Blog

01 September - The Stig has been revealed as racing driver Ben Collins.


31 August - As we all need cheering up here are here are the Top ten best jokes judged at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
1) Tim Vine - "I've just been on a once-in-a-lifetime holiday. I'll tell you what, never again."
2) David Gibson - "I'm currently dating a couple of anorexics. Two birds, one stone."
3) Emo Philips - "I picked up a hitchhiker. You've got to when you hit them."
4) Jack Whitehall - "I bought one of those anti-bullying wristbands when they first came out. I say 'bought', I actually stole it off a short, fat ginger kid."
5) Gary Delaney - "As a kid I was made to walk the plank. We couldn't afford a dog."
6) John Bishop - "Being an England supporter is like being the over-optimistic parents of the fat kid on sports day."
7) Bo Burnham - "What do you call a kid with no arms and an eyepatch? Names."
8) Gary Delaney - "Dave drowned. So at the funeral we got him a wreath in the shape of a lifebelt. Well, it's what he would have wanted."
9) Robert White - "For Vanessa Feltz, life is like a box of chocolates: empty."
10) Gareth Richards - "Wooden spoons are great. You can either use them to prepare food, or, if you can't be bothered with that, just write a number on one and walk into a pub…"

And the worst…
Sara Pascoe - "Why did the chicken commit suicide? To get to the other side."
Sean Hughes - "You know city-centre beat officers... Well are they police who rap?"
John Luke Roberts - "I made a Battenberg where the two colours ran alongside each other. I called it apartheid sponge."
Emo Philips - "I like to play chess with bald men in the park although it's hard to find 32 of them."
Bec Hill - "Some of my best friends are vegan. They were going to come today but they didn't have the energy to climb up the stairs."
Dan Antopolski - "How many Spaniards does it take to change a lightbulb? Juan."
Doc Brown - "I was born into the music industry. My dad worked in Our Price."






12 August - Did you know that in the UK You are Never More Than 75 Miles from the Sea and our British Coastline Stretches for 7,760 Miles.Well with all the Airline Strikes,Erupting Volcanoes and Sky High Prices I am now thinking a British Holiday may be Sensible Option.A Recent Report has found that 78 per cent of UK Kids have had foreign Holidays (mine included) and more than a fifth have never been to the British Seaside.There have been massive investments in UK resorts which has contributed to Visits increasing last year by 24 per cent.It seems that the British Holiday is good value for money at the moment especially now the Euro rate making European Trips Very Expensive.However the Major Concern is the Good Old British Weather but this infact seems to be changing and indeed this Summer Britain has been Hotter than some Mediterranean Destinations.
The Six Top British Reports are Brighton,Scarborough,Skegness,Llandudno,Bournemouth and Blackpool which is the most Popular with seaside resort with 1.5 Million Overnight Trips Last Year.


05 August - Yippeeee The Bank of England has held the Interest Rate at 0.5% for another month lets hope this continues as everyone needs as much help as possible these days.But with certain banks releasing huge profit figures this week are we all be taken for fools ???


05 August - Well Some Good News at Last for Portsmouth FC they have Survived a High Court Challenge from the Taxman that Could have ended with the Club Facing Liquidation.HM Revenue & Customs had Asked the Court to Stop Proposals that would have Helped Pompey out of Administration.Well lets hope Portsmouth can move forward from this and get back into the Premiership'


05 August - What is the World Coming Too a Hungarian Teen Girl has Sold her Virginity to a British Buyer for £200,000. She Originally Launched the Auction on Ebay but When they Discovered the True Nature of her Auction they Pulled it and it Continued by Email.Do we Beleive it though as the Article was in a well known Tabloid Paper ????????.


04 August - Its the Summer Holidays and the Kids are off School for Six Weeks.So while the dads go off to work poor old mum is left at home to try and entertain the kids ,and as every parent knows if you hear the word I'm Bored one more time i'll scream. Well I stepped upto the plate today and we all went to the Cinema as a Family to see Toy Story 3.After finding somewhere to park the Car,and queing for what seemed like forever we got into the Cinema.My wife then proceeded to take a tuck shop out of her handgag ,numerous drinks,sweets and crisps all came out ,thats one of lifes little misteries how doesw she get so much into her bag . One Child Loved the film and the other well she is a teenager so say no more.I on the other hand managed to stay awake throughout the film which was great achievement and my wife who normally falls asleep while watching Eastenders stayed awake throughout and i even heard her laugh a couple of times lol. The Cinema Complex was packed to the rafters with families just like mine . Next week Bowling i have been informed ,looking forward to that one.They all think that I cannot bowl (which is true)but I am going to get some sneaky practice in on the WI Sports game thing that we have in the Playroom thats if i can work out how to turn it on.


15 July - Just seen the following Newspaper Headline and I hope it will make you chuckle like it did me: Hampshire Workmen Paint White Lines Around Dead Badger. Its a Story about Workmen Painting White Lines on a road the A338 near Downton which is on the Hampshire-Wiltshire border and they left a gap for a Dead Badger because they said it was not their Responsibility to move it.What is going on in the Minds of these people - I will never know!.


14 July - Something Very Strange is Taking Place at Lords Cricket Ground this week its the first Neutral Test Match at Lord's since 1912 . The Good thing about it was that a crowd of nearly 15,000 turned up to Watch Australia take on Pakistan.The Two Match Series is taking Place on Neutral Turf due to Security Concerns in Pakistan.


Its 70 Years since the Battle of Britain - . In the Summer of 1940 the German Luftwaffe tried to win Air Superiority over Britain and the English Channel with the Aim of Destroying the Royal Air Force and the British aircraft industry. This attempt came to be known as the Battle of Britain.
Victory over the RAF was seen by the Germans as Essential if they were Eventually to mount an invasion of the British Isles.It is Widely Believed that had the Germans Succeeded in their aim they would have been able to invade Britain relatively easily.Bitain was the only European Power Resisting Nazi Germany and this led to Winston Churchill's Famous speech to Parliament on 20 August, in which he said, 'Never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few.' .
Both Germany and Britain were about evenly matched..The Principal German Fighter was the Messerschmitt Me 109E but it only had a range of 700 km which meant it had only 15 minutes fuel over Kent and was at the limit of its range over London. The two-engined Me-110 had a slightly longer range. The Germans used Two Engined Medium Bombers which were quite fast - The Dornier 17, The Junkers 88 and the Heinkel 111, as well as the Gull-Winged Junkers 87 'Stuka'. The Suka ws very effective in Support of the Army but Very Vulnerable to the RAF.
The RAF's Fighters were the Hawker Hurricane which was the mainstay of its effort, and the Supermarine Spitfire. The Spitfire was faster and more manoeuvrable but the Hurricane carried slightly more Ammunition Which made it lethal against the German Bombers.Many of the Pilots were from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and from European Countries which had been overrun by the Germans.The Experience of these Polish and Czech Squadrons certainly helped the RAF and Indeed they achieved a better Kill Ratio against the Germans than the British Squadrons.
The Battle of Britain began on 30 June 1940 when Reichsmarschall Hermann Göering who was head of the Luftwaffe ordering his force into Battle by Attacking Coastal Convoys and Bombing Radar Stations along the South Coast,Installations of the British Aircraft Industry, and RAF Airfields.The head of the British Fighter Command was Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding.The Germans has two major disadvantages A Germn Pilot was Lost to Germany and a Downed or Damaged Plane was likely to Ditch into the Sea. This Compares to damaged RAF Aircraft which could get home and Downed RAF Pilots Parachuted to English fields and returned to their units almost Immediately.
The Battle Officially began on 13 August 1940 , with the Germans calling it Adlertag ('Eagle day'). Five Waves of Bombers and Fighters were sent To destroy Nine Airfields - from Eastchurch to Portland. There were many times that it seemed Luftwaffe was going to Overwhelm the Kent and Sussex Sectors, but this never happened and their Airfields were Quickly Repaired and Replacement Aircraft and Pilots were drafted in.
The Luftwaffe lost a Total of 1,733 Aircraft from July to October and the RAF 915.However the Germans were Winning the battle of Attrition at this stage.However they were shocked and frustrated by the number of Allied Aircraft opposing them. In September they switched to night bombing of British Cities.The Blitz, as it was known continued after the Battle of Britain had finished. During the Blitz, between September 1940 and May 1941 the Germans dropped more than 35,000 tons of Bombs and lost 650 Aircraft. London was attacked 19 times with 18,800 tons of Bombs.
The brunt of the RAF defence was borne by 11 Group which covered Kent and Sussex.
The RAF defence was well organised as Radar would pick up an approaching Enermy Aircraft and relay the information to a sector airfield which in turn passed it to 11 Group HQ which was at Northolt. Group HQ would then inform Fighter Command and aircraft would be directed accordingly and if required aircraft from other sectors would be brought in.
When Germany switched attacks onto London their Fighters were to the limit of their Range and Brought them within range of 12 Group which was defending the Midlands. This switch by the Germans to City bombing allowed Fighter Command to recover.
On 17 September two days after the Luftwaffes worst day in the Battle of Britain Hitler cancelled Operation Sealion which was the name of his plan for the Invasion of Britain. However the Bombing of British Cities continued.Hitler now focused on Russia - and on 22 June 1941 the Germans launched the greatest land and air campaign in the history of war called Operation Barbarossa .Germany now aimed to invade the Soviet Union.
Britain with the RAF began a limited bombing campaign against German targets using two-engined bombers such as the Wellington. However it was not until four engined Bommbers such as the British Lancaster and the US B-17 'Flying Fortress' - came in which was in 1942 did the bombing start to become effective.
12 July - Is Summer Over ?? . The Weather is set to change as the Hot Sunny Weather is being replaced by heavy rain and cooler Temperatures.Forecasters Predict that this Wet Weather is to last all week, lets hope thats its just a blip and the nice Sunny Weather will return next week.Lets wait and see !!.





27 May - We should all take a little time out today to think about the brave heroes of the Dunkirk Landings who if they did not do what they did the whole outcome of the war would have been different and we could all have been speaking German Lol.Brave,Brave,Brave men and woman.Also give a thought for those soldiers who gave their lives so that the evacuation could take place,they held the line and gave their own lives so others could keep theirs.



24 May -Well it looks like the volcano that caused all the flight problems with the ash cloud has stopped erupting which is great news.However it appears now that the rules have changed so therefore planes can now fly through thicker clouds or ash than before - how strange.And just when we think its ok to start flying again with no delays,British Airways staff go on strike .



21 May - Woke up this morning to bright warm sunshine not a cloud in the sky. Is summer here ?.Its funny but when the suns out it makes you feel good about things even if things are not going your way,people seem to be in a better mood well most people in any event lol.The forecasters are saying its going to be a nice weekend and a hot.hot Summer so fingers crossed they are correct, cause lets face it their track record is not the best is it?.


20 May - Very,Very,Very Fed Up with dealing with idiots,why cannot people read !!!!!!.A certain well know auction site seems to be very biased against the seller , feedback what a joke,once you have bad feedback because someone is a total Dumbo and obviously a very angry individual thats it they are not interested.Yes you can always put your comments and defence but at the end of the day you still gey a reduction in your feedback pecentage. I give up !!!!



16 May - Well done to the England Cricket team for winning the 20/20 World Cup and to make things even better they beat the Australians yippee. The only downside is that is you do not have Sky Sports like me you would have not seen a single ball bowled , its not fair.Why cannot one of the main five Television stations show highlights after all its England,there are many,many cricket fans and am sure that a high proportion do not have Sky Sports.Still Good old Radio 4 comentary was excellent as always ,back to the old days listening to the radio - everyone thought i was mad lol.

15 May - Well Chelsea won the FA Cup but must congrats Portsmouth for trying their hardest,making it a very good and entertaining game,the city is very proud of the team.But what will happen to the team next,pretty sure most of the team will leave along with the manager.Look out the Championship....


14 May - Many people have been asking me lately "What are Military Surplus Goods" Well just to confirm Military Surplus is goods/items that are sold or otherwise disposed of when no longer needed by the military. These goods are often purchased by Surplus Dealers/Traders and resold at their surplus stores.Military surplus generally does not include weapons or munitions,however ammunition boxes are included and are a great favourite. Usually the Items sold by the Military/MOD or Individuals are clothing, equipment, and tools.



12 May - Nightmare ! A well known delivery that we use have done us proud,they have messed up five deliveries big time.We labelled all the parcels when they left us but somehow this has made no difference to the delivery company who have delivered the wrong items to the wrong people - well if you want to look on the bright side at least the parcels have been delivered albeit to the wrong people lol.This problem is going to take some sorting and think we better find a new parcel delivery company.

Loads of deliveries today so that will keep us all out of trouble - well you would hope !!.A new supply of ex police handcuffs/speedcuffs have has been checked and tested and are all ok to to find new homes at the right price obviously.Lets hope we do not loose the keys this time must put them in a safe place and remember where lol.Oh that reminds me if anyones knows where the telephone message and order books have gone please share this ...

10 May - Congrats to Chelsea for securing the Premiership Title and what a way to win it drubbing your opponents 8 nil. I fear for Portsmouth in the FA Cup , but you never know what to expect. Just seen that the Bank Of England is meeting today to make a decision about interest rates.I will be keeping everything crossed that they remain the same at 0.5%
08 May - Well the election saga rumbles on and on and on .I'm sure we all have are own views on this but it does not seem fair on the us the voters!!!. Anyway more importantly i see that it has just been announced that Men in Black 3 is to be made yippeee.Also Harrods has just been sold by Mohamed al Fayed for £1.5bn to the Qatari Royal Family.


07 May - Well the election results are coming in thick and fast and all the news channels are telling us something about ' a hung parliament' Does anyone know what that means and does anyone want it ???
06 May - Its finally here after all the hype ITS ELECTION DAY .Who will win, what difference will it make to the Countries fortunes and how will it effect us,we will soon find out !!!!!.Cannot wait (not) lol.


04 May - The weather was not at all kind to us on Bank Holiday Monday at the Goodwood Antiques Fair,all the seasons in one day, Rain,Wind,Sun and Sleet the only thing missing was snow !. Should have stayed home in bed rather than get up at 4 am in the morning , It was FREEEEEEEEEZING.


01 May - Its May already time flies, it seems that only yesterday it was Christmas.There are a few major events taking place this month such as The General Election,FA Cup Final and the Cricket 20 - 20 World Cup.With the Bank Holiday Weekend now upon us it seems that the great British Weather is upto its usual tricks - Cold and Wet GREAT !.Stalling out at the Antiques fair at Goodwood on Monday so fingers crossed it keeps dry but do not hold up much hope lol.


30 April - While shredding some old newspapers for packing purposes an article caught me eye, it said Blokes spend nearly a year of their lives pottering around in their SHEDS. Apparrently the average man spends over three hours every week holed up in his shed,so if my maths are correct thats over seven days a year, wow !. Some men seek solace in their sheds to escape from the wife and kids while others use it to enjoy a beer or to smoke, some even have sofas and televisions in their sheds.


27 April - We must have been busy as run out of Business Cards - More ordered Glossy Finish this time (how posh )


26 April - Mondays are bad enough in any event but when you have to unload the van after a show and then tidy up the shop display - NIGHTMARE ,,,,


25 April - Despite a very wet start to the day the sun came out and a good day was had by all at the Beaulieu Boat Jumble.Anyone who took one of our Business Cards Please Do Not hesitate to look at the Website .Very Long Day for Us ALL....


24 April - Loading up the van with lots of goodies as we are stalling out at Beaulieu Boat Jumble in the morning Sunday 25th .Another early start leaving Portsmouth at 05:00 am.