven Seagal and Ja Rule, throughout 2006-07, Thorson played the villainous Rosemary King in the ITV series Emmerdale. Thorson has performed in many dramatic and musical productions, including appearances on Broadway in Nell Dunns Steaming. She also played Hester Salomon in a UK tour of Equus opposite Simon Callow, in the summer of 2008, she appeared at the Open Air Theatre, Regents Park in the Lerner & Loewe musical, Gigi. In 2013, Thorson appeared onstage in Tracy Letts play August, in 2014, she is slated to appear in Jon Robin Baitzs play Other Desert Cities. In 2013, Thorson produced a new play called The Goodbye Bird written by Colleen Murphy
5.
The Avengers (1998 film)
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The Avengers is a 1998 American action spy film adaptation of the British television series of the same name from the 1960s, directed by Jeremiah Chechik. It stars Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman as secret agents John Steed and Emma Peel, and Sean Connery as Sir August de Wynter, patrick Macnee, who played John Steed on the original series, makes a vocal cameo as the voice of Invisible Jones. The film was a box office bomb, only grossing $48 million of its $60 million budget, the film opens with John Steed, agent of The Ministry, in a training course which he finishes successfully. Next, we see Dr. Emma Peel at home where she receives a call telling her to go to a gentlemens club - no women allowed - where she meets Steed for the first time. The two head off to the Ministry to meet Mother, who informs them the Prospero project - an attempt to influence the weather - was sabotaged apparently by Emma Peel. Dr. Peel claims she is innocent, but she is sent to work alongside Steed to find the real culprit, mothers off-sider, Father, claims Peel suffers from a mental disease. They go off to visit Sir August De Wynter, an old ally of The Ministry and he takes an instant liking to Peel, as they both share a love of weather. Steed and Emma follow a lead to Wonderland Weather - a business that artificially creates heat or rain with a special machine - where they discover two dead men in teddy bear suits. The members of a secret organisation — led by De Wynter — all wear teddy bear suits to disguise their identities, one of them, however, looks exactly like Emma Peel. Steed arrives in time to save Peel, as the double jumps off a roof, Steed and Emma go off to visit De Wynter at his mansion but are attacked by mechanical bees. Alice, a Ministry agent, helps them to flee, nevertheless, De Wynter captures Emma who then tries to escape and she smashes her way through a window, and Steed rescues her. Back at Steeds apartment, however, Peel is arrested by Father, as Steed visits Invisible Jones, after viewing some photos of failed genetic experiments including cloning, Steed determines Father is working with De Wynter. Father and Peels clone capture Peel but are confronted by Mother, De Wynter, controlling Prospero and the weather, confronts the worlds leaders. He boasts that he controls the weather, and they will have to buy the weather from him, will pay a lot for it, Father and Peels clone take Emma to a hot air balloon, where Emma escapes during a snowstorm. Father and the clone perish when the balloon crashes and explodes, Invisible Jones determines De Wynter is using the Prospero instruments on a secret island, and Peel and Steed arrive at the island to stop him. Emma defuses the Prospero device just as a hurricane forms over London, Steed duels De Wynter and eventually gains the upper hand by impaling him with his own cane, causing De Wynter to be struck by a bolt of lightning. Emma and Steed escape just as the base self-destructs, and share champagne on the roof of a building with Mother, the film was a notable failure at the box office, grossing only $48 million worldwide, compared to its budget of $60 million. Then all talk of that is dropped, after a slow opening, the 90-minute movie jolts into climax mode
6.
Sydney Newman
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Sydney Cecil Newman, OC was a Canadian film and television producer, who played a pioneering role in British television drama from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. He also occupied positions at the Canadian Film Development Corporation and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The Museum of Broadcast Communications describes Newman as the most significant agent in the development of British television drama and his obituary in The Guardian declared that For ten brief but glorious years, Sydney Newman. Was the most important impresario in Britain and his death marks not just the end of an era but the laying to rest of a whole philosophy of popular art. In Quebec, as commissioner of the NFB, he attracted controversy for his decision to suppress distribution of several politically sensitive films by French Canadian directors, born in Toronto, Newman was the son of a Russian-Jewish immigrant father who ran a shoe shop. After studying at Ogden Public School, which he left at the age of thirteen, he enrolled in the Central Technical School, studying art. He initially attempted to follow a career as a stills photographer, however, he found it so difficult to earn enough money to make a living from this profession that instead, he switched to working in the film industry itself. In 1938, he travelled to Hollywood, where he was offered a role with the Walt Disney Company on the strength of his design work. However, he was unable to take the job due to a failure to secure a work permit, returning to his native country, in 1941, he gained a job as a film editor at the National Film Board of Canada. He was eventually to work on over 350 films while an editor for the NFB, during the Second World War the head of the NFB, John Grierson, promoted Newman to film producer, working on documentaries and propaganda films, including Fighting Norway, which he directed. In 1944 he was executive producer of Canada Carries On. In 1949 Grierson again assisted Newmans career, entering him into television, then a new industry and his assignment there was to compile reports for the Canadian government on American television techniques, focusing on dramas, documentaries and outside broadcasts. There he was involved in producing not only some of the earliest television editions of Hockey Night in Canada, but also the first Canadian Football League game to be shown on television. After his experience of seeing the production of plays in New York, he was eager to work in drama despite, by his own admission. He was nonetheless able to persuade his superiors at CBC to make him Supervisor of Drama Production in 1954, in this position he encouraged a new wave of young writers and directors, including Ted Kotcheff and Arthur Hailey, and oversaw shows such as the popular General Motors Theatre. Writing in 1990, the journalist Paul Rutherford felt that during his time at the CBC in the 1950s and he felt that Newman came to fulfil the role of the drama impresario with the vision to push people to develop a high-quality and popular style of drama. Several of the General Motors Theatre plays, including Haileys Flight into Danger, were purchased for screening by the BBC in the United Kingdom. Thomas offered Newman a job with ABC as a producer of his own Saturday night thriller series and he was, however, somewhat disparaging of the state in which he found British television drama
7.
Patrick Macnee
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Daniel Patrick Macnee was a British and American actor. He was best known for his role as the secret agent John Steed in the British television series The Avengers, the elder of two sons, Macnee was born in Paddington, London in 1922 to Daniel Macnee and Dorothea Mabel Macnee. His father trained race horses in Lambourn, and was known for his dress sense and his maternal grandmother was Frances Alice Hastings, who was the daughter of Vice-Admiral George Fowler Hastings and granddaughter of Hans Francis Hastings, 12th Earl of Huntingdon. His younger brother James, known as Jimmy, was five years later. Macnees parents separated after his mother began to identify as a lesbian and his father later moved to India, and his mother began to live with her wealthy partner, Evelyn Spottswood, whose money came from the Dewars whisky business. Macnee referred to her in his autobiography as Uncle Evelyn, and he was educated at Summer Fields School and Eton College, where he was a member of the Officer Training Corps and was one of the guard of honour for King George V at St Georges Chapel in 1936. He was later expelled from Eton for selling pornography and being a bookmaker for his fellow students. He joined the Royal Navy as a seaman in October 1942 and was commissioned a sub-lieutenant in June 1943, becoming a navigator on Motor Torpedo Boats in the English Channel. Reassigned as first lieutenant on a second MTB, Macnee caught bronchitis just before D-Day, while he was recuperating in hospital, his boat, two of the crew received the Distinguished Service Medal. He left the Navy in 1946 as a lieutenant, disappointed in his limited career development, in the late 1950s Macnee was daily smoking 80 cigarettes and drinking a bottle of whisky. While working in London on the Churchill series, Macnee was offered the part in The Avengers, for which he became best known. The series was conceived as a vehicle for Ian Hendry. Macnee, though, became the lead after Hendrys departure at the end of the first season, Macnee played opposite a succession of glamorous female partners, Honor Blackman, Diana Rigg, and Linda Thorson. Finally, from the episodes with Blackman onwards, the bowler hat. Steeds sartorial style may also have drawn from Macnees father. Macnee, alongside designer Pierre Cardin, adapted the look into a style all his own, Steed was also the central character of The New Avengers, in which he was teamed with agents named Purdey and Mike Gambit. Macnee insisted on, and was proud of, never carrying a gun in the original series, Lumley later said she did all the gun-slinging in The New Avengers for the same reason. However, the Internet Movie Firearms Database lists seven instances where Steed uses a firearm, when asked in June 1982 which Avengers female lead was his favourite, Macnee declined to give a specific answer
8.
Simon Oates
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Simon Oates was an English actor best known for his roles on television. Born in Canning Town, east London, and subsequently moving to Finchley in his teens, Oates trained as an engineer for his fathers firm. He was in the Intelligence Corps during his Army National Service and he appeared regularly as Anthony Kelly in the 1960s espionage series The Mask of Janus and its spin-off series The Spies. His many guest appearances included, The Avengers, Man in a Suitcase, Department S, Jason King, The New Avengers, The Professionals, Bergerac and The 10 Percenters. His film appearances were few but included Night Train to Paris, the British sci-fi film The Terrornauts, and he appeared as John Steed in the 1971 stage adaptation of The Avengers with Sue Lloyd and Kate OMara. He also appeared in the West End in the Francis Durbridge thriller Suddenly at Home. His son, Justin Brett, also an actor, said that his father was offered the role of James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever, other sources suggest that Oates was in the running before Roger Moore was confirmed as 007 for Live and Let Die. In tandem with his acting career, Simon also appeared many times as a stand-up comic and compere, working with such stars as Tom Jones, Sandie Shaw. He also appeared at the London Palladium with Dorothy Squires and he directed Woman in a Dressing Gown, starring Brenda Bruce at the Vaudeville Theatre. He also directed musicals and straight plays on the touring circuit. Simon died on Wednesday 20 May 2009, following protracted illness, and is survived by his wife, Jaki, Simon Oates at the Internet Movie Database Obituary in The Times Obituary in The Independent
9.
Ralph Fiennes
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Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is an English actor. A noted Shakespeare interpreter, he first achieved success onstage at the Royal National Theatre and his performance as Count Almásy in The English Patient garnered him a second Academy Award nomination, for Best Actor, as well as BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations. He voiced Rameses in The Prince of Egypt and Alfred Pennyworth in The Lego Batman Movie, in 2011, Fiennes made his directorial debut with his film adaptation of Shakespeares tragedy Coriolanus, in which he also played the title character. Fiennes won a Tony Award for playing Prince Hamlet on Broadway, since 1999, Fiennes has served as an ambassador for UNICEF UK. One of the highest profile actors in contemporary British popular culture, Fiennes was born in Ipswich, on 22 December 1962. He is the eldest child of Mark Fiennes, a farmer and photographer, and Jennifer Lash and he has English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry. His surname is of Norman origin and his grandfathers were industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes and Brigadier Henry Alleyne Lash. His great-great-uncle was Edward Pomeroy Colley, a Civil Engineer and first class passenger who died in the sinking of RMS Titanic, Fiennes is an eighth cousin of Charles, Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of adventurer Ranulph Fiennes and author William Fiennes. He is the eldest of six children and his siblings are actor Joseph Fiennes, Martha Fiennes, a director, Magnus Fiennes, a composer, Sophie Fiennes, a filmmaker, and Jacob Fiennes, a conservationist. His foster brother, Michael Emery, is an archaeologist and his nephew Hero Fiennes-Tiffin played Tom Riddle, young Lord Voldemort, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The Fiennes family moved to Ireland in 1973, living in West Cork, Fiennes was educated at St Kierans College for one year, followed by Newtown School, a Quaker independent school in County Waterford. They moved to Salisbury in England, where Fiennes finished his schooling at Bishop Wordsworths School and he went on to pursue painting at Chelsea College of Art before deciding that acting was his true passion. Fiennes trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art between 1983 and 1985 and he began his career at the Open Air Theatre, Regents Park and also at the National Theatre before achieving prominence at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Fiennes first worked on screen in 1990 and made his debut in 1992 as Heathcliff in Emily Brontës Wuthering Heights opposite Juliette Binoche. He had a role in Peter Greenaways film The Baby of Mâcon with Julia Ormond. Later that year he became known internationally for portraying the amoral Nazi concentration camp commandant Amon Göth in Steven Spielbergs Schindlers List, for this he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He did not win the Oscar, but did win the Best Supporting Actor BAFTA Award for the role and his portrayal of Göth also earned him a spot on the American Film Institutes list of Top 50 Film Villains. Fiennes gained weight to represent Göth, but shed it afterwards, Fiennes later stated that playing the role had a profoundly disturbing effect on him
10.
Major
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Major is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicators, major is one rank senior to that of an army captain and it is considered the most junior of the field officer ranks. Majors are typically assigned as specialised executive or operations officers for battalion-sized units of 300 to 1,200 soldiers, in some militaries, notably France and Ireland, the rank of major is referred to as commandant, while in others it is known as captain-major. The rank of major is used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures, such as the Pennsylvania State Police, New York State Police, New Jersey State Police. As a police rank, major roughly corresponds to the UK rank of superintendent, the term major can also be used with a hyphen to denote the leader of a military band such as in pipe-major or drum-major. Historically, the rank designation develops in English in the 1640s, taken from French majeur, in turn a shortening of sergent-majeur, which at the time designated a higher rank than at present
11.
England
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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years
12.
Major (United Kingdom)
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Major is a military rank which is used by both the British Army and Royal Marines. The rank is superior to captain, and subordinate to lieutenant colonel, the insignia for a major is a crown. The equivalent rank in the Royal Navy is lieutenant commander, by the time of the Napoleonic wars, an infantry battalion usually had two majors, designated the senior major and the junior major. The senior major effectively acted as second-in-command and the majors often commanded detachments of two or more companies split from the main body, the second-in-command of a battalion or regiment is still a major. This practice was frowned on outside the trenches but was given official sanction in 1917 as an alternative, from 1 April 1918 to 31 July 1919, the Royal Air Force maintained the rank of major. It was superseded by the rank of squadron leader on the following day, by World War I, majors were often commanding independent companies, squadrons and batteries, but those that were organically part of a regiment or battalion were still usually commanded by captains. After World War II, major became the rank held by officers commanding all companies, squadrons. In the 21st century British Army, officers normally attain the rank after around eight to 10 years of commissioned service, a common job for a major is the command of a sub-unit of 120 or fewer junior officers and soldiers
13.
Protagonist
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A protagonist is the main character in any story, such as a literary work or drama. The protagonist is at the center of the story, typically makes the key decisions, the protagonist usually affects the main characters circumstances as well, as they are often the primary actor propelling the story forward. If a story contains a subplot, or is a made up of several stories. The word protagonist is used notably in stories and forms of literature and culture that contain stories, in those forms the protagonist may simply be the leading actor, or the principal character in the story. The antagonist will provide obstacles and complications and create conflict that test the protagonist, thus revealing the strengths, the earliest known examples of protagonist are dated back to Ancient Greece. At first dramatic performances involved merely dancing and recitation by the chorus, but then in Poetics, Aristotle describes how a poet named Thespis introduced the idea of having one actor step out and engage in a dialogue with the chorus. This was the invention of tragedy, which occurred about 536 B. C, then the poet Aeschylus, in his plays, introduced a second actor, inventing the idea of dialogue between two characters. Sophocles then wrote plays that required a third actor, euripides play Hippolytus may be considered to have two protagonists. The protagonist of the first half is Phaedra, who dies partway through the play and her stepson, the titular Hippolytus, assumes the dominant role in the second half of the play. In Ibsen’s play The Master Builder, the protagonist is the architect Halvard Solness, the young woman, Hilda Wangel, whose actions lead to the death of Solness, is the antagonist. In Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, Romeo is the protagonist and he is actively in pursuit of his relationship with Juliet, and the audience is invested in that story. The character of Tybalt opposes Romeo’s desires, he is the antagonist, in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Prince Hamlet, who seeks revenge for the murder of his father, is the protagonist. The antagonist would be the character who most opposes Hamlet, Claudius, in the novel The Catcher in the Rye, the character Holden Caulfield is the protagonist. He is the character, and the reader is invested in his story. Sometimes, a work will have a false protagonist, who may seem to be the protagonist, the character Marion in Alfred Hitchcocks film Psycho is an example. A novel that contains a number of narratives may have a number of protagonists, alexander Solzhenitsyns The First Circle, for example, depicts a variety of characters imprisoned and living in a gulag camp. Leo Tolstoys War and Peace, depicts fifteen major characters involved in or affected by a war
14.
The New Avengers (TV series)
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The New Avengers is a British secret agent action television series produced during 1976 and 1977. It is a sequel to the 1960s series, The Avengers and was developed by series producers Albert Fennell. The series was produced by The Avengers Enterprises Ltd for the ITV network, a joint United Kingdom-France-Canada production, the series picks up the adventures of John Steed as he and his team of Avengers fight evil plots and world domination. As he did for most of the series, Steed is once again acting without a direct superior – in many ways his character takes on the duties of Mother from the Tara King era of the 1960s series. Steed is seen as the mentor to Gambit and Purdey, taking on a role towards them. Gambit is the action hero, while Purdey incorporates the wit. The verbal interplay between Gambit and Purdey, with her keeping his romantic advances at bay, harks back to the Steed/Gale era of the original Avengers. One reason for the addition of Gambit was the question of whether Macnee, at age 53 when the series production, could handle the potential stuntwork. Macnee was able to increase his roles visibility as the series progressed, losing weight to improve his athleticism, the first series featured several episodes using science fiction themes similar to those of the classic Emma Peel Avengers era. The new trio had to deal with suspended animation, biological warfare, robotics, mind transfer, other episodes of that season dealt with more realistic plots. The Avengers and The New Avengers scriptwriter Dennis Spooner said that at the end of its run The Avengers had gone as far as it could in terms of parody. For this reason Brian Clemens intentionally aimed for real stories and straight, Spooner said Its no good saying I dont like The New Avengers so much, because it wasnt like the old show-because it never could have been. We did everything – we did the kitchen sink. –, when reminded of his The New Avengers script Gnaws Spooner admitted that Well, yes, towards the end we relaxed a bit. Some of the used in the series were recycled from earlier scripts penned by Clemens or Spooner from other series. Medium Rare was based on the Thriller episode Murder in Mind, ian Hendry, who played Steeds original partner, David Keel, also guest-starred in one episode, To Catch A Rat, playing a different role. Obsession features two of the stars of the Brian Clemens/Albert Fennell British crime-fighting action series The Professionals, Martin Shaw and Lewis Collins. Two series totalling 26 episodes were produced, which were aired on CBS in the United States, CTV in Canada, ITV in Britain, RTÉ in Ireland, TF1 in France and in syndication elsewhere. Laurie Johnson, who had composed the theme for the original Avengers series, returned to compose a new, updated theme for the revival, in order to complete the planned 26 episodes, finance was sought from other sources
15.
Big Finish Productions
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Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. Many of those involved in Big Finish had worked on the Audio Visuals fan series of unlicensed Doctor Who audio plays. In 1999, Big Finish obtained a licence to produce official Doctor Who plays. Doctor Who and spin-offs have remained the part of the companys output ever since. The companys first foray into books also came through Benny and a series of paperbacks and this range was later abandoned, but the company then obtained a non-exclusive licence to produce hardback Doctor Who short story collections. Eventually, this ended, and the collections went out of print. The company subsequently returned to Benny books and other Doctor Who spin-offs, until July 2006, Gary Russell served as producer of the Doctor Who audios. When Russell left the company, Jason Haigh-Ellery and Nicholas Briggs took joint responsibility as Executive Producers, Briggs now bears creative responsibility for Big Finishs Doctor Who range, along with script editor Alan Barnes. The Managing Director of the company is Jason Haigh-Ellery, on 11 June 2011, Tenth Planet Events hosted the first Big Finish Day in Barking, with such guests as Sophie Aldred, Colin Baker, and Sarah Sutton. On 11 February 2012, a one was held with such guests as Tom Baker, Paul Darrow, Louise Jameson, Terry Molloy, Katy Manning. As of September 2015, there have been seven Big Finish Days, in February 2008, Big Finish launched a new download service through their website, which would provide audio plays in MP3 format, free of any DRM. They currently provide the majority of their catalogue in MP3 and M4B format. In June 2008, Big Finish announced a subscription service that mirrors its physical CD service. In addition, those who purchase Big Finish productions on CD through the companys website receive access to a download of the story. In September 2008, they released their first free downloadable play, UNIT, The Coup had previously been given away with an issue of Doctor Who Magazine. Since then, the company has made a couple of single-episode plays from its Companion Chronicles line available for exclusive download through Doctor Who Magazine. More recently, selected complete stories and single-episode samplers from longer stories have made available through SoundCloud. The late Jon Pertwees voice is featured in the 40th-anniversary story Zagreus and his part in the story was pieced together from snippets of Pertwees dialogue from the fan-produced Doctor Who video Devious
16.
Espionage
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Espionage is the obtaining of information considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage can be committed by an individual or a spy ring, in the service of a government or a company, the practice is inherently clandestine, as it is by definition unwelcome and in many cases illegal and punishable by law. Espionage is a subset of intelligence gathering, which includes espionage as well as information gathering from public sources, Espionage is often part of an institutional effort by a government or commercial concern. However, the term is associated with state spying on potential or actual enemies primarily for military purposes. Spying involving corporations is known as industrial espionage, one of the most effective ways to gather data and information about the enemy is by infiltrating the enemys ranks. This is the job of the spy, Spies can bring back all sorts of information concerning the size and strength of enemy forces. They can also find dissidents within the forces and influence them to defect. In times of crisis, spies can also be used to steal technology, counterintelligence operatives can feed false information to enemy spies, protecting important domestic secrets, and preventing attempts at subversion. Nearly every country has strict laws concerning espionage, and the penalty for being caught is often severe. However, the benefits that can be gained through espionage are generally great enough that most governments, events involving espionage are well documented throughout history. The Old Testament of the Christian Bible, which is based primarily on the Hebrew Bible, speaks about Joshua and Caleb, the ancient writings of Chinese and Indian military strategists such as Sun-Tzu and Chanakya contain information on deception and subversion. Chanakyas student Chandragupta Maurya, founder of the Maurya Empire in India, made use of assassinations, spies and secret agents, the ancient Egyptians had a thoroughly developed system for the acquisition of intelligence, and the Hebrews used spies as well, as in the story of Rahab. Spies were also prevalent in the Greek and Roman empires, during the 13th and 14th centuries, the Mongols relied heavily on espionage in their conquests in Asia and Europe. Feudal Japan often used ninjas to gather intelligence, aztecs used Pochtecas, people in charge of commerce, as spies and diplomats, and had diplomatic immunity. Many modern espionage methods were established by Francis Walsingham in Elizabethan England, in 1585, Mary, Queen of Scots was placed in the custody of Sir Amias Paulet, who was instructed to open and read all of Marys clandestine correspondence. In a successful attempt to expose her, Walsingham arranged a single exception, Mary was misled into thinking these secret letters were secure, while in reality they were deciphered and read by Walsinghams agents. He succeeded in intercepting letters that indicated a conspiracy to displace Elizabeth I with Mary, in foreign intelligence, Walsinghams extensive network of intelligencers, who passed on general news as well as secrets, spanned Europe and the Mediterranean. While foreign intelligence was a part of the principal secretarys activities, Walsingham brought to it flair and ambition
17.
Emma Peel
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Emma Peel is a fictional spy played by Diana Rigg in the British 1960s adventure television series The Avengers, and by Uma Thurman in the 1998 film version. She was born Emma Knight, the daughter of an industrialist, as a lady spy adventurer and expert in martial arts, she became a feminist role model around the world, and is considered an icon of British popular culture. Regarded as a 1960s fashion icon, the character is remembered for the leather catsuit worn by Rigg in the first series. The partner of John Steed, Mrs. Elizabeth Shepherd was cast as Emma Peel, after filming all of one episode and part of a second, however, the producers decided that Shepherd was not right for the part, and she was dismissed. No footage of Shepherd as Peel is known to have survived, the producers scrambled to replace her and gave the job to Diana Rigg, the Shepherd episodes were subsequently re-filmed. The character was notable for a number of characteristics and she is a heroine, she is rarely defeated in fights and is capable of rescuing Steed if he is in trouble. She is a master of arts and a formidable fencer. A certified genius, she specializes in chemistry and other sciences and she is often seen in episodes engaging in artistic hobbies and had success in industry at the helm of the company of her late father, Sir John Knight. Her husband, Peter Peel, was a pilot whose plane disappeared over the Amazonian forest and he was presumed dead for many years, and Peel went on to work with Steed. She drove a convertible Lotus Elan at high speeds, and convincingly portrayed any series of undercover roles and her favourite guise was that of a womens magazine reporter, trying to interview big business tycoons and rich playboys. The name Emma Peel is a play on the phrase Man Appeal or M. Appeal, peels verbal interactions with Steed range from witty banter to thinly disguised innuendo. Her style of dress typified the period, and the character is still a fashion icon, John Bates was brought in as the costume designer for Emma Peel in the second half of the fourth series. He created a wardrobe of black and white op-art mod clothing, before this, people had believed that lines, circles and other bold patterns would not work on the television cameras of the day. It was also filmed before the mini skirt had become mainstream, Bates even had to stop leaving hems on the mini skirts because the production team kept lowering them again. He also licensed his designs to manufacturers under the Avengerswear label. Diana Rigg is often remembered for the leather catsuit she wore early on in her first season and she in fact disliked wearing leather, so Bates designed softer stretch jersey and PVC catsuits for her instead. For the colour season, the designer was Alun Hughes, who used bold colours and lurid, Hughes also created the Emmapeeler catsuit, which was made of stretch jersey in bright block colours. The Emmapeelers and several pieces from this seasons wardrobe were also licensed
18.
Tara King
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Tara King is a fictional character of British 1960s adventure television series The Avengers, played by Canadian actress Linda Thorson. Sixth partner of agent John Steed, she appeared in season 6 of the series and she is also the first of John Steeds partners to be a real spy. Unlike Steeds other partners, we know few things about her and she enlisted at an early age in the Intelligence Service as a trainee, under the number 69. Her first contact with the agent is described in the first episode of season 6. This was a spectacular meeting, thinking Steed is the enemy of her training. Shortly after, she makes Steeds acquaintance, during their talk, we learn John Steed is considered as an idol by all agents, Tara included. She then helps him to resolve the episodes investigation and this means Steed needs a new partner, he phones his boss Mother, who knows his tastes. Mother appoints Tara King to replace Emma, Tara comes to Steeds flat just in time to pass Mrs Peel on the stairs. Emma gives her a piece of advice, how to stir Steeds tea and this scene, where Emma passes the torch to Tara, is one of the best-known sequences of the series. Tara arrives at Steeds flat and, although he is saddened by Emmas departure, he is delighted to see his new partner, the clear implication is that she will not only replace Mrs. Peel in Steeds professional career, but also in his personal life. For the remainder of the series, his relationship with her was more flirtatious, just before he meets Tara, Steed looks out of his window to see Mrs Peel picked up by Peter Peel in his car. We only see Peter from behind, but he clearly has a Steed-like style and image, with suit, bowler hat. Steed looks at the scene, appearing to be puzzled/intrigued
19.
Mike Gambit
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Mike Gambit is a fictional character in the British TV series The New Avengers, played by actor Gareth Hunt. Gambit was Steeds first male partner since Drs. David Keel, Gareth Hunt was picked for the role at auditions held in late January 1976. His role in the New Avengers team alongside John Steed and Purdey, was to be the man, charming female witnesses, chasing and fighting villains. Gambit was an agent and former Major in the Parachute Regiment and had a short-lived career as a race car driver. Gambit was something of a mystery, his past never being addressed within the series and he lived in an apartment with a Modern architecture design style. He was romantically interested in Purdey, often flirting with her during their work together
20.
Aristocracy
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Aristocracy is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning rule of the best, at the time of the words origins in Ancient Greece, the Greeks conceived it as rule by the best qualified citizens—and often contrasted it favourably with monarchy, rule by an individual. In later times, aristocracy was usually seen as rule by a group, the aristocratic class. The Greeks did not like the concept of monarchy, and as their democratic system fell, in Ancient Rome, the Republic consisted of an aristocracy—as well as consuls, a senate, and a tribal assembly. In the Middle Ages and early modern era, aristocracies primarily consisted of an aristocratic class, privileged by birth. Since the French Revolution, aristocracy has generally been contrasted with democracy, however, this distinction is often oversimplified. In exchange feudal aid is received from tenants or vassals, oaths of military allegiance, however an oligarchy, nobility or royalty had the right to set taxes, assemble or raise armies and command loyalty by virtue of traditional authority. In the 1651 book Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes describes an aristocracy as a commonwealth in which the representative of the citizens is an assembly by part and it is a system in which only a small part of the population represents the government. Modern depictions of aristocracy tend to regard it not as the ancient Greek concept of rule by the best, history, John Cannon, Oxford University Press,1997, ISBN 978-0-19-866176-4 Aristocracy in the Modern World, Ellis Wasson, Palgrave Macmillan,2006
21.
Eton College
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Eton College /iːtən/ is an English independent boarding school for boys in Eton, Berkshire, near Windsor. It educates more than 1,300 pupils, aged 13 to 18 years and it was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as The Kings College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor, making it the 18th oldest Headmasters and Headmistresses Conference school. Eton is one of the seven public schools as defined by the Public Schools Act 1868. Eton has educated 19 British prime ministers and generations of the aristocracy and has referred to as the chief nurse of Englands statesmen. The school is headed by a Provost and Fellows, who appoint the Head Master and it contains 25 boys houses, each headed by a housemaster, selected from the more senior members of the teaching staff, which numbers some 155. Almost all of the pupils go on to universities, about a third of them to Oxford or Cambridge. The Head Master is a member of the Headmasters and Headmistresses Conference, Eton has a long list of distinguished former pupils. David Cameron was the 19th British prime minister to have attended the school, about 20% of pupils at Eton receive financial support, through a range of bursaries and scholarships. In early 2014, this figure had risen to 263 pupils receiving the equivalent of around 60% of school fee assistance, Eton has been described as the most famous public school in the world, and been referred to as the chief nurse of Englands statesmen. The Good Schools Guide called the school the number one public school, adding that The teaching. The school is a member of the G20 Schools Group, Eton today is a larger school than it has been for much of its history. In 1678, there were 207 boys, in the late 18th century, there were about 300, while today, the total has risen to over 1,300. Eton College was founded by King Henry VI as a charity school to free education to 70 poor boys who would then go on to Kings College, Cambridge. Henry took Winchester College as his model, visiting on many occasions, borrowing its Statutes and removing its Headmaster, when Henry VI founded the school, he granted it a large number of endowments, including much valuable land. He persuaded the then Pope, Eugene IV, to grant him a privilege unparalleled anywhere in England, the school also came into possession of one of Englands Apocalypse manuscripts. Legend has it that Edwards mistress, Jane Shore, intervened on the schools behalf and she was able to save a good part of the school, although the royal bequest and the number of staff were much reduced. Construction of the chapel, originally intended to be slightly over twice as long, only the Quire of the intended building was completed. Etons first Headmaster, William Waynflete, founder of Magdalen College, Oxford and previously Head Master of Winchester College, as the school suffered reduced income while still under construction, the completion and further development of the school has since depended to some extent on wealthy benefactors
22.
James Bond
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The James Bond series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. The latest novel is Trigger Mortis by Anthony Horowitz, published in September 2015, additionally Charlie Higson wrote a series on a young James Bond, and Kate Westbrook wrote three novels based on the diaries of a recurring series character, Moneypenny. The character has also adapted for television, radio, comic strip, video games. As of 2017, there have been twenty-four films in the Eon Productions series, the most recent Bond film, Spectre, stars Daniel Craig in his fourth portrayal of Bond, he is the sixth actor to play Bond in the Eon series. There have also two independent productions of Bond films, Casino Royale and Never Say Never Again. In 2015, the franchise was estimated to be worth $19.9 billion, the Bond films are renowned for a number of features, including the musical accompaniment, with the theme songs having received Academy Award nominations on several occasions, and two wins. Other important elements which run through most of the films include Bonds cars, his guns, the films are also noted for Bonds relationships with various women, who are sometimes referred to as Bond girls. Ian Fleming created the character of James Bond as the central figure for his works. Bond is an officer in the Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6. Bond is known by his number,007, and was a Royal Naval Reserve Commander. Among those types were his brother, Peter, who had involved in behind-the-lines operations in Norway. Aside from Flemings brother, a number of others also provided some aspects of Bonds make up, including Conrad OBrien-ffrench, Patrick Dalzel-Job and Bill Biffy Dunderdale. The name James Bond came from that of the American ornithologist James Bond, a Caribbean bird expert and author of the definitive field guide Birds of the West Indies. He further explained that, When I wrote the first one in 1953, I wanted Bond to be a dull, uninteresting man to whom things happened. When I was casting around for a name for my protagonist I thought by God, is the dullest name I ever heard. On another occasion, Fleming said, I wanted the simplest, dullest, plainest-sounding name I could find, James Bond was much better than something more interesting, like Peregrine Carruthers. Exotic things would happen to and around him, but he would be a neutral figure—an anonymous, likewise, in Moonraker, Special Branch Officer Gala Brand thinks that Bond is certainly good-looking. Rather like Hoagy Carmichael in a way and that black hair falling down over the right eyebrow
23.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
24.
Coldstream Guards
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The Coldstream Guards is a part of the Guards Division, Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It is the oldest regiment in the Regular Army in continuous service, originating in Coldstream. It is one of two regiments of the Household Division that can trace its lineage to the New Model Army, the other being the Blues and Royals. The origin of The Coldstream Guards lies in the English Civil War when Oliver Cromwell gave Colonel George Monck permission to form his own regiment as part of the New Model Army. Monck took men from the regiments of George Fenwick and Sir Arthur Haselrig, five companies each, less than two weeks later, this force took part in the Battle of Dunbar, at which the Roundheads defeated the forces of Charles Stuart. He arrived in London on 2 February and helped in the Restoration of the monarchy, for his help, Monck was given the Order of the Garter and his regiment was assigned to keep order in London. However, the new parliament soon ordered his regiment to be disbanded with the regiments of the New Model Army. Before that could happen, Parliament was forced to rely on the help of the regiment against the rebellion by the Fifth Monarchists led by Thomas Venner on 6 January 1661. The regiment always stands on the left of the line when on parade with the rest of the Foot Guards, when Monck died in 1670, the Earl of Craven took command of the regiment and it adopted a new name, the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards. The regiment saw service in Flanders and in the Monmouth Rebellion. It fought in the Battle of Walcourt in 1689, the Battle of Landen, in 1760, the 2nd Battalion was sent to Germany to campaign under Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick and fought in the Battle of Wilhelmstal and at the Castle of Amöneburg. Three Guards companies of 307 men under Coldstream commander Colonel Edward Mathew fought in the American Revolutionary War, the Coldstream Regiment saw extensive service in the wars against the French Revolution and in the Napoleonic Wars. Under the command of Sir Ralph Abercrombie, it defeated French troops in Egypt, in 1807, it took part in the investment of Copenhagen. In January 1809, it sailed to Portugal to join the forces under Sir Arthur Wellesley, in 1814, it took part in the Battle of Bayonne, in France, where a cemetery keeps their memory. The 2nd Battalion joined the Walcheren Expedition, later, it served as part of the 2nd Guards Brigade in the chateau of Hougoumont on the outskirts of the Battle of Waterloo. The Duke of Wellington himself declared after the battle that the success of the battle turned upon closing the gates at Hougoumont, the regiment was later part of the British occupation forces of Paris until 1816. During the Crimean War, the Coldstream Regiment fought in the battles of Alma, Inkerman, on its return, four men of the regiment were awarded the newly instituted Victoria Cross. The regiment received its current name, The Coldstream Guards, in 1855, in 1882, it was sent to Egypt against the rebels of Ahmed Urabi and in 1885 in the Suakin Campaign
25.
Intelligence Corps (United Kingdom)
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The Intelligence Corps is one of the corps of the British Army. It is responsible for gathering, analysing and disseminating military intelligence and also for counter-intelligence, the Director of the Intelligence Corps is a brigadier. In the 19th century, British intelligence work was undertaken by the Intelligence Department of the War Office, an important figure was Sir Charles Wilson, a Royal Engineer who successfully pushed for reform of the War Offices treatment of topographical work. Although the first proposals to create an intelligence corps came in 1905 and it left for France on 12 August 1914. The Royal Flying Corps was formed to monitor the ground, during the Irish War of Independence, Intelligence Corps operatives were used in an unsuccessful battle to defeat the Irish Republican Army. The Cairo Gang were overwhelmingly Intelligence Corps operatives, on Bloody Sunday,1920, twelve of these agents were assassinated at their lodgings by Michael Collins Squad. Due to this and similar failures, the Intelligence Corps was disbanded in 1929, on 19 July 1940 a new Intelligence Corps was created by Army Order 112 and has existed since that time. The Army had been unprepared for collecting intelligence for deployment to France, the Corps trained its operatives to parachute at RAF Ringway, who were then dropped over France as part of the Special Operations Executive. Intelligence Corps officers were involved in forming the highly-effective Long Range Desert Group, around 40% of British Army personnel at Bletchley Park were in the Intelligence Corps. The Corps gained its regimental march in 1956, first played at Kneller Hall, from August 1957, the Corps first had a permanent cadre of officers, previously all personnel serving in the corps were officers from other parts of the army, on occasional tours. Many members of the Intelligence Corps served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, units such as the Military Reaction Force, Special Reconnaissance Unit, Force Research Unit and 14 Intelligence Company contained Corps soldiers and officers. On 1 February 1985 the corps was declared an Arm instead of a Service. Intelligence Corps personnel wear a distinctive green beret with a cap badge consisting of a union rose between two laurel branches and surmounted by a crown. Their motto is Manui Dat Cognitio Vires, the corps quick march is The Rose & Laurel while its slow march is Henry Purcells Trumpet Tune & Ayre. DISC was renamed as Joint Intelligence Training Group in January 2015, the corps has a particularly high proportion of commissioned officers, many of them commissioned from the ranks, and also a high percentage of female members. Non-commissioned personnel join as an Operator Military Intelligence or Operator Military Intelligence and they do basic 14-week military training at either the Army Training Centre, Pirbright, or the Army Training Regiment, Winchester. Forearmed, History of the Intelligence Corps, live and Let Spy, Brixmis the Last Cold War Mission
26.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
27.
Mews
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The word may also refer to the lane, alley or back street onto which such stables open. It is sometimes applied to rows or groups of garages or, more broadly, today most mews stables have been converted into dwellings. The word derives from the French muer, to moult, reflecting its function to confine hawks while they moulted. From 1377 onwards the kings falconry birds were kept in the Kings Mews at Charing Cross, the name stuck when it became the royal stables starting in 1537 during the reign of King Henry VIII. Following its demolition in the early 19th century Trafalgar Square was built on the site, the Royal Mews relocated to the grounds of Buckingham Palace, where it remains today. The stables of St Jamess Palace, occupying the site where Lancaster House was later built, were occasionally referred to as the Royal Mews. A mews in the sense of a building where birds used for falconry are kept, the words later usage as a residential term originated in London, spreading to parts of Canada, Australia and the United States. The term mews is not used for large individual non-royal British stable blocks, for example, the grand stable block at Chatsworth House is referred to as the stables, not the mews. Instead the word was applied to streets and the stables in them in cities. In the 18th and 19th centuries London housing for wealthy people generally consisted of streets of terraced houses with stables at the back. The mews had horse stalls and a house on the ground floor. Generally this was mirrored by another row of stables on the side of the service street. Sometimes there were such as small courtyards. Most mews are named after one of the streets which they back onto. Most but not all have the word mews in their name and this arrangement was different from most of Continental Europe, where the stables in wealthy urban residences were usually off a front or central courtyard. The advantage of the British system was that it hid the sounds, Mews lost their equestrian function in the early 20th century when motor cars were introduced. At the same time, after World War I and especially after World War II, one place where a mews may still be found put to equestrian use is Bathurst Mews in Westminster, near Hyde Park, London, where several private horses are kept. Nearby, the stables have been put to commercial use, Hyde Park Stables
28.
London
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London /ˈlʌndən/ is the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain and it was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. Londons ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1. 12-square-mile medieval boundaries. London is a global city in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism. It is crowned as the worlds largest financial centre and has the fifth- or sixth-largest metropolitan area GDP in the world, London is a world cultural capital. It is the worlds most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the worlds largest city airport system measured by passenger traffic, London is the worlds leading investment destination, hosting more international retailers and ultra high-net-worth individuals than any other city. Londons universities form the largest concentration of education institutes in Europe. In 2012, London became the first city to have hosted the modern Summer Olympic Games three times, London has a diverse range of people and cultures, and more than 300 languages are spoken in the region. Its estimated mid-2015 municipal population was 8,673,713, the largest of any city in the European Union, Londons urban area is the second most populous in the EU, after Paris, with 9,787,426 inhabitants at the 2011 census. The citys metropolitan area is the most populous in the EU with 13,879,757 inhabitants, the city-region therefore has a similar land area and population to that of the New York metropolitan area. London was the worlds most populous city from around 1831 to 1925, Other famous landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Pauls Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, and The Shard. The London Underground is the oldest underground railway network in the world, the etymology of London is uncertain. It is an ancient name, found in sources from the 2nd century and it is recorded c.121 as Londinium, which points to Romano-British origin, and hand-written Roman tablets recovered in the city originating from AD 65/70-80 include the word Londinio. The earliest attempted explanation, now disregarded, is attributed to Geoffrey of Monmouth in Historia Regum Britanniae and this had it that the name originated from a supposed King Lud, who had allegedly taken over the city and named it Kaerlud. From 1898, it was accepted that the name was of Celtic origin and meant place belonging to a man called *Londinos. The ultimate difficulty lies in reconciling the Latin form Londinium with the modern Welsh Llundain, which should demand a form *lōndinion, from earlier *loundiniom. The possibility cannot be ruled out that the Welsh name was borrowed back in from English at a later date, and thus cannot be used as a basis from which to reconstruct the original name. Until 1889, the name London officially applied only to the City of London, two recent discoveries indicate probable very early settlements near the Thames in the London area
29.
Rolls-Royce car
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Vickers plc owned Rolls-Royce Motors between 1980 and 1998. Volkswagen AG acquired Rolls-Royce Motors in 1998 and renamed the firm Bentley Motors Limited in 2003, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, a subsidiary of BMW AG established in 1998 that began production of vehicles in 2003. The Bentley Continental coupés did not have Rolls-Royce equivalents, Rolls-Royce Phantom limousines were also produced. Rolls-Royce and Bentley Photos, Reports and Books
30.
Bentley
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Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer and marketer of luxury cars and SUVs—and a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG since 1998. The joining and eventual separation of Bentley and Rolls-Royce follows a series of mergers and acquisitions, beginning with the 1931 purchase by Rolls-Royce of Bentley, Rolls-Royce Motors was subsequently sold to engineering conglomerate, Vickers and in 1998, Vickers sold Rolls-Royce to Volkswagen AG. The aerospace company, Rolls-Royce Plc, ultimately sold both to BMW AG, at the DFP factory, in 1913, he noticed an aluminum paperweight and thought that aluminum might be a suitable replacement for cast iron to fabricate lighter pistons. The first Bentley aluminum pistons were fitted to Sopwith Camel aero engines during World War I, in August 1919, W. O. registered Bentley Motors Ltd. and in October he exhibited a car chassis, with dummy engine, at the London Motor Show. Ex–Royal Flying Corps officer Clive Gallop designed an innovative 4 valves per cylinder engine for the chassis, by December the engine was built and running. Delivery of the first cars was scheduled for June 1920, the durability of the first Bentley cars earned widespread acclaim and they competed in hill climbs and raced at Brooklands. Bentleys first major event was the 1922 Indianapolis 500, a race dominated by specialized cars with Duesenberg racing chassis and they entered a modified road car driven by works driver, Douglas Hawkes, accompanied by riding mechanic, H. S. Bertie Browning. Hawkes completed the full 500 miles and finished 13th with an speed of 74.95 mph after starting in 19th position. The team was rushed back to England to compete in the 1922 RAC Tourist Trophy. In ironic reference to his heavyweight boxers stature, Captain Woolf Barnato was nicknamed Babe, in 1925, he acquired his first Bentley, a 3-litre. With this car he won numerous Brooklands races, just a year later he acquired the Bentley business itself. The Bentley enterprise was always underfunded, but inspired by the 1924 Le Mans win by John Duff and Frank Clement, Barnato had incorporated Baromans Ltd in 1922, which existed as his finance and investment vehicle. Via Baromans, Barnato initially invested in excess of £100,000, saving the business, a financial reorganisation of the original Bentley company was carried out and all existing creditors paid off for £75,000. Existing shares were devalued from £1 each to just 1 shilling, Barnato held 149,500 of the new shares giving him control of the company and he became chairman. Barnato injected further cash into the business, £35,000 secured by debenture in July 1927, £40,000 in 1928, with renewed financial input, W. O. Bentley was able to design another generation of cars. The Bentley Boys were a group of British motoring enthusiasts that included Woolf Barnato, Sir Henry Tim Birkin, steeple chaser George Duller, aviator Glen Kidston, sammy Davis, and Dr Dudley Benjafield. The Bentley Boys, favored Bentley cars, many were independently wealthy and often had a military background. They kept the reputation for high performance alive, Bentley was noted for its four consecutive victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1927 to 1930
31.
Vauxhall Prince Henry
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The Vauxhall Prince Henry was a car manufactured by Vauxhall from 1911 to 1914. It had a length of around 4.05 metres and a weight of 1,250 kg depending on the model and the coachwork fitted. It is often thought of as the first sports car insofar as its performance depends less on brute strength and more on overall excellence of design. Known to Vauxhall as their C-10 three specially prepared cars were entered in the 1200 mile long 1910 Motor Trials named in honour of Prince Henry of Prussia, replicas of the trial cars sold quickly and became known as Prince Henry Vauxhalls. Prince Henry cars also competed in international trials including the 1911 St Petersburg to Sebastopol Trial. A sales and support and distribution branch was opened in Moscow with good results, hampered by the First World War the office was finally closed after the 1918 revolution. The engine was of 4-cylinder monobloc design with side valves and a capacity of 3054 cc giving 40 bhp output. Three of these cars were entered in the RAC2, 000-mile trial and this victory helped Pomeroy to be promoted to Works Manager. Cars produced in 1914 have flutes in the bonnet that fade out a short way behind the radiator and this 1914 car described below was very familiar to the writer who was a colleague and a close friend of its owner, Laurence Pomeroy junior, the designers son. This car was owned from new by W T Badgery until bought in 1946 by L E W Pomeroy, the driver immediately notices the heaviness of the flywheel. The clutch, a beautifully smooth Hele-Shaw multi-plate, hisses as it engages and the heavy flywheel gives the car a lumbering gait but then, and it is a shock, the engine shows it is longing to rev. The gear-change is delightful and with new higher gear the whole car seems to gather new life with a magnificent beat from the exhaust. The engine is by no means silent, the seat puts the driver up high and its easy to underestimate road speed. It is one thing to go fast in a straight line and this car has truly amazing roadholding, it is high and narrow yet it passes through roundabouts almost as if there were none there. It is the perfect balance of the whole chassis which makes this phenomenon possible. The brakes would probably not seem inadequate in the world of 1914, the foot brake operating on the transmission is exceedingly powerful but gets very hot and needs regular adjustment to maintain effectiveness. The handbrake on the wheels can be used for long descents. Front brakes would make a big difference but in 1914 front brakes were still the exception rather than the rule, the Prince Henry Vauxhall was not ahead of its time yet in spite of its heavy flywheel it is in all essentials a vintage car
32.
Rock cake
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A rock cake, also called a rock bun, is a small fruit cake with a rough surface resembling a rock. Rock cakes originated in Great Britain, where they are a traditional teatime treat and they were promoted by the Ministry of Food during the Second World War since they require fewer eggs and less sugar than ordinary cakes, an important savings in a time of strict rationing. Traditional recipes bulked them with oatmeal, which was readily available than white flour. The cakes are baked for about 15 minutes at 200 °C, retaining an uneven form, variations include the Jamaican rock bun, which is similar but can include grated coconut, and the traditional British rock cake, which contains oatmeal. Rock cakes are mentioned as an alternative to doughnuts in the 1940 British film Night Train to Munich and they are also a common feature in the popular Harry Potter series of books and films. In the Benny Hill song Ernie, Ernie is killed by a rock cake below the heart, in the British soap opera EastEnders, rock cakes are stocked in the local cafe, and Tamwar Masood frequently eats them as an alternative to pastries. Early in The African Queen, Mr. Allnut is offered a cake while at tea. Detective Alan Grant is offered rock buns in Josephine Teys novel, rock cakes are also referred to in an early scene in the 1939 movie, Goodbye Mr. Chips. Agatha Christie mentions them more than once in her stories and novels, including Three Blind Mice, scone Fat rascal Cooking for Girls, a rock cake recipe written for children
33.
Jaguar Cars
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Jaguars business was founded as the Swallow Sidecar Company in 1922, originally making motorcycle sidecars before developing bodies for passenger cars. Under the ownership of S. S, Cars Limited the business extended to complete cars made in association with Standard Motor Co many bearing Jaguar as a model name. The companys name was changed from S. S, Cars to Jaguar Cars in 1945. Jaguar was de-merged from British Leyland and was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1984, Jaguar has, in recent years, manufactured cars for the British Prime Minister, the most recent delivery being an XJ in May 2010. The company also holds royal warrants from Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, the carmaker said around 1,000 academics and engineers would work there and that construction would start in 2014. The Swallow Sidecar Company was founded in 1922 by two motorcycle enthusiasts, William Lyons and William Walmsley, in 1934 Walmsley elected to sell-out and Lyons formed S. S. Cars Limited funding the replacement of Walmsleys investment by issuing shares to the public, the SS Jaguar name first appeared in September 1935 on a 2. 5-litre saloon, sports models of which were the SS90 and SS100. On 23 March 1945 the S. S, Cars shareholders in general meeting agreed to change the companys name to Jaguar Cars Limited. Said Chairman William Lyons Unlike S. S. the name Jaguar is distinctive, Jaguar made its name by producing a series of successful eye-catching sports cars, the Jaguar XK120, Jaguar XK140, Jaguar XK150, and Jaguar E-Type, all embodying Lyons mantra of value for money. The sports cars were successful in motorsport, a path followed in the 1950s to prove the engineering integrity of the companys products. Jaguars sales slogan for years was Grace, Space, Pace, during the time this slogan was used, but the exact text varied. It had a hemispherical cylinder head with valves inclined from the vertical, originally at 30 degrees and 45 degrees. As fuel octane ratings were low from 1948 onwards, three piston configuration were offered, domed, flat, and dished. The main designer, William Bill Heynes, assisted by Walter Wally Hassan, was determined to develop the Twin OHC unit, Bill Lyons agreed over misgivings from Hassan. It was risky to take what had previously considered a racing or low-volume and cantankerous engine needing constant fettling. The subsequent engine was the powerplant of Jaguar, used in the XK120, Mk VII Saloon, Mk I and II Saloons. It was also employed in the E Type, itself a development from the winning and Le Mans conquering C and D Type Sports Racing cars refined as the short-lived XKSS. Properly maintained, the standard production XK Engine would achieve 200,000 miles of useful life, Two of the proudest moments in Jaguars long history in motor sport involved winning the Le Mans 24 hours race, firstly in 1951 and again in 1953
34.
Suit (clothing)
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In clothing, a suit is a set of garments made from the same cloth, usually consisting of at least a jacket and trousers. Lounge suits, which originated in Britain as country wear, are the most common style of Western suit and this article discusses the lounge suit, elements of informal dress code. The variations in design, cut, and cloth, such as two- and three- piece, or single- and double- breasted, determine the social, often, suits are worn, as is traditional, with a collared shirt and necktie. Until around the 1960s, as with all mens clothes, a hat would have also worn when the wearer was outdoors. Suits also come with different numbers of pieces, a suit has a jacket and the trousers. Originally, as with most clothes, a tailor made the suit from his clients selected cloth, the suit was custom made to the measurements, taste, and style of the man. Since the Industrial Revolution, most suits are mass-produced, and and it was in the search for more comfort that the loosening of rules gave rise in the late 19th century to the modern lounge suit. As a suit covers all or most of the wearers body, brooks Brothers is generally credited with first offering the ready-to-wear suit, a suit which was sold already manufactured and sized, ready to be tailored. It was Haggar Clothing that first introduced the concept of suit separates in the US, the concept of separately sold jackets and trousers, there are many possible variations in the choice of the style, the garments and the details of a suit. The silhouette of a suit is its outline, tailored balance created from a canvas fitting allows a balanced silhouette so a jacket need not be buttoned and a garment is not too tight or too loose. A proper garment is shaped from the neck to the chest, shape is the essential part of tailoring that often takes hand work from the start. Good tailoring anywhere in the world is characterised by strongly tapered sides and minimal shoulder, more casual suits are characterised by less construction and tailoring, much like the sack suit is a loose American style. The acid test of authentic tailoring standards is the wrinkle that comes from poor tailoring, for interim fittings, Rock Of Eye, drawing and cutting inaccuracies are overcome by the fitting. Suits are made in a variety of fabrics, but most commonly from wool, the two main yarns produce worsteds and woollens. These can be woven in a number of ways producing flannel, tweed, gabardine, other materials are used sometimes, either alone or blended with wool, such as cashmere. Silk alone or blended with wool is sometimes used, synthetic materials, while cheaper, e. g. polyester, are very rarely recommended by experts. For hot weather, linen is also used, and in North America cotton seersucker is worn, the main four colours for suits worn in business are black, light grey, dark grey, and navy, either with or without patterns. In particular, grey flannel suiting has been very widely since the 1930s
35.
Wit
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Wit is a form of intelligent humour, the ability to say or write things that are clever and usually funny. A wit is a person skilled at making clever and funny remarks, forms of wit include the quip and repartee. As in the wit of Dorothy Parkers set, the Algonquin Round Table, witty remarks may be intentionally cruel, and perhaps more ingenious than funny. A quip is an observation or saying that has some wit but perhaps descends into sarcasm, or otherwise is short of a point, repartee is the wit of the quick answer and capping comment, the snappy comeback and neat retort. English poet John Donne is the representative of this style of poetry, more generally, ones wits are ones intellectual powers of all types. Native wit — meaning the wits with one is born — is closely synonymous with common sense. To live by ones wits is to be an opportunist, to have ones wits about one is to be alert and capable of quick reasoning. To be at the end of ones wits is to be immensely frustrated, hartford Wits New Oxford Wits Oxford Wits D. W. Jefferson, Tristram Shandy and the Tradition of Learned Wit in Essays in Criticism,1, 225-49
36.
Bowler hat
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The bowler hat, also known as a bob hat, bombín or derby, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, created originally during 1849. The bowler hat is said to have been designed during 1849 by the London hat-makers Thomas, the keepers had previously worn top hats, which were knocked off easily and damaged. The identity of the customer is less certain, with suggesting it was William Coke. The bowler has had varying degrees of significance in British culture, popular among the working classes in the 19th century, from the early 20th century, bowler hats were commonly associated with businessmen working in the financial districts, also known as City Gents. The traditional wearing of hats with City business attire ended during the 1980s. During modern times bowlers are not common, although the so-called City Gent remains a stereotype of Englishmen, wearing a bowler, for this reason, two bowler-hatted men were used in the logo of the British building society, Bradford & Bingley. The bowler, not the hat or sombrero, was the most popular hat in the American West. Both cowboys and railroad workers preferred the hat because it would not blow off easily in strong wind while riding a horse and it was worn by both lawmen and outlaws, including Bat Masterson, Butch Cassidy, Black Bart, and Billy the Kid. In America the hat came to be known commonly as the derby, in South America, the bowler, known as bombín in Spanish, has been worn by Quechua and Aymara women since the 1920s, when it was introduced to Bolivia by British railway workers. For many years, a factory in Italy manufactured such hats for the Bolivian market, the bowler hat became used famously by certain actors, such as Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, John Steed, and John Cleese. The British building society Bradford and Bingley registered more than 100 separate trademarks featuring the bowler hat, in 1995 the bank purchased, for £2,000, a bowler hat which had once belonged to Stan Laurel. There was a chain of restaurants in Los Angeles, California known as The Brown Derby, the first and most famous of these was shaped like a derby. A chain of Brown Derby restaurants in Ohio are still in business today, many paintings by the Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte feature bowler hats. The Son of Man consists of a man in a bowler hat standing in front of a wall, the mans face is largely obscured by a hovering green apple. Golconda depicts raining men all wearing bowler hats, choreographer Bob Fosse frequently incorporated bowler hats into his dance routines. This use of hats as a props, as seen in the 1972 movie Cabaret would become one of his trademarks, the Bob Dylan song On the Road Again includes the lyric The milkman comes in/ Hes wearing a derby hat. The Plug Uglies, a nineteenth-century American street gang, wore bowler hats stuffed with cloth or wool to protect their heads while fighting, matthew Stymie Beard of The Little Rascals wore a bowler hat. John Bonham, drummer for Led Zeppelin, often wore a bowler hat, Charlie Chaplin wore a bowler hat as part of his Little Tramp costume
37.
Umbrella
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An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs, which is usually mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is designed to protect a person against rain or sunlight, the word umbrella typically refers to a device used for protection from rain. The word parasol usually refers to a designed to protect from the sun. Often the difference is the used for the canopy, some parasols are not waterproof. Umbrella canopies may be made of fabric or flexible plastic, Umbrellas and parasols are primarily hand-held portable devices sized for personal use. The largest hand-portable umbrellas are golf umbrellas, another distinction can be made between manually operated umbrellas and spring-loaded automatic umbrellas which spring open at the press of a button. Hand-held umbrellas have some type of handle, either a wooden or plastic cylinder or a bent crook handle, Umbrellas are available in a range of price and quality points, ranging from inexpensive, modest quality models sold at discount stores to expensive, finely made, designer-labeled models. The collapsible/folding umbrella, the predecessor to the modern umbrella. These Chinese umbrellas were internally supported with bendable, retractable, an umbrella may also be called a brolly, parapluie, rainshade, gamp, or bumbershoot. The word parasol is a combination of para, meaning to stop or to shield, parapluie similarly consists of para combined with pluie, which means rain. Hence, a parasol shields from sunlight while a parapluie shields from rain, the word umbrella evolved from the Latin umbella or umbra, meaning shaded or shadow. In Britain, umbrellas were sometimes referred to as gamps after the character Mrs. Gamp in the Charles Dickens novel Martin Chuzzlewit, Mrs. Gamps character was well known for carrying an umbrella. Brolly is a word for umbrella, used often in Britain, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa. Bumbershoot is a fanciful Americanism from the late 19th century, in all written records, the oldest reference to a collapsible umbrella dates to the year 21 AD, when Wang Mang had one designed for a ceremonial four-wheeled carriage. The 2nd-century commentator Fu Qian added that this collapsible umbrella of Wang Mangs carriage had bendable joints which enabled them to be extended or retracted. A 1st century collapsible umbrella has since recovered from the tomb of Wang Guang at Lelang Commandery in the Korean Peninsula, illustrated in a work by Harada. However, the Chinese collapsible umbrella is perhaps a concept that is yet centuries older than Wangs tomb. An even older source on the umbrella is perhaps the ancient book of Chinese ceremonies, called Zhou Li, dating 2400 years ago, which directs that upon the imperial cars the dais should be placed
38.
Whangee
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Whangee refers to any of over forty Asian grasses of the genus Phyllostachys, a genus of bamboos. They are a hardy evergreen plant from Japan, China and the Himalayas whose woody stems are used to make canes. The word derives from the Chinese huáng lí and it can also refer to a cane made from whangee. John Steed, the secret agent from televisions The Avengers, was known for carrying an umbrella with a whangee handle. Charlie Chaplins character, The Little Tramp, is known for his whangee cane. The firm of Dunhill created custom smoking pipes and cigarette holders out of whangee, lacquering the surface of the plant stems, terry-Thomas, the well-known British comedic actor, habitually used an 8-inch long custom black lacquered whangee cigarette holder. It became his trademark and is seen in most of his publicity photographs and his collection included a valuable holder that had a spiral of diamonds set in gold over the black lacquered whangee. It was stolen out of his room, and was recovered in a damaged state. Bertie Wooster in The Inimitable Jeeves says, Then bring me my whangee, my yellowest shoes, im going into the park to do pastoral dances. Wodehouse, does not elaborate on the meaning of whangee, assuming any of his audience would immediately know to what it referred
39.
Sword
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A sword is a long bladed weapon intended for slashing or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the epoch or the geographical region under consideration. A sword consists of a blade attached to a hilt. The blade can be straight or curved, thrusting swords have a pointed tip on the blade, and tend to be straighter, slashing swords have sharpened cutting edge on one or both sides of the blade, and are more likely to be curved. Many swords are designed for thrusting and slashing. Historically, the sword developed in the Bronze Age, evolving from the dagger, the later Iron Age sword remained fairly short and without a crossguard. The word sword continues the Old English, sweord, the use of a sword is known as swordsmanship or as fencing. In the Early Modern period, western sword design diverged into two forms, the thrusting swords and the sabers. The thrusting swords such as the rapier and eventually the smallsword were designed to impale their targets quickly and their long and straight yet light and well balanced design made them highly maneuverable and deadly in a duel but fairly ineffective when used in a slashing or chopping motion. A well aimed lunge and thrust could end a fight in seconds with just the swords point, the saber and similar blades such as the cutlass were built more heavily and were more typically used in warfare. Built for slashing and chopping at multiple enemies, often from horseback, most sabers also had sharp points and double edged blades, making them capable of piercing soldier after soldier in a cavalry charge. Sabers continued to see use until the early 20th century. The US Navy kept tens of thousands of sturdy cutlasses in their armory well into World War II, non-European weapons called sword include single-edged weapons such as the Middle Eastern scimitar, the Chinese dao and the related Japanese katana. The Chinese jian is an example of a non-European double-edged sword, the first weapons that can be described as swords date to around 3300 BC. They have been found in Arslantepe, Turkey, are made from arsenical bronze, some of them are inlaid with silver. The sword developed from the dagger when the construction of longer blades became possible, from the late 3rd millennium BC in the Middle East, first in arsenic copper, then in tin-bronze. Blades longer than 60 cm were rare and not practical until the late Bronze Age because the strength of bronze is relatively low. These are the type A swords of the Aegean Bronze Age, one of the most important, and longest-lasting, types swords of the European Bronze Age was the Naue II type, also known as Griffzungenschwert
40.
Swordstick
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A swordstick or cane-sword is a cane incorporating a concealed blade. The swordstick was a fashion accessory for the wealthy during the 18th and 19th centuries. During this period, it was becoming less socially acceptable to openly carry a sword, but there were still upper-class men routinely trained in swordsmanship who wished to go armed for self-defense. Swords concealed in ladies walking sticks and parasols were also not unknown, as it was less socially acceptable for a lady to carry a sword. Soon after their introduction, other gadget canes became popular, instead of a blade, these would hold the tools of ones trade, compasses, and even flasks for keeping alcohol. Malacca wood was the most commonly used material in making the cane shafts, today, designer and collector canes have sterling silver handles, and are made with wooden shafts made from various woods, including Malacca and bamboo. Ornate designs, such as heads, skulls, and various emblems may also be carved into the wooden handles, these may make them harder to wield. Sword canes are most often made with steel, rapier-pointed blades. While various mechanisms exist to lock the blade in place, accidents have been known to happen regularly with the simple push-to-release mechanism, twist-lock mechanisms work well, as do double-locking mechanisms. In many jurisdictions the ownership, carrying, manufacturing or trading in sword canes is restricted by law, possession of a swordstick is prohibited in Belgium as it falls under concealed weapons. Having a swordstick is considered as having weapons of the 6th category and it is legal to own, however, specific care must be taken in case of transportation. Handling of swordsticks is forbidden as concealed weapons, the Criminal Justice Act 1988 Order 1988, ISBN 0-11-088019-6 also made it illegal to trade in sword canes in the United Kingdom. However, antique swordsticks which are 100 years old or older are exempt, a swordstick may be illegal to carry in many jurisdictions as it is a concealed weapon, and is sometimes considered a disguised weapon. U. S. states with statutes that prohibit the carrying of swordsticks include Arkansas
41.
Swordsmanship
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Swordsmanship or swordfighting refers to the skills of a swordsman, a person versed in the art of the sword. The term is modern, and as such was used to refer to smallsword fencing. The word gladiator itself comes from the Latin word gladius, meaning sword, the sword in ancient Egypt was known by several names, but most are variations of the words sfet, seft or nakhtui. The earliest bronze swords in the date back 4000 years. The khopesh was used region-wide and is depicted as early as the Sixth Dynasty and it was thick-backed and weighted with bronze, sometimes even with gold hilts in the case of pharaohs. The blade may be edged on one or both sides, and was made from iron or blue steel, the double-edge sword had a leaf-shaped blade, and a handle which hollows away at the centre and thickens at each end. These swords are of lengths, and were paired with shields. Middle Eastern swords became dominant throughout North Africa after the introduction of Islam, the process of both iron smelting and forging was introduced to Sub-Saharan Africa from the north, thus many African swords were of Egyptian derivation. Among some communities, swords were restricted to royalty or tribal leaders, forms vary from one area to another, such as the billao of Somalia, boomerang-sword in Niger or the single-edge swords of the Gold Coast. The Abyssinian shotel took the form of a sickle, like the Egyptian khopesh. The edge was on the inside of the blade, which has a mid-rib running along its entire length, double-edge swords similar to those of Europe and ancient Arabia occurred in some areas such as the takoba and kaskara. Two types of sword existed in Zanzibar, the shortsword and the standard sword with a blade measuring 3–3.5 feet. The latter weapon was wielded with both hands like a quarterstaff, greece provides the foundation for the widespread use of the sword as a weapon in its own right in the West. The Roman legionaries and other forces of the Roman military, until the 2nd century A. D. used the gladius as a short thrusting sword effectively with the scutum, gladiators used a shorter gladius than the military. The Empires legionary soldiers were trained and prided themselves on their disciplinary skills. This probably carried over to their training with weaponry, but we have no Roman manuals of swordsmanship, one translation of Juvenals poetry by Barten Holyday in 1661 makes note that the Roman trainees learned to fight with the wooden wasters before moving on to the use of sharpened steel. In fact, it is found that Roman gladiators trained with a wooden sword. This training would have provided the Roman soldier with a foundation of skill
42.
Oenophilia
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Oenophilia is a love of wine. In the strictest sense, oenophilia describes a disciplined devotion to wine, in a general sense however, oenophilia simply refers to the enjoyment of wine, often by laymen. Oenophiles are also known as wine aficionados or connoisseurs and they are people who appreciate or collect wine, particularly grape wines from certain regions, varietal types, or methods of manufacture. While most oenophiles are hobbyists, some may also be professionals like vintners, sommeliers, wine merchants, or one who tastes and grades wines for a living. A reviewer in a paper, The Westsider, wrote about the debut, If the name suggests a rare disease you wouldnt want to catch. Oenophilia, it says, is an affliction of the senses characterized by intense cravings for good food and service and vintage wines served in a tasteful, the reviewer from The Village Voice wrote in 1977, Oenophilia. Its the sensual orientation towards the pleasures of food and wine
43.
Champagne
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The primary grapes used in the production of Champagne are black Pinot noir and Pinot Meunier but also white Chardonnay. Champagne appellation law only allows grapes grown according to rules in specifically designated plots within the appellation to be used in the production of champagne. Royalty became associated with Champagne in the 17th, 18th, the leading manufacturers made efforts to associate their Champagnes with nobility and royalty through advertising and packaging, which led to popularity among the emerging middle class. Patricia Harmsworth, Viscountess Rothermere, the English socialite, was nicknamed Bubbles after her love of champagne, wines from the Champagne region were known before medieval times. The Romans were the first to plant vineyards in this area of north-east France, with the region being cultivated by at least the 5th century, later, churches owned vineyards and monks produced wine for use in the sacrament of Eucharist. French kings were anointed in Reims, and Champagne was served as part of coronation festivities. The Champenois were envious of the reputation of the wines made by their Burgundian neighbours to the south, however, the northerly climate of the region gave the Champenois a unique set of challenges in making red wine. At the far extremes of sustainable viticulture, the grapes would struggle to fully and often would have bracing levels of acidity. The wines would be lighter bodied and thinner than the Burgundy wines they were seeking to outdo, the oldest recorded sparkling wine is Blanquette de Limoux, which was apparently invented by Benedictine Monks in the Abbey of Saint-Hilaire, near Carcassonne in 1531. They achieved this by bottling the wine before the initial fermentation had ended, Merret presented a paper at the Royal Society, in which he detailed what is now called méthode champenoise, in 1662. French glass-makers at this time could not produce bottles of the quality or strength. As early as 1663 the poet Samuel Butler referred to brisk champagne, in France the first sparkling Champagne was created accidentally, the pressure in the bottle led it to be called the devils wine, as bottles exploded or corks popped. In 1844 Adolphe Jaquesson invented the muselet to prevent the corks from blowing out, initial versions were difficult to apply and inconvenient to remove. Even when it was produced as a sparkling wine, Champagne was for a very long time made by the méthode rurale. Champagne did not use the méthode champenoise until the 19th century, the 19th century saw an exponential growth in Champagne production, going from a regional production of 300,000 bottles a year in 1800 to 20 million bottles in 1850. In 2007, Champagne sales hit a record of 338.7 million bottles. In the 19th century Champagne was noticeably sweeter than the Champagnes of today, the trend towards drier Champagne began when Perrier-Jouët decided not to sweeten his 1846 vintage prior to exporting it to London. The designation Brut Champagne was created for the British in 1876 and they include codification of the most suitable growing places, the most suitable grape types, and a lengthy set of requirements specifying most aspects of viticulture
