And to think that Dad’s Army was initially turned down as being offensive to and belittling the Home Guard!!

Where did you get that notion from? It’s simply not true. The BBC Head of Comedy Michael Mills commissioned it pretty much immediately, on the proviso that David Croft co-wrote it with creator Jimmy Perry as Jimmy had not previously written for television. I know Jimmy and knew David personally. Both are/were great men.

I wasn’t intending to make any comparison, just to point out that there was a survivng bomber that had flown a lot more missions than the Lancaster at Hendon.

Personally I was not really sure what curly boy’s description of ‘most decorated survivor’ meant. At first I assumed this thread was to be about surviving veterans who were awarded the most medals. I would have liked to see that topic. Then when I realsied he was talking about aircraft I wondered at first if he was referring to most colourfully decorated artwork/paintwork,

Thanks for the replies. Bombing from 10 feet sounds rather exciting! Thanks for releasing the gist of the new revelations. It sounds intriguing and now I wonder was the RAF aware at all on any level or had they been hodwonked by the Government, or had Britian been hoodwinked by the Resistance in the first place? I guess I’ll have to read the book some day to find out, or wait till Wikipedia is updated.

I take an interest in this raid as a chap from my town was killed in it, Dick Sampson.

What did the Portugese do with the impounded aicraft? Did they impress them into their own air force? Scrap them? Return them after the war?

D. Homewood

Yes David, that is why I asked you – because I’m a “know nothing oik” You seem to be a well balanced chap with chips on both shoulders regarding the English – or is it just the rugby team?

Well now, the mighty All Blacks or should that be the Almighty Blacks, have won the RWC the same number of times as the rubbish English. Who’d a believed it?

John Green KNO

I have no chips on my shoulders at all about the English as a race. A large proportion of my best friends both in this country and in Britain are English as it happens. Outside of New Zealanders the English are the finest people in the world.

The English team was not rubbish when they won the cup some years ago. The team that has played so far in this year’s tournament played like rubbish however. Plain and simple.

Now please stop trying to bait me for a fight because I don’t have any interest in arguing with a troll.

The kiwis only won it before the rest of the world realised it was happening, since then things have been a bit different.

?? What a stupid statement. The rugby nations had been playing international tests for around a century before the World Cup, and the 1987 tournament had been in the planning for years before taking place. It was hosted by New Zealand and Australia, and teams from Britian, Europe, North and South America and Asia all took part. Your misguided thinking that “the rest of the world” hadn’t “realised what was happening” is pure fantasy.

Still think that despite NZ putting on a good show that it would have been a wise move getting Japan to host it.

Why? What are your reasons for stating this?