Norman’s top secret service
QUESTION For many years, l was fortunate enough to enjoy the friendship of the late Sir Norman Wisdom. In one of our conversations he mentioned that he spent part of World War II as a radio operator in Churchill’s London war rooms. Can this be confirmed? NormaN Wisdom (1915 – 2010) was an actor and comedian, best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring his hapless onscreen character, who was often called Norman Pitkin.
Wisdom began his working life as a soldier. He enlisted into the King’s own royal regiment (Lancaster), but was discharged as he was under age.
He re-enlisted as a drummer boy in the 10th royal Hussars. in 1930 he was posted to Lucknow, india, as a bandsman. There he gained an education certificate, rode horses, became the flyweight boxing champion of the British army in india, learned to play the trumpet and clarinet and discovered his talent for making people laugh.
returning to England in 1938, he met his first wife, doreen, and worked in a chip shop and as a taxi driver. While driving his taxi he made a stop-off at the Willesden Telephone Exchange, where he spotted an advert for night operators.
in his biography my Turn, he wrote: ‘i put on my best cut-glass accent, and to my delight i was accepted. They hired me as a night telephone operator, which was when i realised they had women operators by day and me at night.’
When war broke out, Wisdom stayed in his post as it was a reserved occupation, though being perched at the top of the Telephone Exchange with bombs dropping all around was a hair-raising experience.
He was incredibly frustrated: ‘i was a fully trained soldier who knew how to handle a rifle, and here i was spending my days saying: “Number please!”.’
Nine months into the war, Wisdom was seconded to a secret wartime communications centre, a basement bunker off the Edgware road where Churchill had one of his command units. ‘our post was two floors underground, down a flight of stone steps from street level to a small office where i sat with other colleagues at a large switchboard.
‘There was no clue to the heavy green painted door next to us as to what was going on, but inside was the strategic Command room, the inner sanctum where Churchill would confer with his top brass. my job was to monitor calls and direct them to whichever part of the war theatre our leader needed to reach.
‘i found myself speaking to montgomery, ike in Washington, General Patton . . . our orders were to wait until we knew it was the person the Pm wished to speak to in person, then plug in the appropriate line, press a button and wait for Churchill’s unmistakable growl “Yes”.’
Wisdom was eventually called up but seconded to the royal Corps of signals, working at CNW — Cheltenham network, another secret communications establishment, where he spoke to pilots on bombing raids. Mike Pierce, Birmingham.
QUESTION The derrick, a type of lifting device, is named after a man called Derrick. What other pieces of equipment are named after people?
THomas dErriCK had been accused of rape, but was pardoned by the Earl of Essex on the provision that he became an executioner, a job few people were willing to do in Elizabethan times.
derrick evidently took to the role, executing more than 3,000 people. He made improvements to the gallows, devising a beam with a topping lift and pulleys for his hangings. Prior to this the hangman simply threw a rope over the gallows. derrick’s system made hanging more efficient.
The word derrick became the name for the frame from which the hangman’s noose was supported and through that usage to modern cranes.
Michael Unwin, Ongar, Essex.
THE allen key is named after William G. allen of the allen manufacturing company of Hartford, Connecticut.
While patents for similar devices were filed under other names, his company were the first to produce them under the name of the ‘hex key’ in 1910.
Henry F. Phillips (1890 – 1958), a U.s. businessman from Portland, oregon, has the Phillips head screw and screwdriver named after him.
The inventor was actually John P. Thompson. Phillips’s contribution was in driving the concept to the point where it was adopted by screwmakers.
The Plimsoll line on ships was devised by English politician and social reformer samuel Plimsoll (1824-1898). The painted lines on the hull of ships show the maximum lower depth that is allowed when fully loaded.
Joseph Cyril Bamford ( 1916- 2001) started making tipper trailers in 1945. He expanded into construction and agricultural machinery, and today JCB is a world leader in its field.
Tony Levy, Wednesfield, W. Mids.
iN JaPaN, the office stapler is called a Hotchikisu because the first examples imported into Japan from the U.s. in 1903 were made by the E. H. Hotchkiss Company and bore the name ‘Hotchkiss No 1’ in large letters. The word stapler ( suteepuraa) is also known, but Hotchikisu has become more widespread. The Japan National Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) decided in 2008 to stop using suteepuraa in favour of Hotchikisu. it is also used in Korea. Graham Healey, School of East Asian Studies, University of Sheffield.
IS THERE a question to which you have always wanted to know the answer? Or do you know the answer to a question raised here? Send your questions and answers to: Charles Legge, Answers To Correspondents, Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, London, W8 5TT; fax them to 01952 780111 or email them to charles.legge@dailymail.co.uk. A selection will be published but we are not able to enter into individual correspondence.