Winston Churchill's Teeth

They say its a good idea to look after your teeth – and in Winston Churchills case, it was certainly true!

These dentures were one of three or four made for Winston Churchill by the dental technician Derek Cudlipp at the start of the war. (Photograph: Newsmakers Pr/PA)
A set of false teeth belonging to Winston Churchill’s has been sold for £15,200 at an auction in Norfolk. Yup, my friends, I did say £15,200.

The upper dentures, one of several sets made for the wartime prime minister, were specially constructed to preserve his natural lisp and were so important he carried two pairs with him at all times.

The teeth, sold by the son of the dental technician who made them, had been expected to fetch a maximum of £5,000, but they were bought for more than three times that by a British collector of Churchill memorabilia.

The set of dentures were designed to be loose-fitting so that Churchill could preserve the diction famous from his radio broadcasts during the second world war, an expert said.

“From childhood, Churchill had a very distinctive natural lisp; he had trouble with his S’s,” said Jane Hughes, head of learning at the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons in London. “These are the teeth that saved the world.”

The medical museum displays a duplicate set of Churchill’s dentures in a glass cabinet alongside other famous teeth including dentures worn by Queen Caroline, the estranged wife of King George IV.

“Churchill wanted to maintain [the lisp] because he was already so well known for it,” she said. “The dentures wouldn’t quite connect with the top of the mouth, but that was on purpose.”

The dentures were made by the dental technician Derek Cudlipp, who produced three or four identical sets for Churchill. One set is believed be have been buried with the leader.

The false teeth were made just around the start of the war, when Churchill would have been about 65, Hughes said.

The politician is famous for his rousing speeches to the British nation during the war, but his dental issues are less well known. Hughes said Churchill had many problems with his teeth as a child and probably lost some of them quite early. The leader valued so highly the skill of his dentist, Wilfred Fish, that he nominated him for a knighthood.

Churchill served as prime minister from 1940 to 1945 and then from 1951 to 1955

It just goes to prove – look after your teeth – even if they are dentures!

How to Make Money from your Blog!

Its the answer we all want, is'nt it. Well, if we are really honest!

Don't get me wrong - I love blogging just for the sake of blogging. For me, its a creative outlet and despite if I've had 'one of those days', I still love sitting in front of my dear old Mac and waffling for Britain. Its fun.

But lets be honest - wouldn't it be lovely if we also managed to earn a few pounds here and there from our witterings, wafflings and banter? Is it possible? Can you earn money from a blog?

In my search for such an answer, I found a site thats probably already known to many serial bloggers because it really does seem to help monetize my blog. Its called www.devhub.com

DevHub seems to offer it all. It has links for referrals, advertising programmes with existing developers, all social media links to take you through to twitter and facebook etc. I have just signed up with them, so its early days, but all seems well so far!

I will report back in the next few weeks with my findings. With a bit of luck, I will have made enough to buy a bottle of water - its boiling hot today!

Isle sur la Sorgue

Isle sur la Sorgue – my kind of place.

Isle-sur-la-Sorgue is a magical, heavenly place that will tantalise every single sense that you have. I guarantee it!

Famed for its deliciously large market that takes every Sunday, its a darling of a town right in the heart of Provence. It is Provence to me and I could quite happily move there. Many others have done – a hero of mine, the late Mr. Keith Floyd lived nearby – what better commendation could a place receive!?

Just 30 minutes from the papal city of Avignon (very easy to get to by plane, trains and automobiles), its part of the little cluster of towns and villages that make up the Luberon region – Gordes, Goult, Bonnieux, Lacoste…. I adore it and thank fully my work takes me there on a regular basis

What prompted me to share all this with you? Well, I’d just noticed on my desk a business card from a gorgeous little bistro that sits right in the heart of the town. Run by a lovely couple – Paul and Nicole – who saw sense and left Paris to settle in Isle sur la Sorgue a few years ago. Bought the bistro and they now live and breathe.

Oh the steak! My mouth is watering right now at the thought of it – and just seeing their card on my desk has inspired all this. I jolly well hope I’m going there again soon too. But, back to the matter in hand – I’m supposed to be telling you about this heavenly find…Au Chineur. Sigh…

Au Chineur sits right on the River Sorgue. Infact, most places in Isle sur la Sorgue do sit on the river and there’s a kind of hint about that in the name of the town… The Sorgue runs through it, in it, under it and all around it. Some call it the “Venice of France”. I don’t personally agree with that – I don’t think its like Venice at all. If I wanted to be in Venice, I would!

Au Chineur is rough and tumble – its a bistro. The food is deliciously yummy. Its not the very best I have tasted. But, its much more than that…The French very decently have a wonderful word that sums up exactly how to describe Au Chineur…“Ambiance”. Its positively dripping in the stuff. Can’t walk more than one yard without tripping over it – ambiance is everywhere! For a start, the tables are made up from old sewing machines – you know the ones with the lovely cast iron bases. Then, there’s the rickety old bar, the bentwood chairs that creak and groan under my increasing weight, the busy but cheerful staff…even the loo – and lets face it, one can often judge a restaurant simply from its loo – is full of antiques and curios! Oh yes, my friends – it is a veritable feast for all the senses!

Am I allowed to confess it is the only place in Sorgue that I frequent? Thats shocking isn’t - as I am sure there are others that are perfectly lovely. I was there about a month ago for a friends birthday party and I sat back, rolled some vin rouge around my tongue and knew that all was well with the world…. paradise.

So, please do go! Say hello to Paul and Nicole! The plat du jour is always excellent value – usually under 15 euros – and they have an excellent wine list too! I have an amusing story about that…but thats for later

Anyone Can Do It!

Anyone can Do it – we all can.

Duncan Bannatyne is right, you know. Anyone can. Anyone can do it.

So, what stops us? There are a million answers to that. I am no wannabe head shrink who will add to the zillions of pages already on the internet, all of which will no doubt tell us.

What gets in my way? Well, I can answer that one – and I suspect only you can answer yours. For me, its usually fear. Fear of failure. I fear something might go wrong, I will look an idiot – sorry, more of an idiot than before. So, fear keeps me sitting still and not taking action. Occasionally, I see through that fear, conquer it and achieve something.

So how can reading a book help get rid of fear? Well, personally speaking, I am someone who needs encouragement. I feel boosted if I hear someone else tell me their story of how they did it. I love reading biographies of how people have achieved something, built something, created something. They encourage, motivate and inspire me. Testimonies are good news – for us all.

Duncan Bannatyne, one of Britains most well known entrepreneurs, has written a book on just that. How he did it. I first read it a couple of years ago and found it enormously encouraging. After getting half way through it, I did start to think – “well;, if he can, so can I…”.

It’s so easy to look at successful people and just see the end result. Its a bit like turning to the last page of the novel without reading the tears, pain, frustration, hard work and everything else that’s gone into making them who they are today… We see the lavish lifestyles, the cars, houses today – but its easy to overlook the graft that happened yesterday.

I think, for me, thats the good thing about Bannatyne’s book – Anyone Can Do It. He really takes time in it to go through those early years – years of struggle and hardwork, toil and labour. Yes, they paid off and we all know the end result. But, I find when I’m having a really tough day or week (or month!), that actually its quite encouraging to read these guys all did too. And most importantly, that they came through it – soldiered on – conquered fear and were successful.

Richard Branson was just the same and every entrepreneur before him.

So, if like me and its yet another Monday morning of feeling – “Euuggghh….back to work”, then start to believe that you can do it too. What “it” refers to will be completely different for each of us…”It” certainly is not just about money and business – its so many different things to each of us. But, reading how someone else has turned their life around and achieved their “it”, has really encouraged and motivated me and I hope it will you too. Buy it.

Monty meets Betty Boop

Monty meets Betty Boop!

I’d always heard of this funny little character – but being a typical English chappy had not really got a clue about her.

So, when I received a phone call out of the blue asking “Do you buy pictures? I’ve got some old ones of Betty Boop” – I thought I had better do a quick bit of research. And I liked what I found.

America’s fascination with the brunette bombshell Betty Boop began in 1930. Inspired by the singer Helen Kane, the ‘Boop Oop a Doop Girl,’ animator Grim Natwick created her originally as a human-like dog. Over the next year, however, her canine features morphed into human ones and the world fell in love with Betty Boop.

But, with a possible deal in the offing, I thought I had better research the market for ‘BB’ merchandise. I’m glad I did.

Betty holds a special place in many collectors’ hearts to this day, whether they discovered her in the 1930s or the 1990s when she celebrated her 60th anniversary. As she remains a modern fascination, there are now two camps of Betty Boop collectors: vintage and modern. Vintage Betty Boop merchandise is of course tougher to find and more valuable. However, if you’re looking simply for Betty Boop collectibles and the era is immaterial, your choice is enormous.

Modern manufacturers have given Betty Boop fans everything from tin signs to umbrellas to rugs, watches, tote bags, and mouse pads. You’ll also find party plates, coffee mugs, sleepware, hats, chairs, wastebaskets, sandals, keyrings, bedding, ornaments, bobbleheads, aprons, and of course, figurines. The Betty Boop legend lives on in all its kitschy glory!

Do your homework and make sure that if an item is advertised as vintage, that it truly fits that description. On ebay – a massive source of Betty Boop stuff, vintage items, like a Betty Boop lunchbox, will be offered alongside more modern pieces, such as a Betty Boop handbag, for example. So really do have a good read of all descriptions. Collectors on a variety of sites can give you a sense of current market value for true vintage pieces.

So there you have it. Looking into young and delightful Miss Boop has been a pleasant distraction from abstract and cubist art that I normally glance at all day!

Gordes - Luberon, Provence. Yes!

Gordes – every year is “A Good Year”.

Provence is one of my favourite places in the entire world. I love it. Breathe it. Dream about it. Live it.

The dappled light, those little red roofed towns perched on hill tops, the gentle pace of life…one can very easily let time amble past, all washed down with a deliciously fresh glass of Rose.

Those who have been will all have their own special places and I certainly have several and on each visit discover a new. One of them, is the little town of Gordes, in the Luberon and it is a very special place for lots of reasons.

It to me just typifies my imagination of a little French town, with its donging church bells, cobbled streets, dappled light and of course….art!

The other reason I simply adore it, is that it was used as a film location for one of my all time favourite films – A Good Year, starring Russell Crowe and the delightful Marion Cotillard. Directed by the fantastic Ridley Scott (who also has a home in the area), it tells the tale of a London banker who is ruthless and money hungry. After inheriting his uncles home in Provence, he heads there with the intention of selling it and never returning. After being there for 24 hours, Provence weaves its magic spell that intoxicates us all – and of course, you all know the rest of the story as he falls in love with the delicious waitress who works in….Gordes.

Old Monty is a lucky old chap and I am very blessed to visit Gordes and the equally lovely surrounding villages in the Luberon, on a regular basis Every time I go, I do stand and stare at the gorgeous little cafe, where Mr. Crowe tried to woo the gorgeous Ms. Cotillard. This is it…without the film crew!

The place is a bit of a tourist trap and as I sat carefully making my espresso last as long as I could manage (it costs euros 3.80!), I managed to close my eyes and remember the scene. Was it the same being there? No, but I do love it all the same.

So, when you’re next in Provence, do try and call in at Gordes. Its only about 30 minutes from Avignon and very easy to get to. Parking is provided at the entrance of the village for just 3 euros a day and its a beautiful view. One of my favourite French artists, who is very much underrated by comparison to his contemporaries, once lived in Gordes and has a street named after thank fully. Andre Lhote 1885-1962.

His little road makes you simply want to whip out the old easel and get painting straight away – the views from his house simply take ones breath away!

This is the opposite view and shows a typical view in Gordes…

The surrounding area of the Luberon is positively dripping with similar little hill topped villages – each equally unique and captivating to the mind, body and soul. I adore them

The Wind in the Willows

The Wind in the Willows…

You might not be surprised to hear that the “Wind in the Willows” is my favourite book.

I know it should be the Bible and yes sometimes that does pip others to the post. But…since childhood, I have been completely captivated by tales of the riverbank and the adventures of four little creatures – Ratty, Moley, Badger and my ultimate role model…Mr. Toad….sigh!

I adore them. I really do. It’s a timeless classic that has grown on me through every year of my life.

I remember at prep school joining the ‘Book Club’. We each paid the princely sum of 5 pence a week into a kitty and after a few weeks I had saved enough to buy a book. I was intrigued by one title, as my little seven year old eyes scanned the list of available books within my 50p budget. It was a tale of four little animals who lived by the riverbank and I thought it sounded like fun. So I bought it. It seized me – mind, body and soul and still does today.

Over the weekend, I went for a lovely lunch at a friends house, deep in the Cotswolds. At the end of their garden ran a burbling, gurgling and quite delightful river.

It had willow trees dancing in the breeze and dappled light in it, on it and all around it and immediately I was transported back to my old riverbank and enjoying life with my dear friends: Ratty, Moley, Badger and Toad. Oh dear old Toad!

Since that first book I bought, back at prep-school for 50p, I have been an avid collector of Wind in the Willows books. I have 43 different editions, as of today (it could change by tomorow!). I’m still saving up for a 1st. edition but have a lovely second and third, fourth, fifth…sixth….and so on!

The Wind in the Willows was first published in 1908. Alternately slow moving and fast paced, the novel is notable for its mixture of mysticism, adventure, morality, and camaraderie. I adore every line.

The Wind in the Willows was in its thirty-first printing when then-famous playwright, A. A. Milne, who loved it, adapted a part of it for stage as Toad of Toad Hall in 1929.

In 1908 Grahame retired from his position as secretary of the Bank of England. He moved to the country, where he spent his time by the River Thames doing much as the animal characters in his book do; namely, as one of the most famous phrases from the book says, “simply messing about in boats”.

My favourite character, as you might imagine, was Mr. Toad More on him soon….

If you haven’t picked it up from dusty old bookshelf, or relegated it to the childrens book section, then my friends, I urge you – nay implore you! to revisit it again. It will make you smile – I guarantee it!

What's in your attic?!

What’s in Your Attic?!

We all dream of rooting around in our attics and stumbling upon a few lost old masters, left their by dear old Aunt Mildred. Well, I do anyway!

For some, this is not a dream but a reality as the Earl Spencer recently demonstrated with the “Althorp Attic Sale”. 750 exciting, dusty, forgotten and discarded ‘relics’ went under the hammer at Christies Auctioneers last week, in London. What an eclectic sale it was too!

500 of the lots were from the attics, stables and cellars at Althorp, the childhood home of Diana, Princess of Wales. Christies specialist Andy Waters and his colleague, Jeffrey Lassaline, senior specialist in the silver department, had the utter joy and pleasure of sifting through the treasure trove and were like two little boys in a sweet shop! They uncovered everything the inventive aristocrat required for a well-rounded existence, from horse-drawn carriages and coachmen’s livery to several centuries of textiles, fine furniture, old cricket bats, ice skates, snuffboxes and beechwood shovels. Imagine!

The highlight of the auction was a speculative lot that has been the cause of much controversy. “The Portrait of a Commander Being Dressed for Battle” attributed to Sir Peter Paul Rubens, the Flemish Old Master (1577-1640). It was acquired by the Spencer family back in 1802 – bought then with a possible attribution to Rubens. In the two hundred years since, experts have been divided as to its authenticity to this very day. Christies maintain the work is a hallmark Rubens – Sothebys are not quite so sure! But hey ho – the painting fetched the second highest price for a Rubens work ever and sold for £9m all the same. Excuse me for one sec, whilst I just gasp!

Andy Waters, at Christies, described the whole experience akin to discovering Tutankhamun. “I crept along by the light of my torch,” he says. “I could see some brass flashing in the darkness. I went back for a plug-in light so I could see what was in this dark corner. Wrapped in old newspapers was a complete Victorian batterie de cuisine – more than 100 pieces, including copper pans, fish kettles and jelly moulds, that had been put aside 60 or 70 years ago and not used since.”.

In all, the sale realised a staggering £21.1 million pounds. Not bad for a few old discarded things in ones attic, eh?! I am delighted to hear that the money raised will be going towards vital repairs to the restoration of Althorp House. Well done Earl Spencer.

It just goes to show, there’s certainly ‘cash in the attic!’. So, who’s first up the stairs to their attic then!?