I've been trawling through some old photos.
I've been trawling through some old photos. This is my mother, Winifred, when young, sitting on a motorbike. She couldn't drive so I think it must have belonged to my Uncle Wilfred, one of her brothers. Note they, and brother Alfred, had 'Fred' in their names. as my granddad was called Frederick.
Thex Dar I don't have a middle name! Interesting though (at least for me) is that both my grandfathers were called Frederick William and both of my great-grandfathers were called John.
ReplyDeleteI don't know much about old motorbikes, but I presumed it was a BSA (Bits Stuck Anywhere) as my Uncle used to say.
Mike Perry - You know, I can see the resemblance between you and your mother.
ReplyDeleteI think we did this before, but I cannot see a motorcycle of that vintage without thinking of the demise of poor T.E. Lawrence. Didn't you mention once that you've been to the church where he's buried?
When I was naughty it was just a stronger emphasis on Michael. Up until I was about 25 I was always called Mick by my friends but it changed to Mike after I moved away from my home town. My wife calls me Michael (mostly!) but most other people call me Mike or, for some reason recently, Mickey.
ReplyDeleteMike Martin Have you ever heard of the "Brough Superior" motorbike ?
ReplyDeleteWikipedia says that they were the "Rolls Royce" of the motorbykes.
I also read that T.E. Lawrence owned 7 of those beauties. It was riding on one of them that he killed himself...
LT
Laurent TRUILLET - Yes, I've heard of that brand. Unlike Triumph, they never got into the US market. I think I've seen a picture of Lawrence astride a Brough. I wonder if they're still in production, though?
ReplyDeleteMike Martin You are right. It was an Englishman who was fan of the Broughs.
ReplyDeleteWiki says that the production ceased in 1940.
Only 2000 were made.
LT
Cool photo Mike. :-) I would love to have a photo of my mother on a bike..:-)..that looks like a Triumph to me. :-)
ReplyDeleteThex Dar Ha ha - no, we don't get that commercial over here.
ReplyDeleteMike Martin That's right. I also, by chance, went into a small church in Dorset and there was Lawrence's statue. The St Martin's church warden said, "The effigy [of Lawrence] was actually made for St Paul’s Cathedral in London. I think the political unrest surrounding his death meant that they wouldn't accept him. He was then offered to Westminster Abbey and they wouldn't accept him. Then he was offered to Salisbury Cathedral and they wouldn't accept him. That's why he came to St Martin's. They had to put him somewhere."
ReplyDeleteMatthew Woodall It could well be a triumph - I don't know for sure.
ReplyDeleteMike Perry Would you like for us to come up with a middle name for you??? I thought your middle name might have been "Coincidence"! :-) It has a nice ring to it!
ReplyDeletePretty sure that's an old British Triumph motorcycle, like the kind my grandfather used to race at Daytona back in the 1930's and 40's, just before WWII.
ReplyDeleteGreat photo Mike! I like the use of the Fred name. Instead of placing a Frederick II on one son, divide the attention...a very nice way to go about it:)
ReplyDeleteAnn Kennedy When I went to school I was always disappointed that I didn't have a middle name like my friends - and sometimes I did make up names I'd like to have. Not sure about Coincidence though - but, why not, if there's a name like Experience! I often think about how we are all here by coincidence.
ReplyDeleteJeff Imes Thank you, the photo would have been taken in the 30s so you are very possibly right.
ReplyDeletePam WhimsicalVintage The only problem was that they had two more children and ran out of Fred names! I never like this Frederick II idea - we are all individuals not replicas. Leave that to the KIngs and Queens.
ReplyDeleteMike Perry Are we talking about middle names ?
ReplyDeleteIn Belgium, there are no middle names, but you may have several first names. For instance, my full name is "Laurent Joseph André Pierre Truillet" (that makes 5 !).
Explanation :
In was common practice (forgotten nowadays) to give "Joseph" as the second name to the first born boy of a family. For an elder or eldest girl, it was "Marie".
André is my father's first name,
Pierre is my stepfather's first name.
Mike Perry I agree and it seems to have lost some steam in the past 20 years. My father was actually a Frederick III...but not a king:)
ReplyDeletePam WhimsicalVintage I think it was more an American thing (other than for our Kings & Queens). Don't really come across II's etc over here.
ReplyDeleteLaurent TRUILLET Interesting. When you say you have many first names does that mean you would have been called by these in conversation i.e. do people call you Laurent Joseph or just Laurent?
ReplyDeleteMike Perry No ! You would only be called by your first Christian name. But the complete set is compulsory on official documents such as identity cards, passports, even driving licenses...
ReplyDeleteWhat I prefer is the International Spelling Code.! I would like to be called "Lima Tango" !
I had a secretary who would have been called Foxtrott Juliet. Very nice because it fitted her very well ! But it doesn't work out well for everybody
LT
Laurent TRUILLET That is really similar to what we call our middle names, though some people do have more than one. They serve no real purpose, other than on all official documents.
ReplyDeleteWe used to always call our first name our Christian name when I was at school but nowadays it has to be called a first name. The middle names, however many, are those between our first name and our surname.
Mike Perry Another problem is that some persons are called by a name they don't have.When I was active, there was a lady named Jacqueline, but everyboduy called her Veronique. As I was on the management side and worked with the official lists, I called her Jacqueline, but nobody knew whom I was talking about !
ReplyDeleteAnd of course, everybody knows about "A Boy Named Sue" !
LT
Laurent TRUILLET This can be a problem. My own father was John Arthur Perry - but everyone called him Arthur! Same with his brother, Frank Sidney Perry - people called him Sidney or Sid, It can get confusing!
ReplyDeleteMike Perry As a conclusion to this endless topic, let me mention this curiosity :
ReplyDeleteI know a man called Xavier Lecloux. Until here, nothing special !
But this man is the 7th generation of male descendants all called Xavier !
And that's not all ! This man has a son, and I shall not tell you his name because you know it already !
LT
Mike Perry Interesting on the II and III thing, I guess we felt the need to bring a little royalty over with us!
ReplyDeleteI missed where you said that you don't have a middle name - I am also a member of that club:) My parents fought for 7 days after I was born to figure out a first name and by that time, they threw in the towel on a middle name. When I was about 20 my dad said, "Oh by the way, you now have the middle initial "N""...Really...well a) thanks for letting me know:) and b) does it stand for anything?. He said, "No but after filling out so many forms and putting n/a (for not applicable) your government documents now show an "N" as your middle name." So thoughtful my dad:)
After a few years it stopped showing up and I was back to the no middle name/initial club. I've met only one or two people without a middle name.
Ann Kennedy can I borrow, "Lack of Experience", it's a little wordy but it does have a ring to it:)
Pam WhimsicalVintage I didn't get a middle name because no agreement could be reached by my parents and also my grandparents. They all wanted something different, My mother was convinced she was going to have a girl and the only names she had ready was Heather Rosemary, Fortunately she didn't force this on me!
ReplyDeletelol Mike Perry , although it is very pretty...and smells lovely:)
ReplyDeleteVery funny Thex Dar ! Now it will be in my head all day!
ReplyDeleteThex Dar "My name is Heather, how do you do" - no it just wouldn't have worked, it doesn't rhyme with do or Sue. :-)
ReplyDeleteThex Dar I was an only child so a brother (or/and a sister) sounds okay to me. I used to blame things on my soft toys, but my mother never believed me for some reason!
ReplyDeleteThex Dar Thanks Bro ... It's nearly 9 pm here ... my wife has been visiting an old lady and will be back very soon. So, like you. I have to cover my tracks and make sure all is ship-shape! That's the end of my computing for today.
ReplyDelete