- Fair at 50
- Words & Phrases Instantly Recognizable (2)
- Request for Help/Advice (6)
- In splendid news today (3)
Date: Thu, 1 May 2008 21:47:56 -0700
From: Lesley Johnson
Subject: Re: Fair at 50
Sandy Kozinn wrote:
>> Didn't Jeremy Brett star in this in one of its productions?
And Esmerelda responded:
> Not star, exactly. He played the rather secondary role of Freddy
> Eynesford-Hill in the film version. Apparently his singing was dubbed.
And Brett was quite put out that it was dubbed, as he was a a pretty
fair singer himself, having shone since boyhood in his church choir.
Lesley, aka the politician, the lighthouse and the trained cormorant
Member of The Stormy Petrels of B.C.
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Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 07:41:58 -0500
From: Dorothy Young
Subject: Re: Words & Phrases Instantly Recognizable
The Honourable Ronald Adair wrote,
The following was written by a giant of British literature. An American,
apparently, could call it written in "British English.
I hope no American with an ounce of a sense of self-preservation would have
called Burn's poem "British English". I'm no Burn's scholar but my
impression is that his preference for ethnic/national identification was as
a Scot. My quasi-educated guess would be that calling Burns "British" would
be tantamount to calling him "English" . . . Yikes!
{grin>
Dorothy
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 14:28:34 +0100
From: Andrew Clark
Subject: Re: Words & Phrases Instantly Recognizable
I'm not aware of a *written* form of English distinctive to Scotland as
compared to England, Wales or indeed Northern Ireland. The newspapers of the
Kingdoms of England & Scotland and the Principality of Wales are written
using the same language. This language is 'British English' - a phrase as
well-known in Britain as it is, apparently, in the US.
There are dialect words peculiar to England, Scotland, Wales and regions and
areas thereof, but these are spelt the same across Britain: eg 'haggis' is
spelt the same in London as in Glasgow.
The case is altered for spoken languages, of course.
The Neighbourly Scotch Fir
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Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 10:30:08 -0400
From: Bill Briggs
Subject: Request for Help/Advice
I have a request. In VALL, McMurdo (Edwards) goes for a train ride on
February 4, 1875. He is described as being a young man, not far from his
thirtieth year.
As a speaker of "American English" I take this to mean "he looked like he
was about thirty". My question is this: In "British English" does the
statement mean the same, or is there some more refined meaning, such as "had
to be at least thirty" or "was approaching thirty"?
Now please don't tell me it means one thing in Scotland and something else
in England.
Thanks in advance,
Matilda (from the lumber camps of Michigan)
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 17:25:20 +0100
From: Andrew Clark
Subject: Re: Request for Help/Advice
As a speaker of British English, I would say the most likely meaning of "not
far from his thirtieth year" is "was approaching thirty". However, "about
thirty" (28-32) is also a possible interpretation.
The Neighbourly Scotch Fir
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 18:38:10 +0000
From: Ben Williams
Subject: Re: Request for Help/Advice
-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: Andrew Clark
> As a speaker of British English, I would say the most likely meaning of "not
> far from his thirtieth year" is "was approaching thirty". However, "about
> thirty" (28-32) is also a possible interpretation.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I would beg to differ here, in that "about thirty (28-32)" is incompatible with "approaching
thirty," because once one reaches thirty there is no way to approach it again. Not so?
bw
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 14:42:11 -0400
From:
Subject: Re: Request for Help/Advice
I would beg to differ here, in that "about thirty (28-32)" is
incompatible with "approaching
thirty," because once one reaches thirty there is no way to approach it
again.
Not so?
_________
Not so! I know people who have been 29 for years.
De M
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 15:09:35 -0400
From: Sandy Kozinn
Subject: Re: Request for Help/Advice
>From: Andrew Clark
> > As a speaker of British English, I would say the most likely
> meaning of "not
> > far from his thirtieth year" is "was approaching thirty". However, "about
> > thirty" (28-32) is also a possible interpretation.
>^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> I would beg to differ here, in that "about thirty
> (28-32)" is incompatible with "approaching
>thirty," because once one reaches thirty there is no way to approach
>it again. Not so?
>bw
Does "not far" necessarily mean either approaching or leaving? One
might have left thirty not far behind or be almost thirty. I *might*
first assume "not far" to mean that it hadn't been long left behind,
but would accept a few years under equally as much. In general, I'd
assume it merely meant "around" thirty, unspecified and possibly,
with the information available, unspecifiable.
In other terms, a suburb might be "not far" from Heathrow, but
whether you are approaching Heathrow or leaving it depends on whether
you are starting out on a journey or ending it. Still, the suburb is
the same distance from Heathrow!
Esmerelda
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 15:10:54 -0400
From: Sandy Kozinn
Subject: Re: Request for Help/Advice
>Not so! I know people who have been 29 for years.
>De M
And you know me, and I've been 35 for years. I'm never far from it!
Esmerelda
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Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 14:25:56 -0400
From:
Subject: In splendid news today
Jon L. Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower, and Charles Foley won the Mystery
Writers of America Edgar Award for Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in
Letters in the Best Critical/Biographical category.
Well done, gentlemen, and congratulations.
De Merville
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 14:39:19 EDT
From: HOUNDS-L Owner
Subject: Re: In splendid news today
SPLENDID!!!
Murray, the Courageous Orderly
(a.k.a. Alexander Braun)
"I should have fallen into the hands of
the murderous Ghazis had it not been
for the devotion and courage shown
by Murray, my orderly..."
Date: Fri, 2 May 2008 11:51:58 -0700
From: Pat
Subject: Re: In splendid news today
Richly deserved!
The Unequalled Bag of Tigers
I need to use one of my most important investigative tools--my library card.
Det. Robert Goren
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