Cambridge District Scout Archive
These references are not in any way unusual or unique to the Evercircular letters but that they are here quoted from the original source and at the time.
Period references
- ITMA Radio show – It’s that man again
- Dear Playmate /8/1941 Hello Playmates – an Arthur Askey catchphrase
- ‘as Harry Tate would have it’ 5/10/1941 (Such is the lot of a common soldier…) Comedian, but the direct reference here is unknown to me
- Brains Trust The Brains Trust was a BBC radio programme during the 1940s on which a panel of experts tried to answer questions sent in by the audience
- Hi Gang with ‘Bebe Daniels and Ben Lyons’
- Narkovians/ Narkover – from Beachcomber as mistaken for Narvikians
Military Terms and Slang
- Civvy Street Life not in the Forces
- Civvies Non military uniform
- Padre Military term for Chaplain
- Blue Skies and Happy Landings Aviation salutation
- Ten bob a week people Pay for lowest rank soldier
- Browned off General use In October 1941 Mervyn Thompson claims that there is no word for fed up in the army but adds the ‘p.s. strictly between ourselves I am rather tired of this war’.
- Billeted out Housed (as a member of the forces) off site in civilian digs
- On Embarkation Leave Leave given before being sent abroad
- Dodged the column To avoid a task – used here to mean did not write a piece in the EC
- Brylcreem Boys The RAF
- Glamour Girls The RAF
- Birdmen The RAF
- Re-mustered RAF term meaning posted ‘Bill C, Snowy O and Basil Moss re-mustered and we will miss their writing’.
The enemy
- Uncle Hermy (Herman Goering / Luftwaffe)
- Gerry/ Jerry ‘Gerry’ by Bill Thurbon – he used both ‘Jerry’ and ‘Gerry’, but most correspondents spelt it Jerry
JWR Archivist Sept 2019
Cambridge District Scout Archive 