25 March 2012
Another beautiful day. The trouble is people are already beginning to wonder whether this is going to be like last year when we had our summer, so to speak in April and early May. Then, the weather was superb and relatively warm the time of year. After that early period of beautiful weather the rest of the summer months were disappointing no’ flaming June or stiflingly hot August. The weather just continued to disappoint through September and August slipping seamlessly into autumn and winter.
This being so when anyone complains to me about the weather I can only suggest that they enjoy a day at the time and that if this is they are summer them try to take it as such and not to rely on hot summer days later in the year, they may not come!
Last night’s the clocks went forward by one hour- having been put back by one hour in October-hour thus wiping out British Summertime (BST) and putting us in line with the rest of Europe on Greenwich Mean Time.
The idea was conceived by a man called William Willett. As my first job, 60 odd years ago was with Sir John Browne, A . Henson and Partners, in Sloane Street, I frequently saw the brass plate which had been set up in Sloane Square to commemorate Mr Willett’s idea. Willett had concluded that the early light on summer mornings was wasted and that by moving the clocks forward one hour the time we would get longer afternoons and evenings. . He came up with the idea in 1907 in a pamphlet entitled The Waste of Daylight. But it was not until a year or so after Willets death in 1916, that the British government finally adopted the idea of BST..
The proponents of the idea were proved right in a number of ways one of which was a comparison of the accident data prior to the introduction of BST. Although there was a slight increase in casualties in the morning they had been substantially fewer accidents in the afternoon and evening amounting to 2700 fewer people killed or seriously injured during the first two winters that BST was in operation.
A couple of days in the the Queen addressed vast congregation seated in the old Westminster Hall-the original seat of government, before the present House of Commons was built. Basically she was renewing her manners to serve the country as she had done over the previous 60 odd years she is undoubted a monarch who is universally admired but nowhere more than in the USA. where she has had state visits would 11 different presidents which is one less than the number of British Prime Minister’s is that span her reign.
These photographs were such a wonderful record of the American Presidents and bearing in mind that it is the Queens Diamond Jubilee that I could not resist including them.
I don’t know about you, but I went OMG somewhere between Eisenhower andTruman.( P.S. After looking at this I am shocked at how long I’ve been around, too…)
IF YOU REMEMBER ALL OR MOST OF THESE PRESIDENTS, YOU’RE NO SPRING CHICKEN EITHER!
1 Comment
Great photos of the Queen! The one of her dancing with Gerald Ford is precious.