Cry Havoc!

 "And Let Slip The Dogs Of War"

Yes yes yes, it's a quote from Shakespeare, the most over-rated hack in history and one whom countless O Level and A Level students - not sure what the qualifications are nowadays - hated to their very bones, including Your Humble Scribe.  "MacBeth" for O Level, and "King Lear" and "Measure For Measure" at A Level, and you can tell how much I loathed them because they don't get the Taupe Bold Highlight that normal media titles do.  Art!

     Whilst Ol' Fred was researching his novel, he seems to have possibly drifted into a real coup d'etat, which was directed at Equatorial Guinea, as the Spanish authorities arrested several mercenaries in 1973 who were plotting a military strike as in the novel.  Even stranger, there really was a coup in EG in 1979, where the left-wing dictator was ousted and executed by his nephew, who promptly took over.  Ol' Fred may have been either prescient or involved.

     ANYWAY I need to go stir the stew.  Allow me -

     Back again.

     'Havoc' - inevitably Your Humble Scribe wondered where this word came from as he stood at the bus stop in Royton - bus stop waits inevitably lead to protracted musings - because it really doesn't look to have English roots.  So!  Art?

Cook's give it minus three stars

     My Collins Concise has it that 'Havoc' is an English derivation of the Old French  'Havot', which meant 'To pillage' and has probable Germanic roots <mutters darkly about Teutons and pillaging> so one of those rare words not associated with Latin <hack> or Greek <hack hack>.

     Of course we're not done here, because when the BBC was filming it's premier dramamentary "Doctor Who" back in the Seventies, they needed to represent the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce soldiers, you know, those gallant chaps in khaki who held the line against alien invaders whilst dying by the dozens.  Art!

The Brigadier - a dab hand with a Bertie Browning

     The stunt work for this season was performed by HAVOC, whom could reliably provide extras and occasional featured actors who knew which end of a rifle the bullets came out of, how to salute, march and Die In Noble Fashion.  You should check out some of the end credits for these seasons and sessions and see where HAVOC gets a credit.

     Are we done here?  I think we are.

"Make fun of my beanie.  I dare you."

How Very Astute

You will have read yesteryon about how HMS Conqueror managed to outright steal a Sinister towed passive-array sonar system without the Sinisters being any the wiser.  That was the old 'Churchill' class Royal Navy submarine.

     Short note to incipient dictators eager to storm the shores of This Sceptred Isle: we have always been an island, we understand this and thus have a small yet potent marine military that goes by the name "Royal Navy".  Art!

     This is an "Astute" class nuclear-powered RN submarine.  Please note the concealment of it's propellers, because this would wound the Ruffians and make them feel inferior.  Par for the course!

     The thing is, an 'Astute' class submarine can allegedly listen to the sonar registry of marine traffic in New York, whilst comfortably sitting in the English Channel.  Nobody is going to explain HOW this is done, just that it IS.  I think the Ruffians have to regard this with a touch of both awe and hate.  Chin chin!

"Ibis"

This is one of the rare occasions where First Bus manage to generate blog content WITHOUT failing to keep to a timetable.  I know, incredible but it does happen!

     You see, when one activates a First Bus e-ticket, a four-letter word comes up as verification, because there must be people out there who hate HATE HATE First Bus so much that they are willing to spoof them and this verification process is necessary.  Spoof, diligent anarchists -

     Well, today's codeword was "IBIS" and that naturally led to a bit of pondering on Your Humble Scribe's behalf.  Art!

A Ibis

     These critters have a history associated with Hom. Sap. that goes back at least four thousand years, so you might expect that their descendants had managed public service transport.  Or, in the case of First Bus, that they were at least on the next stage.

Back To The Desert, Pilgrims

Okay, so The Doctor has warned the British garrison at Mersa Martuba that the worst is yet to come, and that they'll not be facing Italian weaponry but rather an alien assault.  As if they'd pay attention!

‘Trans-mat indeed!  I know what happened to our missing soldiers.  And the workers at Makan Al-Jinni, if it comes to that.  All those monstrous things leave behind them are a bundle of dry tissues, and the wind would soon disperse or conceal them.  No trace of anyone remaining after a few minutes.’

The Doctor conceded the point with a languid wave of the arm.

‘Yes, I happened to be theorising without sufficient data,’ he admitted, ‘But my point about that plinth being a trans-mat is still correct.’   He gave a rueful grin, then straightened up suddenly.  ‘D’you suppose Professor Templeman is still alive and whole?’

Captain Dobie looked startled.

‘Good Lord, you know, I’d forgotten all about the interfering old duffer.  Someone ought to go and see.’

All eyes turned upon the Doctor.

‘We’re going to be struggling here, with nine men less and all the work still to be done,’ explained Captain Dobie.

‘Ah.  Well, I suppose I do rather fit the bill.’

Privately, the Doctor wanted to get over to the dig and see what had transpired there, and he wanted to do it without risking anyone else’s life.  Those glass vehicles would also bear examination.  Clearly their construction out of silicon dioxide meant that they’d been built using what was available locally.  Then there had been the peculiar blue nimbus of light that played around the circular antennae arrays every time the machines killed a man.  What was the purpose of that? 

     "The Sea Of Sand" part umpteen, thank you for not protesting about it, which means we have lots and lots yet to come!

 "Barriers"

And we return to the BBC's themed photography competition, where Your Humble Scribe has no idea what's next.  Yes you have to believe me, I have an honest face.  Art!

Courtesy Essam Higazi

     These giant concrete tetrahedrons are arrayed along the Egyptian shoreline at Alexandria, where their purpose is to prevent the sea from degrading or destroying the local beaches.  Not so much a barrier as a breakwater, one designed to stop the steal, if you understand.  Conrad notes that whatever orientation they had when dropped or deployed, they inevitably have a face upward.

Finally -

After the item above, Conrad was inspired to look up 'caltrops', which were articles used by infantry to render cavalry a whole lot less impetuousness.  Art!

     Whichever way they fell, a point would be pointing vertically, which meant any horse trotting over one of these metal minefields was at risk of a big sharp pointy stick through the hoof.  Conrad is no horseman but imagines this would HURT A LOT.  Not only that, it would alert anyone within half a mile thanks to shrieking horse.