Did you know Queen Mary had a strong German accent? I didn’t, and neither apparently did the throng of Clydesiders who turned up to see her launch the Cunard liner named after her in 1934 and were somewhat surprised to hear her speak.
Queen Victoria, whose first language was German, never fully mastered English either, according to Orkney-based writer, Jim Hewitson.
He describes his latest book as an absurd A-Z of the unlikely and the downright daft.
In one yarn he tells how accents caused problems in Orkney during the 70s when a teacher thought she heard a pupil asking what was the French word for cheeses to which she replied, Les Fromages. Later she found these words written on the side of a crib used in a Nativity scene.
Other fun facts reveal that Clint Eastwood, star of numerous ‘spaghetti’ westerns is allergic to horses; Scots singer Marti Pellow was born in a Clydebank toilet while Mel Blanc, who provided the voice for the cartoon character Bugs Bunny, was allergic to carrots.
Throw into this mixture a dollop of old jokes and one-liners such as Tommy Cooper’s classic: “My friend drowned in a bowl of museli – he was pulled in by a strong currant” and you have a book that will keep you entertained for hours.
For more than 50 years, Jim collected and jotted down anecdotes, diverse news stories, unlikely obsessions and fun facts which, combined, make for an entertaining read, and a good source of material for those looking to impress others with a few fun facts.
The book can be bought direct from the author (e-mail: sonofhewitj@aol.com) for the cover price of £12 – no charge for postage. Income from sales go to Book Aid International which provides thousands of books annually for libraries and schools in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Published by The Accidental Wordsmith
