Canny lass

Thanks Malcolm. I'd like to know more about this chieftain Bedla. Can't find anything on the Internet except a mushroom and an Indian clan. Does he pop up in any literature? Was he British or Scandinavian? If he was Scandinavian then the chances are strong that a genitive 's' would have been included in the place name, as in Grimsby which literally means Grim's by (by = village in Swedish or town in Norwegian). The differing practices regarding the retention of the genitive ,s' in English and the Scandinavian languages can be demonstrated more clearly with surnames. The English language removes the genitive as in Peterson, Harryson, Johnson, meaning Peter's son, Harry's son and John's son. In the Scandinavian languages the genitive 's' is retained: Petersson, Harrysson, Johnsson. I'll see what I can find out from the language faculty in Gothenburg next time I'm there. May take a while though.

I can remember another type of flat iron that wasn't heated on the hob. I think it may have been an earlier model. It was hollow but never the less heavy. There was an opening at the back end, by which you filled the iron with glowing coal, and a shutter that fell into a slot rather like the blade on a guillotine.

Nice to see you back Merlin!

Interesting to read that the place name has previously been documented with the ending –tun! I've long suspected that the Geordie dialect stems from Old Norse and, according to the oracle (Wikipedia) 'ton' is usually a corruption of 'tun', which meant farm or hamlet. The oracle is probably right as tún, in icelandic means 'a fenced in piece of land around a dwelling´ (Isländsk/Svensk Ordbok Rabén Prisma 7th edition 1994). The language of Iceland, which has developed from Old Norse, has changed very little since Viking times as they strive to keep the language pure – free from infiltration by other languages and you would be amazed at the number of words from Old Norse that have found their way into the Geordie dialect. I believe therefore that the name Bedlington may have its roots in the old Norse language. In the Scandinavian languages place names very often reflect the surrounding nature. The name of my home, to take a simple example, is Nordlid which means 'north slope', and that's exactly what it is. I live high up on a hill which slopes down towards the north. If we take the name Bedlington and break it down into syllables, the first syllable, bed-, could possibly be derived from an Icelandic word - beð, meaning a flowery meadow (the word lives on in English in flower bed). The second syllable, ling-, isn't too distant from the Icelandic word Lind, meaning Linden, the tree Tilea Europea. Try saying Bedlington quickly or the way most Bedlingtonians say it and the 'g' isn't heard at all. The g almost becomes a d –Bedlindton. The third syllable –ton is most certainly derived from tún, which, as I mentioned earlier means a fenced in piece of land around a dwelling. So Bedlington may well have started off as a solitary dwelling in a flowery meadow with Linden (lime) trees and developed into a settlement during the Viking period in Britain.

I'll pretend i haven't read that!

Who pays for the electricity Keith?

I'm afraid I can't claim to have understood the English translation any better than the original text!

Happy birthday Barton.

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Exactly like that.

... or his reindeers ?

Couldn't have put it better myself Vic! Have a very merry Xmas everybody!

Post another one Keith, just to keep us going over the Xmas.

Like the cow's tail - last as usual. Hope it was a good one.

No, it's not just you Adam. I thought the same thing.

Definitely not preggas! I can remember eating these as a toddler. You must try it. It's lovely. One large slice buttered white bread. One fried pork sausage, hot or cold, cut in half length ways and placed on half the bread. Spread a dollop of orange marmelade on the other half and fold over. Enjoy!

Singing happy Birthday as i write this! That must be one helluva party you have on the 18th Dec every year!

Does this mean we will be hearing you on the airwaves soon?

Dear God, I'm very afraid! The 21st December I'm planning a big party to celebrate being/surviving 25 years on the other side of the North Sea. If your planning any kind of big bang could you save it until midnight ... just to make the firework display a bit more exciting and keep the costs down. My old man thinks this Doomsday thing has all gone a bit too far. He says the date is right but the year is obviously wrong as he experienced Doomsday 21 December 1987. I wonder what he means by that?

Butter and sugar are a must!! Speaking of sandwich fillings, did anybody else have jam with everything? My dad took sandwhiches to work at Netherton Colliery. No matter what the filling, he put a layer of jam on it. he said it was too dry to eat otherwise. To this day my favourite sandwhich filling is fried pork sausage with Robertsons thick cut orange marmalade. Cheddar cheese and strawberry jam comes a close second!

Better late than never (I've had a trying day)! Happy birthday to you, Happy bbirthday to you, Happy birthday dear Keith, Happy birthday to you. (Sung to the tune of "Happy birthday to you") Hope it was a goodun and long may your batter-brush batter..

"The Lard Information Council". How much can a man, let alone a whole council, say about lard?

We've got 'Table 25' in the making. Filmed entirely in and around Front Street. Merc and Keith are just putting the final touches to the manuscript.

Beef for me! And didn't you just love the 'brown bits' that got caught up in the dripping and that lovely layer of jelly that collected under the dripping when it got cold.

I'm addicted!!