THE GLORIOUS TWELFTH

This is one of the busiest days in the shooting season, with large amounts of game being shot. The date itself  being the traditional start of the shooting season for Red Grouse is enshrined in legislation through the Game Act of 1831. Since UK Law says that the start of the season cannot begin on a Sunday it has sometimes been postponed to the 13th August. Whatever day it starts on not all Red Grouse are in danger though, as shown here by George D Armour (1864-1949) cartoon where a serious lack of skill on the part of the shooting party has in fact resulted in very few actual birds having been shot.

Transcript below:

PROPRIETOR OF SHOOTING: (inspecting game-book after being away) "The boys didn't get many birds, but you've entered 'various' too often. I like everything put down."

SCOTCH KEEPER: "I couldna' juist dae that. Ye see there was a gillie and twa dogs, no' to mention some sheep and Sandy's auld coo."

MORE TO THE GALLON

This week sees The International Island Games being held in the Isle of Wight and were founded in the Isle of Man in 1985 and today include 25 member islands in, or associated with, the nine sovereign nations of Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK, plus the Caribbean. They stretch across the globe including the Falkland Islands, Greenland, St Helena, Bermuda and the Shetland Islands among 20 others.

There are approximately 4000 participants competing in 14 different sports over the 7 days. Of all the sports being contested Shetland has become one of the top medal winners in the swimming with 5 Gold Medals, 2 Silver and 3 Bronze. Four of the Gold Medals being won by Andrea Strachan with her team-mate Amy Harper picking up 1 Gold, 2 Silver and 2 Bronze, and young Felix Gifford collecting the final Bronze Medal. 

This amazing performance from such a small island will no doubt result in a flood of hopeful people of all ages trying to match these young swimmers valiant efforts. Bert Thomas (1883-1966) cartoon shows the helpful encouragement given to those just starting out in the sport by the poolside instructors.

Transcript below:

INSTRUCTOR: "That's better, Sir; you ain't swallerin' so much water -
doing more to the gallon, so to speak."

BOUNCING ALONG

This past week has seen a series of events, all of which could lend themselves to an old cartoon. The start of the Easter School Holidays, the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, the Hong Kong Sevens Rugby, and the advent of British Summer Time and the annual battle with all the various digital time keeping devices programmed into every piece of equipment nowadays. The final of Dancing On Ice and the start of the Formula One World Championship. Out of all these I plumped for a Motoring Cartoon from the early 1920’s by George D Armour (1864-1949), showing the dangers that driving at speed can bring.

Transcript below:

MRS O'BRIEN: (who has been instructed that she must on no account speak to the chaffeur when driving). "Chaffeur! chaffeur! I must spake! Mrs Rafferty hasn't been on the back sate of the kyar fur the last ten minnuts!"

TROUTS AND TYROS

With the Sea Trout season opening on the 25th February and the Brown Trout Season on the 15th March, thoughts of anglers the length and breadth of the country are turning to their annual battle with the wily fish. Many an ardent fisherman has tales to tell of the ones that got away, and in the Highlands of Scotland, gillies are looking to a new season of guiding, cajoling and informing many a newcomer into the ‘tricks of the trade’. George D Armour (1864-1949) cartoon shows that even the tactics of an expert can sometimes be proved wrong.

Transcript below:

 
SELF SATISFIED TYRO: (who in spite of disregrading expert advice has caught a "fish")   "I was a bit too cunning for that one, Duncan."
DUNCAN: (gloomily extracting the fly) "Ay, there's daft idjits in the watter as weel's oot o' it."

SLOGGERS END

Today sees the start of the 2011 Cricket World Cup, which will be the tenth CWC, and this year it is hosted by the three South Asian Test Cricket playing countries: India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Cricket has never really been a Northern Hemisphere sport even though its origins emanate from England.

Cricket arrived in other parts of the globe during the early 18th century and was introduced to the West Indies by colonists and to India by British East India Company mariners in the first half of that century. It arrived in Australia almost as soon as colonization began in 1788, and New Zealand and South Africa followed in the early years of the 19th century.

Scotland though is hardly a cricketing nation and certainly the farther North you go, the less popular it is. However, throughout the counties of England it is still played regularly by many, and every game has the same passion and fervour of a World Cup match. Frank Reynolds (1876-1953) cartoon depicts a village game where this passion is ably demonstrated.

Transcript below:

LOCAL FISHMONGER: (as exasperating batsman is at last disposed of). " 'E's filleted !"

IT'S ALL IN A NAME

Today the 1st of November is the anniversary of the 1938 Horse Race in America dubbed the ‘Match of the Century’ between ‘Seabiscuit’ and the then favourite ‘War Admiral’ at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race was held over a track just under a mile and a quarter long, and ‘War Admiral’ started out as favourite with odds of 4-1 on, with an estimated 40,000 people trackside, and a further 40 million listening in on the radio. Legendary trainer Tom Smith with his unorthodox methods had devised tactics for the race which ultimately paid off, and after a memorable head to head race ‘Seabiscuit’ won by four clear lengths. ‘Seabiscuit’ was subsequently named “Horse of the Year” for 1938.

‘Seabiscuit’ was an odd name, but the rules governing the naming of horses are strict, for example, horses names cannot be longer than 18 characters and spaces, and names currently on the Register of Horse Names or names of horses who have won a major flat or jump race cannot be used (so there can only be one ‘Best Mate’ or ‘Shergar’). And most famously, names whose meaning, pronunciation or spelling is obscene or insulting are prohibited. Over the years some have slipped through the net with ‘WearTheFoxHat’ and ‘Noble Locks’ being the most notable.

Silly names are often quoted in the racing press and on television as folk have struggled to find an exclusive name. ‘No D Feet’, ‘No Da Deh’, ‘Sexliesandalibis’, ‘Snoozin Susan’, and ‘Wontonsoupforyou’ are just a fraction of the thousands of ‘unique’ names already listed. Bert Thomas (1883-1966) cartoon below highlights the problems involved in naming a horse.

Transcript below:

OWNER: "You let the whole bloomin' field walk over you."
JOCKEY: "Well, whatcher expec' with a horse called 'Turkey Carpet' ?"

ON THE LLANDOFFMIVATHERS LINKS

The 2010 Ryder Cup match between Europe and the USA went into its fourth day at Celtic Manor in Wales, for the first time in its history. The Europeans held out for a very exciting climax and took the trophy back from the USA by 1 point. Golf has evolved over the last 80-100 years into a very technical sport, gone are the mashie niblicks, spoons and brassies of the early 1900’s being replaced by titanium and carbon fibre clubs, the rubber ball has now become a dimpled scientific projectile capable of travelling enormous distances, but the one constant is the weather. No matter what technology prevails in the game, Mother Nature still rules. This early 1920’s cartoon by Bert Thomas (1883-1966) typifies the play this weekend.

Transcript below:

 
THE AMERICAN: "Say, I've played this game in every country under the sun."
THE BRITON: "Ah, well, you're playing it in another country now."

NEW FOOTBALL SEASON

This weekend the professional football season gets underway once more, and the millions of pounds having been spent in transfers and wages will possibly determine the outcome of the various matches in the various leagues. Sometimes other factors play a part in the results, and like the many knock-about games played by youngsters, are more easily recognised than the feats of the modern day professional footballer. Frank Reynolds (1876-1953) cartoon typifies a moment in the glorious game.

Transcript below:

CLUB NOTES

"Crescent United were unfortunate in losing to Paradise Alley

owing to the unavoidable absence of their custodian at a critical moment in the game."

JULY WEATHER

The 150th British Open Golf Championship at St. Andrews tested the professionals’ capacity to play in all weathers, especially on the Friday when they sampled a day more often found at Dale or Skaw in Shetland. Some mastered the course and the weather while others fell foul of the conditions and faltered. Frank Reynolds (1876-1953) cartoon depicts an a special technique developed to cope with such situations.

JULY WINDS

Very Advanced Golf

GOLF - IT'S A FUNNY OLD GAME

On the eve of the 150th British Open, todays cartoon highlights the now universal game of golf. The Open was first played in 1860 at Prestwick and attracted a field of 8 professional Scottish golfers, who played three rounds of the 12 hole course in a single day. The style of wear for the golfer of the early 20th century favoured the 'plus fours', or trousers that extended just four inches below the knee, hence the name. Thankfully the more casual style of today has now become the norm. This cartoon by Bertram Prance (1889-1958) depicts some of the pomposity that surrounded the game for a long number of years.

Transcript below:

COLONEL PEPPER: (to woman sauntering aimlessly across fairway). "Now then! Hurry up with that baby of yours."

WOMAN: "Baby yourself - playing with that little ball and in them knickers!"

I AM SAILING, I AM SAILING .....

The arrival of the superyacht 'LADY B' in Lerwick Harbour this week, all £10 million pounds worth of aluminium and walnut highlights the continuation of the wealthy to indulge in beautiful pieces of precision marine engineering. The downside of owning anything of such value and beauty, is the tendency to harbour an over zealous protective nature as illustrated by this Charles Grave (1886-1944) cartoon.

Transcript below:

FASTIDIOUS YACHTSMAN: "Can't you find some other part of the river on which to practise your horrible cult of nudism and pickled onions?"

WORLD CUP - THE NEXT STAGE

The pundits, presenters, experts, call them what you want, seem to be of the opinion that apart from England having a singular lack of talent, they also appeared to lack any conviction. This didn’t seem to be a problem back in the 1920’s, as illustrated by this cartoon from Leslie P Marchant!

Transcript below:

VILLAGE TEAM   v.  POLICE

STRANGER: "What's that rough fellow doing in the team? He doesn't seem to know much about football."

NATIVE: "Oh, they allus play ole Ginger against the bobbies. E's 'ad sixteen convictions."

THE WORLD CUP

The media hype surrounding the forthcoming tournament in South Africa might do well to realise that really it’s "only a game" ….. as can been seen from this cartoon by Inder Burns from 1923. 

Transcript below:

CAPTAIN OF THE ROVERS. " ' Erbert, w'y can't yer keep up wiv the uvver forwards ?"

'ERBERT. " 'Cause they adn't ter blow up the blinkin' ball afore the game started, 'ad they?"