France’s planned atomic and fusion powered revolution
Atomic and Fusion?????
Is the Atomic legacy?
Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
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Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Yes, that is the exact meaning of that part. France has operated atomic power plants since the late 1950s and built them up to 1971.
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Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
March 1976 Notes
- The Chinese H-8 is rather different from either version from @, being a bigger beast. The analysts who say that this is a deliberate flashing to send some sort of message do have some substance to their view
- The update of US bomber development does show that there has been less of a decline in numbers, albeit from a higher initial base, as well as a broad basis of several types of bomber (penetrator, missile carrier, pathfinder/strategic recce and a fair few mediums for secondary and tertiary theatres)
- Generally speaking, the Democratic nomination is RFK's to lose
- The French wine riots are historical, albeit with those ones motivated by Italian and Spanish wine imports; the inclusion of English wine is an indicator of different climes and cultural developments. The nuclear programme will reduce energy costs markedly, in time, with France going for fusion power in a big way
- We see a few new members on the Politburo, with Korolev the rocket scientist being recognisable, along with Gerasimov (KGB Chair in The Cardinal of the Kremlin), Kissoff (Soviet premier in Dr. Strangelove), Mikhail Sergetov (Minister of Energy and Petroleum in RSR) and a little mystery chap named Ilyanov. The return of the (Very) Old Bolsheviks is a sign of Sergeyev adopting an 'interesting' approach
- Australia is having a very good and stable 1970s, and Bob Hawke coming to power during the height of the Cold War makes for some interestingly different defence policies, on top of a different economy driving differing welfare policies
- Anton Innauer's jump is historical, albeit a bit longer, but that referenced by the slightly sozzled judge is a little Easter Egg about James Bond's ski jump (replete with Union Jack parachute) from The Spy Who Loved Me
- Beirut is getting saturated in troops, which, in the absence of distinct external players from the east and the lack of a full blown civil war, yet, is having more of a 1958 impact vs 1983
- The Chinese meteor shower takes a historical event, rinses it through a bit of The Andromeda Strain as a distractor, and suggests something a bit more benign
- The British budget, far from calling for £3000 million in cuts, is primed to stuff the electorate's mouth, pockets and shoes with gold ahead of a very tight General Election, along with seeding the defence and space budgets with more money. Heck, even the idea of increasing particular budget areas is a very strong difference. As the Imperial Sovereign Fund continues to grow, Pensions will be effectively funded 'off Budget', and Welfare is both directed in different areas and benefits from dramatically lower unemployment
- Many in the Philippines hope that the discovery of oil will both improve their fortunes and get others to pay attention to them
- The reconfigured Maunsell Forts are a very small tactical indicator of conventional defences being *improved* compared to steadily run down. Sticking a Floating Fortress in the middle of the North Sea would have some consequences beyond defence concerns
- The US cricket side wins in a thriller over New Zealand, but their real challenge will come in the northern summer, right in the midst of the big celebrations. Their major players are all fictional, with Jonny Sawyer being a descendant of Tom, and Jack Ryan being, well, familiar...
- Soviet ships mooping through the Indian Ocean is being used as an excuse to push CVV by its supporters, which turns out to be very well timed. The British are also interested in a similar medium carrier, if you can really call an 87,000t supercarrier 'medium'
- Whoever is sending the letters to the newspapers has the formula for Coke and the 12 secret herbs and spices and what they intend will play out
- Italy is heading in a different direction without any internal strife and the abrupt end to the 1960s good times. The offhand mention of Libyan oil as well as Southern Italian fields does hint at a bigger Italian role in their former colony in the absence of a particular coup
- The USAF attack bomber update is full of detail, with the little bits of humour from the RAF and RCAF liaison officers acting to split it up; 'Must Replace Canberra Again' is followed by some tantalising glimpses of what will become the Gripen and Rafale, an air superiority/fighter interceptor version of the Tornado and something that became the EFA in our time
- Kentucky's ratification of the 13th was historical, but their governor is the son of Colonel Sanders, who died as a young boy historically; Frankfort being written Frankford reflects its original name
- The Easter Egg mention of David Cloister in Fiji acts to distract the reader from the real bit of news, whereby there is a bit more British migration to Fiji and other parts of the South Pacific
- Tensions continue to mount steadily in the Congo
- March 21st is packed. Charlie's Angels include Officer Clara Pilsky from Hill Street Blues, with Charlie's 'idea' coming from John Steed of The Avengers and Colonel Chestbridge of Danger 5, Kung Fury coming from the film of the same name and the actual cops from Dragnet. Having tomahawk steaks turn out to be an evil scam is a bit of my own criticism of that modern culinary trend
- There has been a spike in the birth rate, and if this continues, at cost, then it will start to have a downstream effect. It is juxtaposed with the steady but small scale success of the voluntary repatriation programme, which at this point works out to an annualised rate of ~ 6000
- The final flight of the yakuza porn star kamikaze pilot ends slightly differently
- Replacement of the Leopard (which is rather different from the lightly armoured MBT of @) is starting a bit later, but the Leopard itself is a late 1960s tank here to boot. The postulated production level of 200/month vs 32-35/month for the Leopard 1 in the 1960s reflects the sheer scale of Western tank production, modelled on roughly twice the peak US level of 1957 of 900 M48s; the limits of American tank manufacturing capacity in the 'High Cold War' in particular, and to some extent German, were more financial than absolutely physical in some respects
- Indian naval plans are expansive and will lead to some interesting developments
- Bethesda Station is a reference to Fallout 3, with Mr. T. Howard being fairly much a giveaway
- Nadia Comaneci foreshadows her performance at the Olympics, whilst some sort of sword fight or suicide goes on in the parking basement; there can only be one real explanation
- The intrepid Polish solo yachtswoman gets passed by a rather large (by our standards) RN fleet of 2 carriers, 2 battleships, 5 cruisers and 26 destroyers heading to the Falklands for a wee little exercise; by DE RN standards, it is a squadron
- A completely different Oscars, with Shaw being a good winner for Best Supporting Actor, whilst Schwarzenegger is particularly exuberant when receiving Best Actor
- The West End Gang has a criminal past, but no criminal future
- A new WW2 television series debuts, based on Churchill's books. It does cover a lot of the ground that The World At War did, but so did many other subsequent WW2 documentaries. Note that Monty appears as a little mini Easter Egg to him not passing away earlier in the month
- The Chinese H-8 is rather different from either version from @, being a bigger beast. The analysts who say that this is a deliberate flashing to send some sort of message do have some substance to their view
- The update of US bomber development does show that there has been less of a decline in numbers, albeit from a higher initial base, as well as a broad basis of several types of bomber (penetrator, missile carrier, pathfinder/strategic recce and a fair few mediums for secondary and tertiary theatres)
- Generally speaking, the Democratic nomination is RFK's to lose
- The French wine riots are historical, albeit with those ones motivated by Italian and Spanish wine imports; the inclusion of English wine is an indicator of different climes and cultural developments. The nuclear programme will reduce energy costs markedly, in time, with France going for fusion power in a big way
- We see a few new members on the Politburo, with Korolev the rocket scientist being recognisable, along with Gerasimov (KGB Chair in The Cardinal of the Kremlin), Kissoff (Soviet premier in Dr. Strangelove), Mikhail Sergetov (Minister of Energy and Petroleum in RSR) and a little mystery chap named Ilyanov. The return of the (Very) Old Bolsheviks is a sign of Sergeyev adopting an 'interesting' approach
- Australia is having a very good and stable 1970s, and Bob Hawke coming to power during the height of the Cold War makes for some interestingly different defence policies, on top of a different economy driving differing welfare policies
- Anton Innauer's jump is historical, albeit a bit longer, but that referenced by the slightly sozzled judge is a little Easter Egg about James Bond's ski jump (replete with Union Jack parachute) from The Spy Who Loved Me
- Beirut is getting saturated in troops, which, in the absence of distinct external players from the east and the lack of a full blown civil war, yet, is having more of a 1958 impact vs 1983
- The Chinese meteor shower takes a historical event, rinses it through a bit of The Andromeda Strain as a distractor, and suggests something a bit more benign
- The British budget, far from calling for £3000 million in cuts, is primed to stuff the electorate's mouth, pockets and shoes with gold ahead of a very tight General Election, along with seeding the defence and space budgets with more money. Heck, even the idea of increasing particular budget areas is a very strong difference. As the Imperial Sovereign Fund continues to grow, Pensions will be effectively funded 'off Budget', and Welfare is both directed in different areas and benefits from dramatically lower unemployment
- Many in the Philippines hope that the discovery of oil will both improve their fortunes and get others to pay attention to them
- The reconfigured Maunsell Forts are a very small tactical indicator of conventional defences being *improved* compared to steadily run down. Sticking a Floating Fortress in the middle of the North Sea would have some consequences beyond defence concerns
- The US cricket side wins in a thriller over New Zealand, but their real challenge will come in the northern summer, right in the midst of the big celebrations. Their major players are all fictional, with Jonny Sawyer being a descendant of Tom, and Jack Ryan being, well, familiar...
- Soviet ships mooping through the Indian Ocean is being used as an excuse to push CVV by its supporters, which turns out to be very well timed. The British are also interested in a similar medium carrier, if you can really call an 87,000t supercarrier 'medium'
- Whoever is sending the letters to the newspapers has the formula for Coke and the 12 secret herbs and spices and what they intend will play out
- Italy is heading in a different direction without any internal strife and the abrupt end to the 1960s good times. The offhand mention of Libyan oil as well as Southern Italian fields does hint at a bigger Italian role in their former colony in the absence of a particular coup
- The USAF attack bomber update is full of detail, with the little bits of humour from the RAF and RCAF liaison officers acting to split it up; 'Must Replace Canberra Again' is followed by some tantalising glimpses of what will become the Gripen and Rafale, an air superiority/fighter interceptor version of the Tornado and something that became the EFA in our time
- Kentucky's ratification of the 13th was historical, but their governor is the son of Colonel Sanders, who died as a young boy historically; Frankfort being written Frankford reflects its original name
- The Easter Egg mention of David Cloister in Fiji acts to distract the reader from the real bit of news, whereby there is a bit more British migration to Fiji and other parts of the South Pacific
- Tensions continue to mount steadily in the Congo
- March 21st is packed. Charlie's Angels include Officer Clara Pilsky from Hill Street Blues, with Charlie's 'idea' coming from John Steed of The Avengers and Colonel Chestbridge of Danger 5, Kung Fury coming from the film of the same name and the actual cops from Dragnet. Having tomahawk steaks turn out to be an evil scam is a bit of my own criticism of that modern culinary trend
- There has been a spike in the birth rate, and if this continues, at cost, then it will start to have a downstream effect. It is juxtaposed with the steady but small scale success of the voluntary repatriation programme, which at this point works out to an annualised rate of ~ 6000
- The final flight of the yakuza porn star kamikaze pilot ends slightly differently
- Replacement of the Leopard (which is rather different from the lightly armoured MBT of @) is starting a bit later, but the Leopard itself is a late 1960s tank here to boot. The postulated production level of 200/month vs 32-35/month for the Leopard 1 in the 1960s reflects the sheer scale of Western tank production, modelled on roughly twice the peak US level of 1957 of 900 M48s; the limits of American tank manufacturing capacity in the 'High Cold War' in particular, and to some extent German, were more financial than absolutely physical in some respects
- Indian naval plans are expansive and will lead to some interesting developments
- Bethesda Station is a reference to Fallout 3, with Mr. T. Howard being fairly much a giveaway
- Nadia Comaneci foreshadows her performance at the Olympics, whilst some sort of sword fight or suicide goes on in the parking basement; there can only be one real explanation
- The intrepid Polish solo yachtswoman gets passed by a rather large (by our standards) RN fleet of 2 carriers, 2 battleships, 5 cruisers and 26 destroyers heading to the Falklands for a wee little exercise; by DE RN standards, it is a squadron
- A completely different Oscars, with Shaw being a good winner for Best Supporting Actor, whilst Schwarzenegger is particularly exuberant when receiving Best Actor
- The West End Gang has a criminal past, but no criminal future
- A new WW2 television series debuts, based on Churchill's books. It does cover a lot of the ground that The World At War did, but so did many other subsequent WW2 documentaries. Note that Monty appears as a little mini Easter Egg to him not passing away earlier in the month
-
Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Coming in April:
- Patrick Moore alerts the world to the Jovian-Plutonian gravitational effect
- Something very odd begins in Paraguay
- Defections, arrests and spy games
- Rival vegetable crazes lead to corny arguments about giving peas a chance
- Selection of a new chief executioner in Britain
- Debut of a nature documentary presented by David Attenborough on The World Around Us, with the first episode showing the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica, the Mexican staring frog, the owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit
- A mass escape of apes in Ohio has a twist
- Italy tests its first land based long range ballistic missile
- The Australian Cricket Board signs a new broadcast agreement with a wealthy Australian media owner
- Discovery of the Casco de Leiro in Spain and the Gilling Sword in England
- A breakthrough in strategic arms talks, whilst the War Office lays out options for growth of the British Army
- A hockey fight establishes a further precedent
- Opening of Windows on the World
- India attempts to implement family planning restrictions
- First sighting of the Cornish Owlman
- An armed robbery in Melbourne goes awry due to the intervention of two holidaying Flying Squad detectives
- Gore-Tex is patented
- The British general election is called
- Patrick Moore alerts the world to the Jovian-Plutonian gravitational effect
- Something very odd begins in Paraguay
- Defections, arrests and spy games
- Rival vegetable crazes lead to corny arguments about giving peas a chance
- Selection of a new chief executioner in Britain
- Debut of a nature documentary presented by David Attenborough on The World Around Us, with the first episode showing the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica, the Mexican staring frog, the owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit
- A mass escape of apes in Ohio has a twist
- Italy tests its first land based long range ballistic missile
- The Australian Cricket Board signs a new broadcast agreement with a wealthy Australian media owner
- Discovery of the Casco de Leiro in Spain and the Gilling Sword in England
- A breakthrough in strategic arms talks, whilst the War Office lays out options for growth of the British Army
- A hockey fight establishes a further precedent
- Opening of Windows on the World
- India attempts to implement family planning restrictions
- First sighting of the Cornish Owlman
- An armed robbery in Melbourne goes awry due to the intervention of two holidaying Flying Squad detectives
- Gore-Tex is patented
- The British general election is called
-
Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Back in December 2024 (in another lifetime, it seems…), I wrote a mini article on the Royal Family which can be found here:
https://tboverse.com/viewtopic.php?p=43679#p43679
1.) Recent events do merit some sort of reflection, particularly with regard to the Queen’s second son. First and foremost, there is the question posed in Planescape: Torment - “What can change the nature of a man?”
- In part, time and the times. Through living through different events, and in a different society, a boy will grow into a different sort of man. This isn’t a ‘catch all’, though, or a cop out, but just a beginning. Plenty of young boys have been right little terrors, but subsequently grow up into very good men; the right punch in the nose at the right time and place, or a chastening experience a la Ace Rimmer are typical fictional devices
- Influence can come from friends and mentors during childhood and youth, but that influence doesn’t fundamentally change someone, at least not quickly. This is one of what I’d put down as a contributing or shaping factor. Here, there will be a circle of a few rough friends, along with a smarter one, nicknamed ‘Brains’ in the fashion of Boy’s Own/The Eagle stories of the 50s, 60s and 70s, as well as an irascible mentor type playing the roles that Mountbatten and Van Der Post did for Charles
- A contemporary who is close, but different in a complementary way. Here, that would be his cousin Prince Carl Gustav of Sweden, the eldest son of Margaret. Having an effective equal, and even a slight superior in some respects, can change a boy during the pivotal period referred to in the Jesuit quote
- Purpose. Giving a young man purpose, direction or a role can curb some of his lesser instincts and promote the more noble ones. In this case, it would likely come in staying in the RN rather longer than 41, firstly in an active commission and then in the Admiralty
- A suitable mate. Finding a spouse who complements the better parts of an individual’s character, instincts and behaviour and curbs the bad is the ideal, but difficult to achieve. Certainly a different match than Sarah would be better, despite their compatibility on some levels. I was initially toying with the idea of Diana Spencer, but there was enough material there for an entire conference, to quote Fawlty Towers. Where I’m leaning at the moment is a strong woman similar in some respects to Anne, who in turn took after some of the positive aspects of her father’s character
- Experience, and particularly stressful experiences. Having a life changing event, such as going to war or sustaining a life threatening injury or having a very narrow escape from the same can quite literally change a man, sometimes for better, and sometimes for worse
- Adversity. Suffering does breed wisdom, at least in many cases, so that having something go awry early can mean that there is scope for recovery whilst there is still time
With some of these already in hand, there is a subtly different 17 year old youth about to finish school. Plans to join the RN immediately after will be interrupted by a significant injury in some form of crash caused by youthful idiocy and some character traits. Recovering from that takes 8-9 months, during which time a little change starts to occur in the form of reading and being read to. More things will happen from there.
Will there be a war to further change the man? It is possible that some sort of war occurs, but it won’t be the Falklands. It is more likely that he will get into fixed wing aviation as a fighter or attack pilot, which might not give as much time for extracurricular activities.
At the end of the day, all of these factors, and time, will result in some change.
2.) Having four additional Royal children, including twins, will change some family dynamics, with the closest historical circumstance being the kids of Victoria and Albert. With the other children of George V and their own broods - the Sussexes, the Gloucesters, the Kents and the Harewoods - The Firm will be quite a bit larger
3.) The idea of Charles being GG of Australia is one that is both being explored and criticised on different levels, as he has competing military and governmental/constitutional roles, but it isn’t an utterly impossible circle to square
4.) Edward is a little older, being a 1961 drop vs a 1964 one, and that changes some family dynamics again, and also opens up an earlier marriage, perhaps even with a certain someone
https://tboverse.com/viewtopic.php?p=43679#p43679
1.) Recent events do merit some sort of reflection, particularly with regard to the Queen’s second son. First and foremost, there is the question posed in Planescape: Torment - “What can change the nature of a man?”
- In part, time and the times. Through living through different events, and in a different society, a boy will grow into a different sort of man. This isn’t a ‘catch all’, though, or a cop out, but just a beginning. Plenty of young boys have been right little terrors, but subsequently grow up into very good men; the right punch in the nose at the right time and place, or a chastening experience a la Ace Rimmer are typical fictional devices
- Influence can come from friends and mentors during childhood and youth, but that influence doesn’t fundamentally change someone, at least not quickly. This is one of what I’d put down as a contributing or shaping factor. Here, there will be a circle of a few rough friends, along with a smarter one, nicknamed ‘Brains’ in the fashion of Boy’s Own/The Eagle stories of the 50s, 60s and 70s, as well as an irascible mentor type playing the roles that Mountbatten and Van Der Post did for Charles
- A contemporary who is close, but different in a complementary way. Here, that would be his cousin Prince Carl Gustav of Sweden, the eldest son of Margaret. Having an effective equal, and even a slight superior in some respects, can change a boy during the pivotal period referred to in the Jesuit quote
- Purpose. Giving a young man purpose, direction or a role can curb some of his lesser instincts and promote the more noble ones. In this case, it would likely come in staying in the RN rather longer than 41, firstly in an active commission and then in the Admiralty
- A suitable mate. Finding a spouse who complements the better parts of an individual’s character, instincts and behaviour and curbs the bad is the ideal, but difficult to achieve. Certainly a different match than Sarah would be better, despite their compatibility on some levels. I was initially toying with the idea of Diana Spencer, but there was enough material there for an entire conference, to quote Fawlty Towers. Where I’m leaning at the moment is a strong woman similar in some respects to Anne, who in turn took after some of the positive aspects of her father’s character
- Experience, and particularly stressful experiences. Having a life changing event, such as going to war or sustaining a life threatening injury or having a very narrow escape from the same can quite literally change a man, sometimes for better, and sometimes for worse
- Adversity. Suffering does breed wisdom, at least in many cases, so that having something go awry early can mean that there is scope for recovery whilst there is still time
With some of these already in hand, there is a subtly different 17 year old youth about to finish school. Plans to join the RN immediately after will be interrupted by a significant injury in some form of crash caused by youthful idiocy and some character traits. Recovering from that takes 8-9 months, during which time a little change starts to occur in the form of reading and being read to. More things will happen from there.
Will there be a war to further change the man? It is possible that some sort of war occurs, but it won’t be the Falklands. It is more likely that he will get into fixed wing aviation as a fighter or attack pilot, which might not give as much time for extracurricular activities.
At the end of the day, all of these factors, and time, will result in some change.
2.) Having four additional Royal children, including twins, will change some family dynamics, with the closest historical circumstance being the kids of Victoria and Albert. With the other children of George V and their own broods - the Sussexes, the Gloucesters, the Kents and the Harewoods - The Firm will be quite a bit larger
3.) The idea of Charles being GG of Australia is one that is both being explored and criticised on different levels, as he has competing military and governmental/constitutional roles, but it isn’t an utterly impossible circle to square
4.) Edward is a little older, being a 1961 drop vs a 1964 one, and that changes some family dynamics again, and also opens up an earlier marriage, perhaps even with a certain someone
-
Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Our little sneaky sneak preview:
April 5: The Manchester Guardian profiles the ongoing ‘Corn Craze’, or the marked rise in popularity and sales of sweet corn in Britain over the last decade, driven in part by increased Canadian and South African production and in part by the development of hardy strains grown in Lyonesse and the West Country. The article goes on to quote the official spokesman of the British Pea Growers Association, Dr. Winston O’Boogie, as imploring consumers to ‘give peas a chance’, whilst qualifying the statement with data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fishing and Food, which shows that the most common vegetable members of the iconic British combination of ‘meat, potatoes and three veg’ are carrots, cauliflower and peas, with corn breathing down the neck and head of cabbage and having overleaped both pumpkin and beans. A note from the editor advises readers that a further vegetable related pun regarding 'has beans' and an unmentionable atrocity against language about lettuce had been excised from the final edition of the article, and the journalist responsible reassigned to become the Guardian’s correspondent on Trinity Island inside the Arctic Circle.
April 8: Establishment of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs in Britain, with Peter Shore being appointed as the first Secretary of State for Veteran’s Affairs and responsibility for veteran’s pensions, healthcare, housing assistance, provision for widows and children, assorted care and assistance and oversight of the Imperial War Graves Commission and the Imperial War Museum. Coordination of war pensions of the 3.7 million Great War veterans, the 18.5 million Second World War veterans, the 2.3 million Korean War veterans and the 1.1 million men who served in the Malayan and Kenyan campaigns of the 1950s is an increasingly complex task, covering over £5629 million in pensions, disablement support and war widow’s allowances, but is seen as one of great importance for the future, as veterans of World War Two age and enter the maximal support period. Even as the median age of the British population remains relatively young, the political advantage of engaging with the votes of older Britons is seen as an area of interest of both parties.
April 14: The entire troop of 50 baboons escapes from their section of the Lion Country Safari attraction at the King's Island Amusement Park in Mason, Ohio. It is initially thought that the apes remained within the overall bounds of the park, but investigating expedition by armed warders discovers that someone or something had facilitated their escape through the three layer electrified outer fence. Footage from the closed circuit television security cameras show what looks to be a group of elusive figures deliberately keeping to the shadows, and, most bizarrely of all, a close up image of some sort of large chimpanzee climbing up to disable the cameras. Upon viewing the footage, Ohio State Police immediately hand over the case to the FBI's Y-Files office.
April 23: Screening of the first episode of The World Around Us, a high quality nature documentary presented by David Attenborough and produced for the BBC. The debut shows a number of the strange rarities of the animal kingdom, ranging from the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica and the Mexican staring frog, to the Swiss owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit, and balancing informative science and descriptive graphics with the highly popular vision of the beasts in their natural habitats. Attenborough concludes with a sobering reminder that many of these rare and wonderful creatures face an uncertain future if mankind does not take care to curb his impact upon the environment; it is followed by the heartening vision of a new family of white rabbits peaking up out of their warrens to the springtime world, so as not to entirely end on a disquieting note.
April 26: The Admiralty's Trade Division and the Ministry of Shipping complete their annual review of the Merchant Navy's disposition of vessels suitable for military service in the event of mobilisation as Ships Taken Up From Trade. Of the Merchant Navy's total of 9625 vessels with a gross tonnage of 102,678,143 tons, a total of 25 liners, 69 container ships, 54 refrigerated freighters, 78 tankers, 97 cargo ships, 264 ferries and 226 trawlers, along with all 24 merchant submarines and 10 atomic powered merchant ships, have been earmarked as suitable for naval use and ranked according to their level of utility, size, provision for armament and conversion capacity. Current contingency plans call for the use of the North Sea ferry fleet for the transport of British reinforcements to the Continent in the event of a crisis, whilst the more modern trawlers which have been constructed to naval standards would be employed primarily for coastal minesweeping and support duties by the Royal Naval Patrol Service and 24 container ships, again built to a dual purpose design, would be rapidly converted to merchant aircraft carriers. Light, medium and anti-aircraft guns and missile systems continue to be stockpiled for use in the event of war, but there are recommendations for some level of rationalisation of these armaments.
April 30: First performance of English turbofolk musical band Iron Maiden at St. Nicks Hall in Poplar. It is received with a mixture of polite if slightly baffled enthusiasm, with some members of the audience calling out between songs to turn some of the electric guitars and lutes down a tad so that they did not drown out the power-flute, harpsi-keytar and hurdy-gurdy quite so much. A vacationing American, Mr. James Hendrix, a erstwhile bard and member of the Reverend Elvis Presley’s loyal posse, attends the show as a guest of some of the nurse midwives of nearby Nonnatus House, comments favourably on the band, saying they could one day be the equals of topline musical stars such as The Shadows, Gene Pitney, Bobby Darin, or Val Doonican if they keep practicing.
April 5: The Manchester Guardian profiles the ongoing ‘Corn Craze’, or the marked rise in popularity and sales of sweet corn in Britain over the last decade, driven in part by increased Canadian and South African production and in part by the development of hardy strains grown in Lyonesse and the West Country. The article goes on to quote the official spokesman of the British Pea Growers Association, Dr. Winston O’Boogie, as imploring consumers to ‘give peas a chance’, whilst qualifying the statement with data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fishing and Food, which shows that the most common vegetable members of the iconic British combination of ‘meat, potatoes and three veg’ are carrots, cauliflower and peas, with corn breathing down the neck and head of cabbage and having overleaped both pumpkin and beans. A note from the editor advises readers that a further vegetable related pun regarding 'has beans' and an unmentionable atrocity against language about lettuce had been excised from the final edition of the article, and the journalist responsible reassigned to become the Guardian’s correspondent on Trinity Island inside the Arctic Circle.
April 8: Establishment of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs in Britain, with Peter Shore being appointed as the first Secretary of State for Veteran’s Affairs and responsibility for veteran’s pensions, healthcare, housing assistance, provision for widows and children, assorted care and assistance and oversight of the Imperial War Graves Commission and the Imperial War Museum. Coordination of war pensions of the 3.7 million Great War veterans, the 18.5 million Second World War veterans, the 2.3 million Korean War veterans and the 1.1 million men who served in the Malayan and Kenyan campaigns of the 1950s is an increasingly complex task, covering over £5629 million in pensions, disablement support and war widow’s allowances, but is seen as one of great importance for the future, as veterans of World War Two age and enter the maximal support period. Even as the median age of the British population remains relatively young, the political advantage of engaging with the votes of older Britons is seen as an area of interest of both parties.
April 14: The entire troop of 50 baboons escapes from their section of the Lion Country Safari attraction at the King's Island Amusement Park in Mason, Ohio. It is initially thought that the apes remained within the overall bounds of the park, but investigating expedition by armed warders discovers that someone or something had facilitated their escape through the three layer electrified outer fence. Footage from the closed circuit television security cameras show what looks to be a group of elusive figures deliberately keeping to the shadows, and, most bizarrely of all, a close up image of some sort of large chimpanzee climbing up to disable the cameras. Upon viewing the footage, Ohio State Police immediately hand over the case to the FBI's Y-Files office.
April 23: Screening of the first episode of The World Around Us, a high quality nature documentary presented by David Attenborough and produced for the BBC. The debut shows a number of the strange rarities of the animal kingdom, ranging from the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica and the Mexican staring frog, to the Swiss owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit, and balancing informative science and descriptive graphics with the highly popular vision of the beasts in their natural habitats. Attenborough concludes with a sobering reminder that many of these rare and wonderful creatures face an uncertain future if mankind does not take care to curb his impact upon the environment; it is followed by the heartening vision of a new family of white rabbits peaking up out of their warrens to the springtime world, so as not to entirely end on a disquieting note.
April 26: The Admiralty's Trade Division and the Ministry of Shipping complete their annual review of the Merchant Navy's disposition of vessels suitable for military service in the event of mobilisation as Ships Taken Up From Trade. Of the Merchant Navy's total of 9625 vessels with a gross tonnage of 102,678,143 tons, a total of 25 liners, 69 container ships, 54 refrigerated freighters, 78 tankers, 97 cargo ships, 264 ferries and 226 trawlers, along with all 24 merchant submarines and 10 atomic powered merchant ships, have been earmarked as suitable for naval use and ranked according to their level of utility, size, provision for armament and conversion capacity. Current contingency plans call for the use of the North Sea ferry fleet for the transport of British reinforcements to the Continent in the event of a crisis, whilst the more modern trawlers which have been constructed to naval standards would be employed primarily for coastal minesweeping and support duties by the Royal Naval Patrol Service and 24 container ships, again built to a dual purpose design, would be rapidly converted to merchant aircraft carriers. Light, medium and anti-aircraft guns and missile systems continue to be stockpiled for use in the event of war, but there are recommendations for some level of rationalisation of these armaments.
April 30: First performance of English turbofolk musical band Iron Maiden at St. Nicks Hall in Poplar. It is received with a mixture of polite if slightly baffled enthusiasm, with some members of the audience calling out between songs to turn some of the electric guitars and lutes down a tad so that they did not drown out the power-flute, harpsi-keytar and hurdy-gurdy quite so much. A vacationing American, Mr. James Hendrix, a erstwhile bard and member of the Reverend Elvis Presley’s loyal posse, attends the show as a guest of some of the nurse midwives of nearby Nonnatus House, comments favourably on the band, saying they could one day be the equals of topline musical stars such as The Shadows, Gene Pitney, Bobby Darin, or Val Doonican if they keep practicing.
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Belushi TD
- Posts: 1700
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 11:20 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Oh, the April update has some sweet items in it.
I am particularly interested in the merchant submarines. The Y Files is also an amusing item.
Well done, Sir.
I, regretfully, do not have time to comment as appropriate on the previous months entry, as I have been sick as a dog for the last week and change, as well as a 12 inch snowstorm to deal with, and a trip to Maine and back within 36 hours.
Again, my compliments.
Belushi TD
I am particularly interested in the merchant submarines. The Y Files is also an amusing item.
Well done, Sir.
I, regretfully, do not have time to comment as appropriate on the previous months entry, as I have been sick as a dog for the last week and change, as well as a 12 inch snowstorm to deal with, and a trip to Maine and back within 36 hours.
Again, my compliments.
Belushi TD
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Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Oh, there is a lot more to April yet to come later today…
On weather, storms and dreadful illnesses: *He could have had sneks*
Merchant submarines:
The idea is in pursuit of some historical ones -
"In the 1960s, Wallis also proposed using large cargo submarines to transport oil and other goods, thus avoiding surface weather conditions. Wallis's calculations indicated that the power requirements for an underwater vessel were lower than for a comparable conventional ship and they could be made to travel at a much higher speed. He also proposed a novel hull structure which would have allowed greater depths to be reached, and the use of gas turbine engines in a submarine, using liquid oxygen. In the end, nothing came of Wallis's submarine ideas. During the 1960s and into his retirement, he developed ideas for an "all-speed" aircraft, capable of efficient flight at all speed ranges from subsonic to hypersonic.
In the late 1950s, Wallis gave a lecture titled "The strength of England" at Eton College, and continued to deliver versions of the talk into the early 1970s, presenting technology and automation as a way to restore Britain's dominance. He advocated nuclear-powered cargo submarines as a means of making Britain immune to future embargoes, and to make it a global trading power."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnes_Wallis
On weather, storms and dreadful illnesses: *He could have had sneks*
Merchant submarines:
The idea is in pursuit of some historical ones -
"In the 1960s, Wallis also proposed using large cargo submarines to transport oil and other goods, thus avoiding surface weather conditions. Wallis's calculations indicated that the power requirements for an underwater vessel were lower than for a comparable conventional ship and they could be made to travel at a much higher speed. He also proposed a novel hull structure which would have allowed greater depths to be reached, and the use of gas turbine engines in a submarine, using liquid oxygen. In the end, nothing came of Wallis's submarine ideas. During the 1960s and into his retirement, he developed ideas for an "all-speed" aircraft, capable of efficient flight at all speed ranges from subsonic to hypersonic.
In the late 1950s, Wallis gave a lecture titled "The strength of England" at Eton College, and continued to deliver versions of the talk into the early 1970s, presenting technology and automation as a way to restore Britain's dominance. He advocated nuclear-powered cargo submarines as a means of making Britain immune to future embargoes, and to make it a global trading power."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnes_Wallis
-
Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
April 1976
April 1: Noted astronomer Patrick Moore is interviewed on the 'Jovian-Plutonian gravitational effect' on the BBC Light Programme, describing how, at 9:47 that very morning, the precise alignment of the two mentioned celestial bodies would have such an effect upon the Earth's gravitational force that, should a person jump up and down vigorously at the appointed time, they would notice a distinct floating sensation. The claim, originally intended as something of an All Fool's Day jest, results in a number of investigations into potentially malign sorcery, as a number of episodes of actual levitation, compared to the hallucination thereof, are reported, with one class of junior school students apparently stuck on their classroom ceiling for ten minutes until the school caretaker was able to bring them down with his broom.
April 2: The War Office completes a paper laying out options for the potential growth of the British Army to face evolving threats and changing contingencies, consisting of an increase in the planned level of field forces to 14 from the current 8; the establishment of at least one of each of new types of mechanised and cavalry divisions; and the possible reactivation of the Guards Division as a fully regular formation. An appendix lays out an additional proposal to offset potential expenditure through the reduction of the British African Army, although one Ministry of Defence official remarks that said reduction seems to be the War Office’s suggested solution to quite a few problems and quandaries of late.
April 3: The opening round of the 1976 VFL season sees an average of 42,578 over the eight games played across Melbourne and Geelong, with Carlton defeating Collingwood 18.22 (130) to 10.13 (73) in front of 72,847 spectators at the MCG, Melbourne defeating Coburg 24.17 (161) to 14.9 (93) in front of a crowd of 29,243 at Coburg, Hawthorn beating Richmond in a thriller seen by 78,528 at VFL Park, South Melbourne beating Port Melbourne at Lake Oval in front of 25,612, Fitzroy thrashing Sandringham by 87 points at Junction Oval before a crowd of 32,994, Footscray pipping Essendon by 2 points in front of 27,456 at the Western Oval, North Melbourne proving too strong for St. Kilda 22.13 (145) to 11.14 (80) in front of 40,629 at Princes Park and Geelong destroying Frankston by 129 points at Kardinia Park in front of 33,315 spectators.
April 4: The arrest of a suspected member of the clandestine communist revolutionary group Organización Primero de Marzo carrying suspicious documents results in him being put to the question quite vigorously, until he divulges the names and identities of a great number of the organisation's members. The subsequent police raids and crackdown sees several dozens deaths and hundreds of arrests as authorities move to roll up the revolutionary nationalist organisation.
April 5: The Manchester Guardian profiles the ongoing ‘Corn Craze’, or the marked rise in popularity and sales of sweet corn in Britain over the last decade, driven in part by increased Canadian and South African production and in part by the development of hardy strains grown in Lyonesse and the West Country. The article goes on to quote the official spokesman of the British Pea Growers Association, Dr. Winston O’Boogie, as imploring consumers to ‘give peas a chance’, whilst qualifying the statement with data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fishing and Food, which shows that the most common vegetable members of the iconic British combination of ‘meat, potatoes and three veg’ are carrots, cauliflower and peas, with corn breathing down the neck and ears of cabbage and having overleaped both pumpkin and beans. A note from the editor advises readers that a further vegetable related pun regarding 'has beans' and an unmentionable atrocity against language about lettuce had been excised from the final edition of the article, and the journalist responsible reassigned to become the Guardian’s correspondent on Trinity Island inside the Arctic Circle.
April 6: Senator Henry Jackson wins the New York Democratic primary by 0.8% over Robert F. Kennedy, with his upstate barnstorming offsetting his opponents advantage in New York City. Whilst the victory does give Jackson both an injection of momentum and 149 of New Yorks 326 delegates, Kennedy’s strong victory on the same day in Wisconsin, where he won by 9.45%, ensures that he remains the favourite to win the nomination.
April 7: Fisherman Jose Vicente Somoza discovers a concealed earthernware vessel whilst flattening out ground for a boat shed on the Curruncho dos Porcos, a rocky point just by the beach at Leiro, Galicia. Upon investigating the container, he sees a fabulous golden helm within, and reports his find to the local Guardia Civil and his priest. The helmet, dubbed the Casco de Leiro, seems to date from the Late Bronze Age and features decoration of concentric circles and a strange inscription on the interior in what seems to be Old Tartessian and consisting of four words of four, three, four and eight characters. Archaelogical professors at the University of Salamanca are called in to examine the find, thought to be over 3000 years old.
April 8: Establishment of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs in Britain, with Peter Shore being appointed as the first Secretary of State for Veteran’s Affairs and responsibility for veteran’s pensions, healthcare, housing assistance, provision for widows and children, assorted care and assistance and oversight of the Imperial War Graves Commission and the Imperial War Museum. Coordination of war pensions of the 3.7 million Great War veterans, the 18.5 million Second World War veterans, the 2.3 million Korean War veterans and the 1.1 million men who served in the Malayan and Kenyan campaigns of the 1950s is an increasingly complex task, covering over £5629 million in pensions, disablement support and war widow’s allowances, but is seen as one of great importance for the future, as veterans of World War Two age and enter the maximal support period. Even as the median age of the British population remains relatively young, the political advantage of engaging with the votes of older Britons is seen as an area of interest of both parties.
April 9: 9 year old schoolboy Gary Fridd discovers a 1000 year old Anglo-Saxon sword near the riverbank of Gilling Beck in North Yorkshire. The Damascus steel blade remains remarkably untarnished and unaffected by age, maintaining an incredible sharp edge and being marked with the rune of the master smith Ulfberht, along with a strange bronze heron on the hilt. Under the Treasure Act of 1649, young Gary is allowed to keep the sword, and decides with his parents to gift it to a local museum; he subsequently appears on Blue Peter to show off his find, with both Gary and his sword being awarded Blue Peter badges. During his appearance, he describes how he had grown two inches since finding the blade, but developed a nagging inclination to find and slay goblins, which was interfering with his preparation for the upcoming finals with the Brenton boys football team.
April 10: The Australian Cricket Board signs a new contract with Kerry Packer’s Nine Network for the exclusive television broadcast rights for the next five years for £4 million, paving the way for Packer’s plan to modernise the broadcast of the game and maximise its commercial benefit. Negotiations seemed set to stall before the purported intervention of extremely senior members of the Federal Government to help mediate the impasse and broker a deal. The new agreement is likely to forestall entirely any rumoured moves towards a breakaway competition, and players are set to receive a substantive increase in payments.
April 11: A Quebec hockey player is attacked and injured by a Calgary Cowboys player in a playoff game in Quebec City, being first struck with a hockey stick and then punched about the head until unconscious. The Calgary player is subsequently suspended for life by the WHA, is indicted for aggravated assault and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, with the sentencing judge remarking that the circumstances of an ice hockey rink or any sporting ground do not materially allow for conduct that would be fundamentally contrary to the law and social expectations in everyday society. The comments add to the growing body of precedent regarding violence on the sporting field attracting less tolerance.
April 12: Time Magazine predicts that the 1980s will be the 'Decade of the Franchise', with multimedia properties such as Conan the Barbarian, The Lord of the Rings, Planet of the Apes, Danger Man and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. tipped to be among the million dollar franchises in books, films, television series, comics, records and collectible items, along with more juvenile ones such as The Star Wars.
April 13: 40 people are killed in an early morning explosion in an ammunition plant in Lapua, Finland. Subsequent investigation by the Finnish Ministry of Defence concludes that it was likely caused by a spark from an old milling machine, which set off a catastrophic chain reaction due to inadequate ventilation allowing a build up of gunpowder dust within the facility. Authorisation for the rebuilding of the Lapua Cartridge Factory is granted within 24 hours, given its importance to the supply chain of the Finnish Army, and King Carl visits the scene of the accident in the late afternoon.
April 14: The entire troop of 50 baboons escapes from their section of the Lion Country Safari attraction at the King's Island Amusement Park in Mason, Ohio. It is initially thought that the apes remained within the overall bounds of the park, but investigating expedition by armed warders discovers that someone or something had facilitated their escape through the three layer electrified outer fence. Footage from the closed circuit television security cameras show what looks to be a group of elusive figures deliberately keeping to the shadows, and, most bizarrely of all, a close up image of some sort of large chimpanzee climbing up to disable the cameras. Upon viewing the footage, Ohio State Police immediately hand over the case to the FBI's Y-Files office.
April 15: Authorisation is given for Project SeaQuest, an extension of the United States Navy SEALAB programne of undersea experimentation from the previous stationary habitats for oceanographic research to mobile exploration through a new ceramic hulled deep submergence vehicle. Proponents note that more is known about space and the outer planets than the deep seas and ocean floor of Earth itself, and that as well as scientific advancement, there are strong military advantages to the development of deep sea submarines.
April 16: The Indian government announces a broad raft of policies aimed at population growth control and moving towards a sustainable population level, including increasing the minimum marriage age to 21 for men and 18 for women, generous tax breaks and financial incentives for those who keep to the appointed level of two children, provision of disincentives for larger families and increases in monies paid to those enrolling in voluntary sterilisation. India has seen its projected population increase by over 4% over the last year despite a crude death rate of 14.96 per 1000 people, with the current crude birth rate of 43.88 viewed as unsustainable; government goals call for a fall to 32 by 1985 as an interim target.
April 17: Two separate sightings of a strange owl-like create take place in widely separated villages in Cornwall in a single night, with two girls glimpsing a man sized owl-shapped monster in Mawnam in Southern Cornwall and a very similar apparition being apparently seen 64 miles away by colourful local identity and plumber Albert Large in the Northern Cornish village of Portwenn whilst taking a late night constitutional stroll past the local pub. Mr. Large initially thought the creature to simply be a local giant red squirrel, the animal companion of the local ranger, but was thoroughly alarmed at its subsequent hooting and swooping, and prevailed upon both the village policemen to come to his aid with much wailing, gnashing of teeth and pounding on the station door. A pair of investigators attached to Scotland Yard, DS Colefield and DS Rice, are sent out to investigate the incident.
April 18: American, British and French and Soviet negotiators in Geneva finally achieve something of a limited breakthrough, with a Soviet proposal for the removal of strategic missile from battlecruisers and cruisers being met with American, British and French agreement. An American proposal to freeze Western and Eastern land based strategic long ranged ballistic missiles at a ratio of 1.25:1 is neither accepted nor rejected outright by the Soviets, with a request to study the matter further agreed upon. Finally, the Soviet Union has indicated that, in the interests of world peace, they are prepared to cap their planned ballistic missile submarine programme at 120 boats, with the older conventional Project 629 class to be unilaterally retired as a sign of goodwill, whilst the Project 658 class are to be replaced by assorted new construction; in return, they propose that the total number of American, British and French strategic missile submarines be set at 96, 24 and 12. The Western delegations propose a recess for consideration, with talks to begin again in 2 months. The provisional agreement on cruisers and battlecruisers, whose older strategic missiles are seen as less significant with the arrival of newer generation longer ranged weapons, represents the first major area of strategic arms limitation arguably since the Limited Test Ban Treaty.
April 19: Opening of Windows on the World, a fine dining restaurant and conference venue on the 108th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, and now the highest non-flying restaurant in the world. It is rumoured to be courting a number of Michelin-starred chefs from Europe to add to the prestige of the establishment, which will serve dishes from both traditional Western grande cuisine and an American oeuvre. Notable food writers James Beard and Eugene Walter dine there on the first day and are extremely complimentary about the buffalo tenderloin, terrapin à la Maryland and pressed passenger pigeon with Venezuelan beaver cheese sauce.
April 20: A number of staff officers of the Royal Iraqi Army are created generals as the King moves to expand his armed forces in light of Iraq's growing petroleum revenue and increasing significance at the forefront of the Arab Union. General Said al-Ibrahim is promoted to Chief of the General Staff, with General Suleiman al-Askari given command of the prestigious Southern Command and General Sadam Husayn that of the Western Command.
April 21: A gang of six armed robbers attempt to rob bookmakers at the Victorian Club in Melbourne, aiming to steal their suspected funds of £5 million, but their carefully laid scheme is disrupted by the intervention of two holidaying Metropolitan Police Flying Squad detectives, one commandeered flying car and two hastily borrowed M-16 rifles requisitioned from passing Cub Scouts. The hapless robbers are taken into custody, having taken a slight tumble coming up and down the stairs on their way to the Victorian Police’s waiting Black Maria.
April 22: Italy conducts a test of its first experimental long range ballistic missile, successfully firing it from a special facility in Sicily to a test range off the coast of the Seychelles. The test of the Vega missile signifies that Italy may now be considered as possessing a bona fide strategic ranged nuclear triad, along with their bomber fleet and the Alfa sea launched missile, which brings with it prestige, expense and complications. The Italian Ministry of Defence has already submitted a secret estimate that actually fielding a minimal strategic deterrent force over continental distances of 90-120 Vegas would require an increase in current defence spending by at least 60%.
April 23: Screening of the first episode of The World Around Us, a high quality nature documentary presented by David Attenborough and produced for the BBC. The debut shows a number of the strange rarities of the animal kingdom, ranging from the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica and the Mexican staring frog, to the Swiss owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit, and balancing informative science and descriptive graphics with the highly popular vision of the beasts in their natural habitats. Attenborough concludes with a sobering reminder that many of these rare and wonderful creatures face an uncertain future if mankind does not take care to curb his impact upon the environment; it is followed by the heartening vision of a new family of white rabbits peaking up out of their warrens to the springtime world, so as not to entirely end on a disquieting note.
April 24: British Prime Minister Stanley Barton visits Buckingham Palace for an audience with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to request that Parliament be dissolved and a general election called for May 29th. Current polls have the Conservatives at 34%, Labour at 30% and the Liberals at 24%, but these have been considered to be rather volatile over the last six months, and the only quite guaranteed outcome is that it is not likely that either the Conservatives or Labour will win the 479 seats required for a majority in the expanded House of Commons. Some psephologists have turned their attentions to possible coalitions, with the general alignment of the Nationals and Imperialists with the Conservatives seen as being slightly more advantageous than the Labour, Radical and Socialist group, and both sides actively courting the Liberals, who have been out of government since 1948.
April 25: Norwegian seaman and truck driver Arne Vidar Røed survives rolling his lorry off a road near Trondheim, and in the process of righting his vehicle, uncovers a buried hoard of Viking gold, totaling several hundred coins, pieces of jewelry, ornaments and two long blackened knives. Subsequent examination by archaeologists and specialist forensic wizards suggests that this particular group of items, contained within some sort of mound, seem to have been uncovered and reburied a number of times in the 12 centuries since its initial concealment. Røed is awarded 1000 Krone for his troubles and, after consultation with experts in Sweden, England and Rome, the hoard is carefully reburied in the same location, and plans made to shift the road away from the area.
April 26: The Admiralty's Trade Division and the Ministry of Shipping complete their annual review of the Merchant Navy's disposition of vessels suitable for military service in the event of mobilisation as Ships Taken Up From Trade. Of the Merchant Navy's total of 9625 vessels with a gross tonnage of 102,678,143 tons, a total of 25 liners, 69 container ships, 54 refrigerated freighters, 78 tankers, 97 cargo ships, 264 ferries and 226 trawlers, along with all 24 merchant submarines and 10 atomic powered merchant ships, have been earmarked as suitable for naval use and ranked according to their level of utility, size, provision for armament and conversion capacity. Current contingency plans call for the use of the North Sea ferry fleet for the transport of British reinforcements to the Continent in the event of a crisis, whilst the more modern trawlers which have been constructed to naval standards would be employed primarily for coastal minesweeping and support duties by the Royal Naval Patrol Service and 24 container ships, again built to a dual purpose design, would be rapidly converted to merchant aircraft carriers. Light, medium and anti-aircraft guns and missile systems continue to be stockpiled for use in the event of war, but there are recommendations for some level of rationalisation of these armaments.
April 27: American inventors Bill Gore and his son Richard register a patent for a new kind of elastic, lightweight waterproof polymer, which they subsequently dub 'Gore-Tex'. It allows the passage of water vapour, whilst blocking it in its liquid form, making it a potentially advantageous fabric for raincoats in particular, but also for a range of other applications that sees the Department of the Army approach the Gores to negotiate research and development funding assistance into some of these in particular.
April 28: Jeduthan Carey is appointed as the new chief executioner of Her Majesty's Prison Service, having previously performed his duties swiftly and efficiently as an assistant to Stewart and Allen, effectively becoming the foremost of Britain's six working hangmen. Whilst a general decline in crime has seen fewer death sentences passed, there were still 133 executions carried out under civilian auspices in 1975 - 68 for murder, 5 for drug trafficking, 4 for kidnapping and 56 for rape.
April 29: Release of Mad Dog Morgan, an Australian bushranger film depicting the dastardly crimes of the dreadful Dan Morgan in the early 1860s in the colonies of Victoria and New South Wales. It stars Dennis Hopper as the mad criminal, Jack Thompson as the doughty Detective Manwaring, Frank Thring as Superintendent Cobham, George Lazenby as Ranger Bond, Graeme Blundell as a tree and Bill Hunter. It is met with some domestic success and a momentary frisson of foreign attention, mainly due to the novelty of the setting and period for overseas audiences.
April 30: First performance of English turbofolk musical band Iron Maiden at St. Nicks Hall in Poplar. It is received with a mixture of polite if slightly baffled enthusiasm, with some members of the audience calling out between songs to turn some of the electric guitars and lutes down a tad so that they did not drown out the power-flute, harpsi-keytar and hurdy-gurdy quite so much. A vacationing American, Mr. James Hendrix, a erstwhile bard and member of the Reverend Elvis Presley’s loyal posse, attends the show as a guest of some of the nurse midwives of nearby Nonnatus House, comments favourably on the band, saying they could one day be the equals of topline musical stars such as The Shadows, Gene Pitney, Bobby Darin, or Val Doonican if they keep practicing.
April 1: Noted astronomer Patrick Moore is interviewed on the 'Jovian-Plutonian gravitational effect' on the BBC Light Programme, describing how, at 9:47 that very morning, the precise alignment of the two mentioned celestial bodies would have such an effect upon the Earth's gravitational force that, should a person jump up and down vigorously at the appointed time, they would notice a distinct floating sensation. The claim, originally intended as something of an All Fool's Day jest, results in a number of investigations into potentially malign sorcery, as a number of episodes of actual levitation, compared to the hallucination thereof, are reported, with one class of junior school students apparently stuck on their classroom ceiling for ten minutes until the school caretaker was able to bring them down with his broom.
April 2: The War Office completes a paper laying out options for the potential growth of the British Army to face evolving threats and changing contingencies, consisting of an increase in the planned level of field forces to 14 from the current 8; the establishment of at least one of each of new types of mechanised and cavalry divisions; and the possible reactivation of the Guards Division as a fully regular formation. An appendix lays out an additional proposal to offset potential expenditure through the reduction of the British African Army, although one Ministry of Defence official remarks that said reduction seems to be the War Office’s suggested solution to quite a few problems and quandaries of late.
April 3: The opening round of the 1976 VFL season sees an average of 42,578 over the eight games played across Melbourne and Geelong, with Carlton defeating Collingwood 18.22 (130) to 10.13 (73) in front of 72,847 spectators at the MCG, Melbourne defeating Coburg 24.17 (161) to 14.9 (93) in front of a crowd of 29,243 at Coburg, Hawthorn beating Richmond in a thriller seen by 78,528 at VFL Park, South Melbourne beating Port Melbourne at Lake Oval in front of 25,612, Fitzroy thrashing Sandringham by 87 points at Junction Oval before a crowd of 32,994, Footscray pipping Essendon by 2 points in front of 27,456 at the Western Oval, North Melbourne proving too strong for St. Kilda 22.13 (145) to 11.14 (80) in front of 40,629 at Princes Park and Geelong destroying Frankston by 129 points at Kardinia Park in front of 33,315 spectators.
April 4: The arrest of a suspected member of the clandestine communist revolutionary group Organización Primero de Marzo carrying suspicious documents results in him being put to the question quite vigorously, until he divulges the names and identities of a great number of the organisation's members. The subsequent police raids and crackdown sees several dozens deaths and hundreds of arrests as authorities move to roll up the revolutionary nationalist organisation.
April 5: The Manchester Guardian profiles the ongoing ‘Corn Craze’, or the marked rise in popularity and sales of sweet corn in Britain over the last decade, driven in part by increased Canadian and South African production and in part by the development of hardy strains grown in Lyonesse and the West Country. The article goes on to quote the official spokesman of the British Pea Growers Association, Dr. Winston O’Boogie, as imploring consumers to ‘give peas a chance’, whilst qualifying the statement with data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fishing and Food, which shows that the most common vegetable members of the iconic British combination of ‘meat, potatoes and three veg’ are carrots, cauliflower and peas, with corn breathing down the neck and ears of cabbage and having overleaped both pumpkin and beans. A note from the editor advises readers that a further vegetable related pun regarding 'has beans' and an unmentionable atrocity against language about lettuce had been excised from the final edition of the article, and the journalist responsible reassigned to become the Guardian’s correspondent on Trinity Island inside the Arctic Circle.
April 6: Senator Henry Jackson wins the New York Democratic primary by 0.8% over Robert F. Kennedy, with his upstate barnstorming offsetting his opponents advantage in New York City. Whilst the victory does give Jackson both an injection of momentum and 149 of New Yorks 326 delegates, Kennedy’s strong victory on the same day in Wisconsin, where he won by 9.45%, ensures that he remains the favourite to win the nomination.
April 7: Fisherman Jose Vicente Somoza discovers a concealed earthernware vessel whilst flattening out ground for a boat shed on the Curruncho dos Porcos, a rocky point just by the beach at Leiro, Galicia. Upon investigating the container, he sees a fabulous golden helm within, and reports his find to the local Guardia Civil and his priest. The helmet, dubbed the Casco de Leiro, seems to date from the Late Bronze Age and features decoration of concentric circles and a strange inscription on the interior in what seems to be Old Tartessian and consisting of four words of four, three, four and eight characters. Archaelogical professors at the University of Salamanca are called in to examine the find, thought to be over 3000 years old.
April 8: Establishment of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs in Britain, with Peter Shore being appointed as the first Secretary of State for Veteran’s Affairs and responsibility for veteran’s pensions, healthcare, housing assistance, provision for widows and children, assorted care and assistance and oversight of the Imperial War Graves Commission and the Imperial War Museum. Coordination of war pensions of the 3.7 million Great War veterans, the 18.5 million Second World War veterans, the 2.3 million Korean War veterans and the 1.1 million men who served in the Malayan and Kenyan campaigns of the 1950s is an increasingly complex task, covering over £5629 million in pensions, disablement support and war widow’s allowances, but is seen as one of great importance for the future, as veterans of World War Two age and enter the maximal support period. Even as the median age of the British population remains relatively young, the political advantage of engaging with the votes of older Britons is seen as an area of interest of both parties.
April 9: 9 year old schoolboy Gary Fridd discovers a 1000 year old Anglo-Saxon sword near the riverbank of Gilling Beck in North Yorkshire. The Damascus steel blade remains remarkably untarnished and unaffected by age, maintaining an incredible sharp edge and being marked with the rune of the master smith Ulfberht, along with a strange bronze heron on the hilt. Under the Treasure Act of 1649, young Gary is allowed to keep the sword, and decides with his parents to gift it to a local museum; he subsequently appears on Blue Peter to show off his find, with both Gary and his sword being awarded Blue Peter badges. During his appearance, he describes how he had grown two inches since finding the blade, but developed a nagging inclination to find and slay goblins, which was interfering with his preparation for the upcoming finals with the Brenton boys football team.
April 10: The Australian Cricket Board signs a new contract with Kerry Packer’s Nine Network for the exclusive television broadcast rights for the next five years for £4 million, paving the way for Packer’s plan to modernise the broadcast of the game and maximise its commercial benefit. Negotiations seemed set to stall before the purported intervention of extremely senior members of the Federal Government to help mediate the impasse and broker a deal. The new agreement is likely to forestall entirely any rumoured moves towards a breakaway competition, and players are set to receive a substantive increase in payments.
April 11: A Quebec hockey player is attacked and injured by a Calgary Cowboys player in a playoff game in Quebec City, being first struck with a hockey stick and then punched about the head until unconscious. The Calgary player is subsequently suspended for life by the WHA, is indicted for aggravated assault and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, with the sentencing judge remarking that the circumstances of an ice hockey rink or any sporting ground do not materially allow for conduct that would be fundamentally contrary to the law and social expectations in everyday society. The comments add to the growing body of precedent regarding violence on the sporting field attracting less tolerance.
April 12: Time Magazine predicts that the 1980s will be the 'Decade of the Franchise', with multimedia properties such as Conan the Barbarian, The Lord of the Rings, Planet of the Apes, Danger Man and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. tipped to be among the million dollar franchises in books, films, television series, comics, records and collectible items, along with more juvenile ones such as The Star Wars.
April 13: 40 people are killed in an early morning explosion in an ammunition plant in Lapua, Finland. Subsequent investigation by the Finnish Ministry of Defence concludes that it was likely caused by a spark from an old milling machine, which set off a catastrophic chain reaction due to inadequate ventilation allowing a build up of gunpowder dust within the facility. Authorisation for the rebuilding of the Lapua Cartridge Factory is granted within 24 hours, given its importance to the supply chain of the Finnish Army, and King Carl visits the scene of the accident in the late afternoon.
April 14: The entire troop of 50 baboons escapes from their section of the Lion Country Safari attraction at the King's Island Amusement Park in Mason, Ohio. It is initially thought that the apes remained within the overall bounds of the park, but investigating expedition by armed warders discovers that someone or something had facilitated their escape through the three layer electrified outer fence. Footage from the closed circuit television security cameras show what looks to be a group of elusive figures deliberately keeping to the shadows, and, most bizarrely of all, a close up image of some sort of large chimpanzee climbing up to disable the cameras. Upon viewing the footage, Ohio State Police immediately hand over the case to the FBI's Y-Files office.
April 15: Authorisation is given for Project SeaQuest, an extension of the United States Navy SEALAB programne of undersea experimentation from the previous stationary habitats for oceanographic research to mobile exploration through a new ceramic hulled deep submergence vehicle. Proponents note that more is known about space and the outer planets than the deep seas and ocean floor of Earth itself, and that as well as scientific advancement, there are strong military advantages to the development of deep sea submarines.
April 16: The Indian government announces a broad raft of policies aimed at population growth control and moving towards a sustainable population level, including increasing the minimum marriage age to 21 for men and 18 for women, generous tax breaks and financial incentives for those who keep to the appointed level of two children, provision of disincentives for larger families and increases in monies paid to those enrolling in voluntary sterilisation. India has seen its projected population increase by over 4% over the last year despite a crude death rate of 14.96 per 1000 people, with the current crude birth rate of 43.88 viewed as unsustainable; government goals call for a fall to 32 by 1985 as an interim target.
April 17: Two separate sightings of a strange owl-like create take place in widely separated villages in Cornwall in a single night, with two girls glimpsing a man sized owl-shapped monster in Mawnam in Southern Cornwall and a very similar apparition being apparently seen 64 miles away by colourful local identity and plumber Albert Large in the Northern Cornish village of Portwenn whilst taking a late night constitutional stroll past the local pub. Mr. Large initially thought the creature to simply be a local giant red squirrel, the animal companion of the local ranger, but was thoroughly alarmed at its subsequent hooting and swooping, and prevailed upon both the village policemen to come to his aid with much wailing, gnashing of teeth and pounding on the station door. A pair of investigators attached to Scotland Yard, DS Colefield and DS Rice, are sent out to investigate the incident.
April 18: American, British and French and Soviet negotiators in Geneva finally achieve something of a limited breakthrough, with a Soviet proposal for the removal of strategic missile from battlecruisers and cruisers being met with American, British and French agreement. An American proposal to freeze Western and Eastern land based strategic long ranged ballistic missiles at a ratio of 1.25:1 is neither accepted nor rejected outright by the Soviets, with a request to study the matter further agreed upon. Finally, the Soviet Union has indicated that, in the interests of world peace, they are prepared to cap their planned ballistic missile submarine programme at 120 boats, with the older conventional Project 629 class to be unilaterally retired as a sign of goodwill, whilst the Project 658 class are to be replaced by assorted new construction; in return, they propose that the total number of American, British and French strategic missile submarines be set at 96, 24 and 12. The Western delegations propose a recess for consideration, with talks to begin again in 2 months. The provisional agreement on cruisers and battlecruisers, whose older strategic missiles are seen as less significant with the arrival of newer generation longer ranged weapons, represents the first major area of strategic arms limitation arguably since the Limited Test Ban Treaty.
April 19: Opening of Windows on the World, a fine dining restaurant and conference venue on the 108th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, and now the highest non-flying restaurant in the world. It is rumoured to be courting a number of Michelin-starred chefs from Europe to add to the prestige of the establishment, which will serve dishes from both traditional Western grande cuisine and an American oeuvre. Notable food writers James Beard and Eugene Walter dine there on the first day and are extremely complimentary about the buffalo tenderloin, terrapin à la Maryland and pressed passenger pigeon with Venezuelan beaver cheese sauce.
April 20: A number of staff officers of the Royal Iraqi Army are created generals as the King moves to expand his armed forces in light of Iraq's growing petroleum revenue and increasing significance at the forefront of the Arab Union. General Said al-Ibrahim is promoted to Chief of the General Staff, with General Suleiman al-Askari given command of the prestigious Southern Command and General Sadam Husayn that of the Western Command.
April 21: A gang of six armed robbers attempt to rob bookmakers at the Victorian Club in Melbourne, aiming to steal their suspected funds of £5 million, but their carefully laid scheme is disrupted by the intervention of two holidaying Metropolitan Police Flying Squad detectives, one commandeered flying car and two hastily borrowed M-16 rifles requisitioned from passing Cub Scouts. The hapless robbers are taken into custody, having taken a slight tumble coming up and down the stairs on their way to the Victorian Police’s waiting Black Maria.
April 22: Italy conducts a test of its first experimental long range ballistic missile, successfully firing it from a special facility in Sicily to a test range off the coast of the Seychelles. The test of the Vega missile signifies that Italy may now be considered as possessing a bona fide strategic ranged nuclear triad, along with their bomber fleet and the Alfa sea launched missile, which brings with it prestige, expense and complications. The Italian Ministry of Defence has already submitted a secret estimate that actually fielding a minimal strategic deterrent force over continental distances of 90-120 Vegas would require an increase in current defence spending by at least 60%.
April 23: Screening of the first episode of The World Around Us, a high quality nature documentary presented by David Attenborough and produced for the BBC. The debut shows a number of the strange rarities of the animal kingdom, ranging from the dodos of Mauritius, the mega penguins of Antarctica and the Mexican staring frog, to the Swiss owlbear, the Australian land shark and the elusive San Franciscan white rabbit, and balancing informative science and descriptive graphics with the highly popular vision of the beasts in their natural habitats. Attenborough concludes with a sobering reminder that many of these rare and wonderful creatures face an uncertain future if mankind does not take care to curb his impact upon the environment; it is followed by the heartening vision of a new family of white rabbits peaking up out of their warrens to the springtime world, so as not to entirely end on a disquieting note.
April 24: British Prime Minister Stanley Barton visits Buckingham Palace for an audience with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to request that Parliament be dissolved and a general election called for May 29th. Current polls have the Conservatives at 34%, Labour at 30% and the Liberals at 24%, but these have been considered to be rather volatile over the last six months, and the only quite guaranteed outcome is that it is not likely that either the Conservatives or Labour will win the 479 seats required for a majority in the expanded House of Commons. Some psephologists have turned their attentions to possible coalitions, with the general alignment of the Nationals and Imperialists with the Conservatives seen as being slightly more advantageous than the Labour, Radical and Socialist group, and both sides actively courting the Liberals, who have been out of government since 1948.
April 25: Norwegian seaman and truck driver Arne Vidar Røed survives rolling his lorry off a road near Trondheim, and in the process of righting his vehicle, uncovers a buried hoard of Viking gold, totaling several hundred coins, pieces of jewelry, ornaments and two long blackened knives. Subsequent examination by archaeologists and specialist forensic wizards suggests that this particular group of items, contained within some sort of mound, seem to have been uncovered and reburied a number of times in the 12 centuries since its initial concealment. Røed is awarded 1000 Krone for his troubles and, after consultation with experts in Sweden, England and Rome, the hoard is carefully reburied in the same location, and plans made to shift the road away from the area.
April 26: The Admiralty's Trade Division and the Ministry of Shipping complete their annual review of the Merchant Navy's disposition of vessels suitable for military service in the event of mobilisation as Ships Taken Up From Trade. Of the Merchant Navy's total of 9625 vessels with a gross tonnage of 102,678,143 tons, a total of 25 liners, 69 container ships, 54 refrigerated freighters, 78 tankers, 97 cargo ships, 264 ferries and 226 trawlers, along with all 24 merchant submarines and 10 atomic powered merchant ships, have been earmarked as suitable for naval use and ranked according to their level of utility, size, provision for armament and conversion capacity. Current contingency plans call for the use of the North Sea ferry fleet for the transport of British reinforcements to the Continent in the event of a crisis, whilst the more modern trawlers which have been constructed to naval standards would be employed primarily for coastal minesweeping and support duties by the Royal Naval Patrol Service and 24 container ships, again built to a dual purpose design, would be rapidly converted to merchant aircraft carriers. Light, medium and anti-aircraft guns and missile systems continue to be stockpiled for use in the event of war, but there are recommendations for some level of rationalisation of these armaments.
April 27: American inventors Bill Gore and his son Richard register a patent for a new kind of elastic, lightweight waterproof polymer, which they subsequently dub 'Gore-Tex'. It allows the passage of water vapour, whilst blocking it in its liquid form, making it a potentially advantageous fabric for raincoats in particular, but also for a range of other applications that sees the Department of the Army approach the Gores to negotiate research and development funding assistance into some of these in particular.
April 28: Jeduthan Carey is appointed as the new chief executioner of Her Majesty's Prison Service, having previously performed his duties swiftly and efficiently as an assistant to Stewart and Allen, effectively becoming the foremost of Britain's six working hangmen. Whilst a general decline in crime has seen fewer death sentences passed, there were still 133 executions carried out under civilian auspices in 1975 - 68 for murder, 5 for drug trafficking, 4 for kidnapping and 56 for rape.
April 29: Release of Mad Dog Morgan, an Australian bushranger film depicting the dastardly crimes of the dreadful Dan Morgan in the early 1860s in the colonies of Victoria and New South Wales. It stars Dennis Hopper as the mad criminal, Jack Thompson as the doughty Detective Manwaring, Frank Thring as Superintendent Cobham, George Lazenby as Ranger Bond, Graeme Blundell as a tree and Bill Hunter. It is met with some domestic success and a momentary frisson of foreign attention, mainly due to the novelty of the setting and period for overseas audiences.
April 30: First performance of English turbofolk musical band Iron Maiden at St. Nicks Hall in Poplar. It is received with a mixture of polite if slightly baffled enthusiasm, with some members of the audience calling out between songs to turn some of the electric guitars and lutes down a tad so that they did not drown out the power-flute, harpsi-keytar and hurdy-gurdy quite so much. A vacationing American, Mr. James Hendrix, a erstwhile bard and member of the Reverend Elvis Presley’s loyal posse, attends the show as a guest of some of the nurse midwives of nearby Nonnatus House, comments favourably on the band, saying they could one day be the equals of topline musical stars such as The Shadows, Gene Pitney, Bobby Darin, or Val Doonican if they keep practicing.
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Bernard Woolley
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
No doubt Det. Sgt. ‘Bluey’ Hills was greatful for their assistance. Although, his fellow VicPol colleague, Detective Sergeant Bargearse was heard to mutter something about donuts.April 21:
“Frankly, I had enjoyed the war… and why do people want peace if the war is so much fun?” - Lieutenant General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart
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Simon Darkshade
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Ah, a man of culture, I see.
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Bernard Woolley
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
I discovered 'Bluey' by accident after deciding to watch 'Bluey' to find out what it's like (it's bloody good cartoon, btw, with some funny Easter Eggs for adults! 
). Via that, I discovered 'Bargearse'. AFAIK, pretty much every episode of it is on YT. What is really funny is that I have since seen clips of 'Bluey' and its hard to tell the difference between it and 'Bargearse'! 
). Via that, I discovered 'Bargearse'. AFAIK, pretty much every episode of it is on YT. What is really funny is that I have since seen clips of 'Bluey' and its hard to tell the difference between it and 'Bargearse'! “Frankly, I had enjoyed the war… and why do people want peace if the war is so much fun?” - Lieutenant General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart
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Simon Darkshade
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
I haven’t seen the children’s cartoon, having no sense of childlike humour nor the time.
Bargearse was the introduction to Bluey for a whole new generation when done by The Late Show in 1992/93. Being older, and different in my tastes, I prefer the original 1970s show.
Here, it was likely an op with Bluey, some of the castoffs from Matlock Police, Tom Croydon from Mount Thomas/Blue Heelers and Funky Squad along with Jack Regan and George Carter.
Bargearse was the introduction to Bluey for a whole new generation when done by The Late Show in 1992/93. Being older, and different in my tastes, I prefer the original 1970s show.
Here, it was likely an op with Bluey, some of the castoffs from Matlock Police, Tom Croydon from Mount Thomas/Blue Heelers and Funky Squad along with Jack Regan and George Carter.
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Bernard Woolley
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Would that be a young Constable Tom Croydon? Fresh from service in the Australian Army?
“Frankly, I had enjoyed the war… and why do people want peace if the war is so much fun?” - Lieutenant General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart
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Belushi TD
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
There's a whole lot of artifact finding this month.
Is Mr. Fridd now in possession of Excalibur?
The helm seems to be of an age with the Greek heros of mythos. Is it possible that the translation would mean something along the lines of "For the throne of Iolcus"?
I find it interesting the degree to which the WHL is punishing fighting as compared to OTL NHL. A much more polite era than the equivalent.
SeaQuest was a sadly under rated show when I was a freshman in college. Not a great show, but it was more watchable than the first season of Star Trek TNG.
The combination of buffalo tenderloin, terrapin a la Maryland, pressed passenger pigeon, and Venezuelan beaver cheese is a mélange of easter eggs that really tickled my fancy. Its not often you get a reference so thickly layered.
There's some kind of magical signficance to the reburying of the gold, jewels, and knives. I can't place it though.
What, praytell, is a "turbofolk band"?
As always, interesting and informative! Love this stuff.
Belushi TD
Is Mr. Fridd now in possession of Excalibur?
The helm seems to be of an age with the Greek heros of mythos. Is it possible that the translation would mean something along the lines of "For the throne of Iolcus"?
I find it interesting the degree to which the WHL is punishing fighting as compared to OTL NHL. A much more polite era than the equivalent.
SeaQuest was a sadly under rated show when I was a freshman in college. Not a great show, but it was more watchable than the first season of Star Trek TNG.
The combination of buffalo tenderloin, terrapin a la Maryland, pressed passenger pigeon, and Venezuelan beaver cheese is a mélange of easter eggs that really tickled my fancy. Its not often you get a reference so thickly layered.
There's some kind of magical signficance to the reburying of the gold, jewels, and knives. I can't place it though.
What, praytell, is a "turbofolk band"?
As always, interesting and informative! Love this stuff.
Belushi TD
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Simon Darkshade
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Belushi,
1.) Master Gary was not in possession of Excalibur, but briefly was the owner of a different magic sword.
2.) The Casco de Leiro is of an age roughly around the time of the Bronze Age Collapse and is more Celtic than Hellenic in origin. The five words are not to do with Iolcus, but something about who ordered it to be made.
3.) It is a case of following up some interesting cases, initially in hockey for both the NHL and now WHA, regarding excessive violence and changes that result from it across a variety of sports. Both cases clearly involve completely over the top actions that would get someone locked up if they occurred on civvie street, and both are historical cases that went to court; the difference is in the outcome. It will next see some development in Australia, then Britain, and then finally in America during the last throes of gridiron, with the end result that a hard challenge or tackle is seen as acceptable, but outright punching a bloke, particularly from behind, will get the book thrown at the perpetrator. A result of this will be some reduction in unnecessary head injuries, which is a bit of a net gain.
4.) I've never seen SeaQuest, nor have I seen a single episode of any kind of Star Trek; I mentioned it here as part of SEALAB and undersea exploration flourishing rather than ending unceremoniously due to Vietnam.
5.) Buffalo tenderloin isn't that far out of step with our world, albeit about a decade or so before it became really common. Terrapin a la Maryland is our first big indication that 'grand American cuisine' of the Gilded Age hasn't fully disappeared, as it did by the 1950s historically. Passenger pigeons not being extinct is larger yet, whilst the Venezuelan beaver cheese comes from Monty Python's Cheese Shop sketch.
6.) There is a strong suggestion that the hoard is cursed and, rather than unleash decades of bad luck, it is being safely tucked away, then will be covered by concrete for good measure. There is some added significance to the event in the name of the trucker - historically, he was the first confirmed case of HIV in Europe. Here, that has long been cured by Tarzan, so that it won't raise its ugly head.
7.) In our world, turbofolk is a name given to a 1990s genre of music predominantly from the former Yugoslavia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbo-folk
On Dark Earth, the same appellation is given to a different genre of music. Here, there has been no rock and roll, nor any widespread knowledge of rhythm and blues or even 'the blues' in general; even jazz is markedly more flattened, whitebread, anodyne and 'swingy'. In the absence of these rather influential genres, others have filled their place - country, various permutations of pop, show tunes, American standards and most notably, folk music.
Over the 1960s, some folkies have gone electric, creating the imaginatively named 'electro-folk', which is very similar to what we'd know as folk rock in the late 1960s British tradition (Pentangle, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and lighter bits of Jethro Tull). A sub-genre of that in turn has developed in the 1970s with some resemblance to early heavy metal - think Rainbow with Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio, certain Uriah Heep songs and some of the more escapist parts of proto-NWOBHM. A question arises of what to call such a concoction, and, given that it comes from 'electro-folk', but is a bit louder and faster, the name 'turbofolk' fits.
1.) Master Gary was not in possession of Excalibur, but briefly was the owner of a different magic sword.
2.) The Casco de Leiro is of an age roughly around the time of the Bronze Age Collapse and is more Celtic than Hellenic in origin. The five words are not to do with Iolcus, but something about who ordered it to be made.
3.) It is a case of following up some interesting cases, initially in hockey for both the NHL and now WHA, regarding excessive violence and changes that result from it across a variety of sports. Both cases clearly involve completely over the top actions that would get someone locked up if they occurred on civvie street, and both are historical cases that went to court; the difference is in the outcome. It will next see some development in Australia, then Britain, and then finally in America during the last throes of gridiron, with the end result that a hard challenge or tackle is seen as acceptable, but outright punching a bloke, particularly from behind, will get the book thrown at the perpetrator. A result of this will be some reduction in unnecessary head injuries, which is a bit of a net gain.
4.) I've never seen SeaQuest, nor have I seen a single episode of any kind of Star Trek; I mentioned it here as part of SEALAB and undersea exploration flourishing rather than ending unceremoniously due to Vietnam.
5.) Buffalo tenderloin isn't that far out of step with our world, albeit about a decade or so before it became really common. Terrapin a la Maryland is our first big indication that 'grand American cuisine' of the Gilded Age hasn't fully disappeared, as it did by the 1950s historically. Passenger pigeons not being extinct is larger yet, whilst the Venezuelan beaver cheese comes from Monty Python's Cheese Shop sketch.
6.) There is a strong suggestion that the hoard is cursed and, rather than unleash decades of bad luck, it is being safely tucked away, then will be covered by concrete for good measure. There is some added significance to the event in the name of the trucker - historically, he was the first confirmed case of HIV in Europe. Here, that has long been cured by Tarzan, so that it won't raise its ugly head.
7.) In our world, turbofolk is a name given to a 1990s genre of music predominantly from the former Yugoslavia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbo-folk
On Dark Earth, the same appellation is given to a different genre of music. Here, there has been no rock and roll, nor any widespread knowledge of rhythm and blues or even 'the blues' in general; even jazz is markedly more flattened, whitebread, anodyne and 'swingy'. In the absence of these rather influential genres, others have filled their place - country, various permutations of pop, show tunes, American standards and most notably, folk music.
Over the 1960s, some folkies have gone electric, creating the imaginatively named 'electro-folk', which is very similar to what we'd know as folk rock in the late 1960s British tradition (Pentangle, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and lighter bits of Jethro Tull). A sub-genre of that in turn has developed in the 1970s with some resemblance to early heavy metal - think Rainbow with Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio, certain Uriah Heep songs and some of the more escapist parts of proto-NWOBHM. A question arises of what to call such a concoction, and, given that it comes from 'electro-folk', but is a bit louder and faster, the name 'turbofolk' fits.
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Simon Darkshade
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Absolutely correct. Passing through Melbourne whilst on leave, prior to being attached to the quiet country town. Good old Melbourne, which is some respects is just a rather larger country town, without crazy crime...Bernard Woolley wrote: ↑Wed Feb 25, 2026 5:45 pm Would that be a young Constable Tom Croydon? Fresh from service in the Australian Army?
*cue Sweeney theme music*
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Simon Darkshade
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Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
March 1976 Notes
- Patrick Moore's involvement with the April 1st prank is historical; some double jokers within the BBC decide to push the joke a bit further with some false stories
- I'm really in completely different territory for the idea of substantive force increases for the British Army at this point, or indeed any stage after ~ 1950, so there isn't much to go on. The most likely options involve the Guards and field forces, with the latter being a bit of the flavour de jeur; they consist of 6 battalions and bear a resemblance to some of the light divisions fielded by the French in the 1980s, as well as some other formations. There is a feeling that, with the nominal independence of the African colonies generally progressing successfully, there is less direct need or utility for light infantry formations based in East and West Africa
- The VFL and Australian Rules football continues to prosper, with an enlarged Victorian competition being the dry run for an earlier national league, and expansion from all games being on Saturday afternoon to include Friday and Saturday nights, but not Sundays
- The OPM crackdown in Paraguay has a few more twists to come
- Consider the name of the Manchester Guardian's food correspondent. His little article, as well as containing puns, highlights some very direct effects of different climates and trading arrangements; and also allows for the subtle distinction of 'meat, potatoes AND three veg' being mentioned, reflecting again some different culinary developments
- Discovery of the Casco de Leiro is a historical event, but the inscription in an unknown language is not. It may well be a variation on that on the Alfred Jewel...
- Creation of the DVA in Britain comes from there being a very significant military veteran population with the larger British population, and the impact of people living longer lives; veterans now become a significant voting block to be wooed
- The circumstances of young Gary Fridd finding the sword take a bit of a coda from his historical adventure due to its magical nature, leaving him taller and with a taller tale to tell; his youth football/soccer team comes from a fun little 1975 BBC children's television series named Striker: https://nostalgiacentral.com/television ... s/striker/
- Packer strikes a deal with the ACB, mediated by the Great Mediator himself, and this will result in a very different development of world cricket
- The case of the hockey player is derived from a historical circumstance, but is now linked with the earlier NHL case as part of a juridical shift against carte blanche being given to violence on the sports field that would get a man locked up for dealing out in the street
- Few franchises have really emerged to date, which is accurate to our history as well, but a couple of well timed blockbuster films starts to shift that
- The Great Baboon Escape is a case of someone *seeming* to be a chimpanzee breaking them out, but turning out to be something different. More to come in future months
- Project SeaQuest is less of a reference to the television programme, and more of a manifestation of the continuing exploration of the oceans that was choked out by a war in @
- India's population control efforts are slightly less extreme than those being mooted by the Gandhi government around this time historically
- The Cornish Owlman turns out to be something more tangible here, crossing the entirety of Cornwall in a short time. Bert Large and some of the other details of Portwenn are from a certain television series, whilst the final two policemen come from Idris Elba's first leading role in a television serial, 1998's Ultraviolet...
- Strategic arms limitations talks have been very difficult, due to the USA not stopping and standing still, allowing the USSR to catch up in total number of warheads and in ballistic delivery systems. About the only thing that can be easily countenanced is something like what is outlined here, or cruisers and battlecruiser losing their early SLBMs (Polaris and equivalent), which saves money, allows more flexibility in their employment and doesn't noticeably alter the general strategic balance. With regard to SSBNs, the Americans and British are aware that the new class of boomers/bombers that the Soviets blithely describe as Hotel replacements are much, much larger and more capable, and the Golfs are basically suicidal manpower sinks at this time
- Windows on the World will serve a distinctly more American slant on 'grande cuisine' and absolutely won't be serving nouvelle cuisine, which won't raise its head here; those diners who get more than three little morsels and a drizzle of sauce on their plates will be grateful
- Absolutely no issues will come from any of the new Iraqi generals at all
- The Victorian Club robbery turns out to be a busted flush thanks to Regan and Carter, who stumble upon the crime and do what they do best, until several Victoria Police detectives can take over. Note the offhand reference to M-16s being borrowed from Cub Scouts and its implications
- Italy makes something of a strategic great leap forward, but in theory, rather than practical implementation. Actually fielding a force such as that described would add another twist into the strategic arms talks mentioned earlier
- Attenborough's The World Around Us takes the name of an overarching Australian nature show that broadcast a lot of his works and docos, and makes it into something much more expansive and deep. The Mexican staring frog (of Southern Sri Lanka) is a reference to an episode from the second season of South Park, whilst the San Franciscan white rabbit is a reference to the song by Jefferson Airplane
- The British general election is off and running, and, at this point, is anyone's to win. There won't be a majority winner
- April 25 sees the discovery of some sort of cursed ancient hoard, which turns out to be more trouble than it is worth. The name of the truck driver is that of a Norwegian sailor and trucker who was one of the first known cases of HIV in Europe. Here, that particular disease has been long nipped in the bud, thanks to Tarzan
- The little segue into the Merchant Navy shows that the issue of convoying, STUFT and armed merchant ships is not far away from Admiralty considerations
- Gore-Tex will see some interesting employment in some projects
- The number of executions is naturally larger than our post WW2 Britain, due to the substantially larger population, and with certain crimes being classed as capital. Whether it works as a deterrent or not is debated, but the purposes of retribution and public protection rank equally as high in considerations, and the number of executed criminals who have reoffended is vanishingly small to this point
- Mad Dog Morgan is a slightly different picture, being far less sympathetic in its portrayal of the title character and his bushranging, and featuring some different characters
- Iron Maiden play, but not the same type of music in the absence of what Tom Lehrer once called 'rock and roll and other children's music'. The entire development of late century popular music is going to be an interesting area in the absence of not just rock and roll, but quite a few other genres, including rap and a number of the Cuban derived Latin genres (due to a British Cuba since the 1790s). The list of artists reeled off by Mr. Hendrix may not be everyone's cup of tea, but isn't the full extent of popular/pop music as of 1976
- Patrick Moore's involvement with the April 1st prank is historical; some double jokers within the BBC decide to push the joke a bit further with some false stories
- I'm really in completely different territory for the idea of substantive force increases for the British Army at this point, or indeed any stage after ~ 1950, so there isn't much to go on. The most likely options involve the Guards and field forces, with the latter being a bit of the flavour de jeur; they consist of 6 battalions and bear a resemblance to some of the light divisions fielded by the French in the 1980s, as well as some other formations. There is a feeling that, with the nominal independence of the African colonies generally progressing successfully, there is less direct need or utility for light infantry formations based in East and West Africa
- The VFL and Australian Rules football continues to prosper, with an enlarged Victorian competition being the dry run for an earlier national league, and expansion from all games being on Saturday afternoon to include Friday and Saturday nights, but not Sundays
- The OPM crackdown in Paraguay has a few more twists to come
- Consider the name of the Manchester Guardian's food correspondent. His little article, as well as containing puns, highlights some very direct effects of different climates and trading arrangements; and also allows for the subtle distinction of 'meat, potatoes AND three veg' being mentioned, reflecting again some different culinary developments
- Discovery of the Casco de Leiro is a historical event, but the inscription in an unknown language is not. It may well be a variation on that on the Alfred Jewel...
- Creation of the DVA in Britain comes from there being a very significant military veteran population with the larger British population, and the impact of people living longer lives; veterans now become a significant voting block to be wooed
- The circumstances of young Gary Fridd finding the sword take a bit of a coda from his historical adventure due to its magical nature, leaving him taller and with a taller tale to tell; his youth football/soccer team comes from a fun little 1975 BBC children's television series named Striker: https://nostalgiacentral.com/television ... s/striker/
- Packer strikes a deal with the ACB, mediated by the Great Mediator himself, and this will result in a very different development of world cricket
- The case of the hockey player is derived from a historical circumstance, but is now linked with the earlier NHL case as part of a juridical shift against carte blanche being given to violence on the sports field that would get a man locked up for dealing out in the street
- Few franchises have really emerged to date, which is accurate to our history as well, but a couple of well timed blockbuster films starts to shift that
- The Great Baboon Escape is a case of someone *seeming* to be a chimpanzee breaking them out, but turning out to be something different. More to come in future months
- Project SeaQuest is less of a reference to the television programme, and more of a manifestation of the continuing exploration of the oceans that was choked out by a war in @
- India's population control efforts are slightly less extreme than those being mooted by the Gandhi government around this time historically
- The Cornish Owlman turns out to be something more tangible here, crossing the entirety of Cornwall in a short time. Bert Large and some of the other details of Portwenn are from a certain television series, whilst the final two policemen come from Idris Elba's first leading role in a television serial, 1998's Ultraviolet...
- Strategic arms limitations talks have been very difficult, due to the USA not stopping and standing still, allowing the USSR to catch up in total number of warheads and in ballistic delivery systems. About the only thing that can be easily countenanced is something like what is outlined here, or cruisers and battlecruiser losing their early SLBMs (Polaris and equivalent), which saves money, allows more flexibility in their employment and doesn't noticeably alter the general strategic balance. With regard to SSBNs, the Americans and British are aware that the new class of boomers/bombers that the Soviets blithely describe as Hotel replacements are much, much larger and more capable, and the Golfs are basically suicidal manpower sinks at this time
- Windows on the World will serve a distinctly more American slant on 'grande cuisine' and absolutely won't be serving nouvelle cuisine, which won't raise its head here; those diners who get more than three little morsels and a drizzle of sauce on their plates will be grateful
- Absolutely no issues will come from any of the new Iraqi generals at all
- The Victorian Club robbery turns out to be a busted flush thanks to Regan and Carter, who stumble upon the crime and do what they do best, until several Victoria Police detectives can take over. Note the offhand reference to M-16s being borrowed from Cub Scouts and its implications
- Italy makes something of a strategic great leap forward, but in theory, rather than practical implementation. Actually fielding a force such as that described would add another twist into the strategic arms talks mentioned earlier
- Attenborough's The World Around Us takes the name of an overarching Australian nature show that broadcast a lot of his works and docos, and makes it into something much more expansive and deep. The Mexican staring frog (of Southern Sri Lanka) is a reference to an episode from the second season of South Park, whilst the San Franciscan white rabbit is a reference to the song by Jefferson Airplane
- The British general election is off and running, and, at this point, is anyone's to win. There won't be a majority winner
- April 25 sees the discovery of some sort of cursed ancient hoard, which turns out to be more trouble than it is worth. The name of the truck driver is that of a Norwegian sailor and trucker who was one of the first known cases of HIV in Europe. Here, that particular disease has been long nipped in the bud, thanks to Tarzan
- The little segue into the Merchant Navy shows that the issue of convoying, STUFT and armed merchant ships is not far away from Admiralty considerations
- Gore-Tex will see some interesting employment in some projects
- The number of executions is naturally larger than our post WW2 Britain, due to the substantially larger population, and with certain crimes being classed as capital. Whether it works as a deterrent or not is debated, but the purposes of retribution and public protection rank equally as high in considerations, and the number of executed criminals who have reoffended is vanishingly small to this point
- Mad Dog Morgan is a slightly different picture, being far less sympathetic in its portrayal of the title character and his bushranging, and featuring some different characters
- Iron Maiden play, but not the same type of music in the absence of what Tom Lehrer once called 'rock and roll and other children's music'. The entire development of late century popular music is going to be an interesting area in the absence of not just rock and roll, but quite a few other genres, including rap and a number of the Cuban derived Latin genres (due to a British Cuba since the 1790s). The list of artists reeled off by Mr. Hendrix may not be everyone's cup of tea, but isn't the full extent of popular/pop music as of 1976
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Bernard Woolley
- Posts: 1278
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 4:06 pm
- Location: Earth
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
A highly underrated show in MHO. Jack Davenport, who I associate more with sitcoms, was an interesting choice for one of the leads. He was no action hero, but I thought he portrayed an ordinary man thrown into a bizzare, dangerous world, very well. Susannah Harker and Idris Elba were also excellent. As was Philip Quast as the priest in charge of the organisation.1998's Ultraviolet...
“Frankly, I had enjoyed the war… and why do people want peace if the war is so much fun?” - Lieutenant General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart
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Simon Darkshade
- Posts: 1910
- Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2022 10:55 am
Re: Dark Earth Timeline Discussion
Rather. The sheer disorientation, incongruity and creeping horror that things that should not be were in fact real was played very well, particularly in the first episode. The unfolding of the grand conspiracy took almost too long, with some treading water in the middle, but it ended exceptionally strongly and innovatively for its type of story.
Interestingly, Philip Quast was almost entirely known in Australia for being a presenter on Play School. Seeing him in a role about this sort of thing resulted in quite the double take, like if Christopher Lee had presented Play School...that gives me an idea...
Interestingly, Philip Quast was almost entirely known in Australia for being a presenter on Play School. Seeing him in a role about this sort of thing resulted in quite the double take, like if Christopher Lee had presented Play School...that gives me an idea...