by Kim Newman
Beecham’s Powders
A soluble cold medicine.
Bell’s
A brand of whisky.
signing on
claiming supplementary benefit (welfare).
Job Centre
Government-run employment agency.
halves
Half-pints, for those trying to pace their drinking or save their pockets.
Sally Army
The Salvation Army, who operate a chain of charity shops.
giro
welfare cheque (or check).
Department of Health and Social Security
The DHSS, the government department concerned with health and welfare. This has now been reorganised, and the relevant initials are DSS for Department of Social Security.
DIY
Do-it-yourself; ie: home improvement handicrafts.
the guy
A representation of Guy Fawkes, ritually burned around the UK on every November 5th (‘Guy Fawkes Night’ or ‘Bonfire Night’). Fawkes was a Catholic plotter who tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament in the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ of 1605; the foiling of this scheme is celebrated with firework displays and bonfires. The practice of burning an effigy of the Pope along with the guy has been mostly discontinued, though it persists in some areas. The most elaborate, Wicker Man-style rituals associated with November 5th can be found in the Sussex town of Lewes (where burning pontiff fans can still get their yearly fix) and the Somerset town which is the model for this novel’s Sedgwater, Bridgwater. Other traditions associated with this holiday include ‘penny for the guy’ (children showing off their Guy Fawkes statues and soliciting coins) and the rhyme ‘remember, remember, the fifth of November, gunpowder treason and plot, I see no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot’. And, of course, it hasn’t. Even in these politically and religiously sensitive times, it’s as rare to find the holiday criticised for commemorating the torture and execution of a Catholic political dissident as it would be, say, to find people criticising July the 4th on the grounds that George Washington treacherously broke his oath as a serving British army officer to found a terrorist organisation. That said, there is a joke that the only person ever to enter parliament with honourable intentions was Guy Fawkes.
The Beatles’ Double White
aka: The White Album. It’s not true, apparently, that Charles Manson was a big fan; in an interview, he said he was a child of the 1940s and preferred Bing Crosby.
pissed
Drunk, not angry — in the UK ‘pissed off’ means what Americans mean by ‘pissed’.
‘Where Do You Go to My Lovely?’
Horrible Peter Sarsted hit from 1969, abused by buskers and entry-level guitar-players almost as often as ‘House of the Rising Sun’ and ‘Streets of London’.
rum and black
Rum and blackcurrant juice. Go on, try it, why don’t you?
Womble
Troll-like furry creature from the children’s TV series The Wombles. They had a couple of hit records (‘Remember You’re a Womble’, ‘Wombling White Tie and Tails’) and a feature film spin-off, Wombling Free.
http://womble.designwest.com/
slag
Slut, girl of easy virtue.
tight
A girl who refuses to have sex.
Three-piece suites
A sofa and two armchairs; in the 1970s, probably with an eye-abusing orange-yellow pattern fabric cover.
‘Kites’, by Simon Dupree and the Big Sound
A hit in 1967, memorable for the Japanese-language spoken word section.
UB40s
The flimsy card document presented at the DHSS by claimants for Unemployment or Supplementary Benefit. The band UB40 took their name from the thing.
petrol station
Gas station, garage.
Alan Moore
British comics writer: Watchman, From Hell, etc.
Frank Miller Jr
US comics writer-artist: Daredevil, The Dark Knight Returns, etc
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
Co-creators of many Marvel Comics characters in the early 1960s.
new Robin
Dick Grayson grew up and became Nightwing, so Batman took on a new Robin, street kid Jason Todd. The character was disliked by many fans and killed off by the Joker after a mildly distasteful phone-poll as to whether he should live or die. DC later brought in yet another new Robin, Tim Drake.
The names of all the Tracy Brothers
From Thunderbirds. Scott, Virgil, Alan, Gordon and John.
Hector’s House
Children’s TV show. Hector was a dog. Originally a French production, entitled La Maison de Tu Tu, it was dubbed into English by, among others, Joanna Lumley.
Play School
Children’s TV show: http://www.televisionheaven.co.uk/kids3.htm#play
going ‘through the round window’.
A catch-phrase from Play School.
the three-day week
An emergency measure taken during the oil crisis of 1972-3; it didn’t mean shortening the calendar week, but the working week.
The Ulster troubles
From 1969 on, friction between the Catholic and Protestant communities in Northern Ireland, terrorist campaigns on behalf of both factions, and the deployment of troops on the streets of Belfast.
a mivvi and a sky ray lolly
Types of popsicle.
blue bags of salt
Smith’s Crisps (potato chips in the US) used to be sold unsalted, and you had to shake salt into them from a little blue bag.
Mud
Early 1970s British chart band, yobbish glam in character. Hits: ‘Tiger Feet’, ‘The Cat Crept In’
The Osmonds
Mormon boy-band of the early 1970s. UK hit: ‘Crazy Horses’.
Top of the Pops compilations
Not related to the BBC chart music show, but LP collections of soundalike cover versions of recent hits marketed — as specified — with smiling pin-up girls in weird outfits on the sleeve. If you want to see what they look like, check out http://www.geocities.com/crappopmaster/index.html
dolly mixture
Licorice-based sweets (candies) which came in several varieties. Order them online at http://www.aquarterof.co.uk/acatalog/Dolly_Mixtures.html
Aurora glow-in-the-dark monster models
Known as ‘hobby kits’ in America, these representations of the classic Universal monsters (Dracula, the Wolf Man, etc) mixed with odder characters (the Witch, the Forgotten Prisoner) were commonplace in the UK in the early 1970s. ’60s editions were just plastic, but 1970s variants (‘frightening lightning strikes!’) had luminous heads, hands and accessories.
http://home.cshore.com/bucwheat/aurora.htm
Dinky toys
Model cars and other vehicles: http://members.xoom.virgilio.it/hectorluis/indice.htm
Aston-Martin
One of the most popular toys of the 1960s, but the gun-pointing minion who could be ejected from the car at a flick of a switch did tend to get lost over the years. Here’s an article just about the toy: http://www.ajb007.co.uk/articles/007/amdb5
Campaign
A 1970s strategy-based board game with a Napoleonic theme.
http://members.aol.com/wergames/myhomepage/campaign.jpg
Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph, a conservative (and Conservative) broadsheet newspaper.
Nescafé
A brand of instant coffee. (Sold in the U.S. as Taster’s Choice -Ed.)
Dave Tamlyn’s chunder-up record
Chunder or chunder-up, UK slang = to vomit. Dave Tamlyn is now a book-seller in London; his record was actually set at my 21st birthday party, a few years after this scene is set. It remains unbroken.
Snowdonia
Mountainous region in Wales.
smart
In the UK, ‘smart’ means well-dressed, dapper or stylish as opposed. The US ‘smart’ translates as ‘clever’ or (in the sense of smar
t-mouth) ‘cheeky’.
Social Democrat
Breakaway faction formed by right-leaning members of the Labour Party; later amalgamated with the Liberal party to become the Liberal Democrats.
a flutter
A one-off bet, undertaken with little hope of profit just to enjoy a rooting interest in a horse-race or any other event.
The Grand national
A major horse-race.
scrumpy
A rough, strong cider, associated with Somerset.
‘See My Baby Jive’
A 1973 hit for Wizzard.
http://martinkinch.members.beeb.net/jive.html
‘sharing a stick of gum’
This expression comes from a MAD Magazine joke.
Sutton Mallet turn-off
For a good reason not to take this, see The Quorum.
Tipp-ex
A brand of typewriter correction fluid or liquid paper. Now obsolete.
‘Nights in White Satin’
A 1967 hit for the Moody Blues.
bonnet
Hood. The boot is the trunk.
Pazuzu
The Assyrian wind demon in The Exorcist.
Nellie the Elephant
A children’s song from the 1950s, recorded by Mandy Miller
http://www.g8aso.radiouk.com/
‘I Am an Antichrist’
First line of ‘Anarchy in the UK’ by the Sex Pistols
Uncle Mac and Junior Choice
Uncle Mac (Derek McCullogh) was the host of the children’s radio request program Junior Choice, a BBC institution for decades. Many of the staples of his playlist are available on the Hello Children, Everywhere CD compilations.
‘Three Wheels on My Wagon”
A novelty record by the New Christy Minstrels.
http://lyricsplayground.com/alpha/songs/t/threewheelsonmywagon.html
‘How Much is That Doggy in the Window?’
‘Ruff-Ruff, the one with the waggly tail.’ A much-covered children’s song, the Junior Choice favourite version was by Lita Roza.
‘She Loves You, Yeh Yeh Yeh’
by The Beatles, who were a popular beat combo of the 1960s, m’lud.
‘Satisfaction’
by the Rolling Stones. GIs in Vietnam swore Aretha Franklin’s version was the superior.
‘I’m not in Love’
by 10cc; maudlin pop hit, often played at the end of school discos in the 1970s.
‘Hi-Ho Silver Lining’
by Jeff Beck. The 1970s DJ trick was to turn the sound off for the chorus and have the dancers raucously fill in. Don’t you wish you could travel back in time with an Uzi?
braces
Suspenders; in the UK in the 1980s, a badge of stock-trading heartless yuppiedom.
BUPA
A private health insurance firm, like an American HMO; the impression given by their adverts is that BUPA hospitals and doctors are far more efficient, luxurious and personal than the National Health.
http://www.bupa.co.uk/
Pepe le Pew
Ze cartoon skunk formidable. http://www.dragg.net/users/pennywitt/pepe/pepe.htm
a V sign
A reverse ‘V for victory’ sign, the two-fingered fuck off salute, equivalent to the American single finger.
‘Love is ...’
First syndicated in 1970, these little singleton cartoons by Kim Casali — more recently, by the creator’s son Stefano — depict a strangely naked child-adult couple, with the sentence completed by some example of everyday devotion and cuteness. See: http://www.comicspage.com/loveis/
Keith Marion, manager
Vanda is thinking of ‘A. Wilson, Manager’, a poignant episode of the classic UK sit-com Dad’s Army.
Michael Moorcock paperbacks
Even then, the Moorcock back catalogue was extensive. A selection of the great 1970s cover images is found at http://www.eclipse.co.uk/sweetdespise/moorcock/bib/novels/
a map of Middle Earth
The first drip of an eventual merchandising tidal wave, this modest one-sheet cleared the way for posters, t-shirts, action figures, mugs, tattoo transfers, lunchboxes, etc.
Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers
Underground comix characters lampooning hippies; much-loved by same. Created by Gilbert Shelton. See: http://www.freaknet.org.uk
Rizla
A brand of cigarette papers for roll-your-own enthusiasts. The cardboard packets they come in are more often torn up and used as roach-filters than any other commodity on the planet.
Thunderbird 2
Large green, vaguely maternal Thunderbird, piloted by Virgil Tracy. Models of it have pods which are useful for hiding things in.
http://www.geocities.com/johntracytb5/thunderbird2.html
‘Calling International Rescue’
Catch-phrase from the Gerry Anderson show, Thunderbirds.
Drongo
Australian slang: idiot.
Light the blue touch paper and retire
The instruction printed on Standard brand fireworks. After decades of jokes at the expense of this somewhat prissily ambiguous warning, the wording has now been updated to ‘Light the blue touch paper and stand well back’.
Jubilee year
1977 was the 25th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II; in theory, it was celebrated throughout the land with patriotic street parties, but in retrospect the most memorable contributions to the event were the Sex Pistols’ ‘God Save the Queen’ and Derek Jarman’s film Jubilee. I’ve still got a Jubilee paperweight in use as a doorstop.
flannel
washcloth.
the wireless
in 1979, not yet an outmoded synonym for radio.
they call themselves the Quorum
For more on this, see The Quorum — obviously.
torch
Flashlight.
the Interregnum
1649-80; the period between the execution of Charles I and the Restoration of the Monarchy with the accession of Charles II. The English Civil War was on the A Level history syllabus in 1977.
They don’t know what waits in the shadows.
But they find out in The Quorum.
the Radio Times
The BBC’s TV and radio listings magazine; in 1977, it only carried listings for BBC channels, but deregulation means that it now — like its ITV competitor the TV Times and several other publications — carries listings for many UK terrestrial and cable-digital-satellite channels. It still publishes a double issue to cover the Christmas-New Year period.
Heather Wilde
See The Quorum, ‘Going to Series’
Jim Rockford
James Garner in the TV series The Rockford Files. Probably more responsible than anyone else for the popularisation of the telephone-answering machine, though he only ever seemed to get bad news on his. ‘Jim, this is Angel ...’
http://www.thesandbox.net/arm/rockford/
Imaginary stories
DC calls them ‘Elseworlds’ now, and Clark and Lois are married in current continuity.
Lemsip
A lemon-flavoured cold cure.
UCCA
Universities Central Council on Admissions. Instead of applying individually to multiple universities, English students in the late 1970s filled in a single form which was processed by this body.
Engaged
The American expression is "busy", at which time one gets a "busy signal".
Judi, Coral, Nina
All appear in Bad Dreams.
The Big Bang of 1986
Among the changes to the laws governing the stock market in the UK, the ‘Big Bang’ included an end to the system of fixed commission for traders, the opening up of stock exchange investments to non-members and the abolition of the Independent Certification System. The changes were a reaction to the increasing globalisation of the money market and the upshot was an influx of new investors, more cutthroat competition and a more extreme boom-and-bust economy. See: http://w
ww.mof.go.jp/english/big-bang/ebb24.htm
