THE BIG QUESTIONS
I’ve been watching Formula 1 for years, so have heard the phrase “pole position” many, many times. But where does a pole come into it? – J
The phrase has its origins in a slower form of racing and was first used in the 19th Century.
A pole was used in horse racing to mark the starting position of a course, next to the inside boundary fence. The fastest qualifying horse was give pole position for the start of a race.
There was a great TV series I loved watching in the ’70s called UFO. It was about an organisation defending Earth from an alien invasion – but I can’t remember where the aliens came from. – P
The series, which ran for 26 episodes, was created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, who also made Thunderbirds and Space: 1999.
An international military agency, SHADO (Supreme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation) defends the planet against aliens who come from an unidentified, dying planet.
The aliens may be attempting to harvest organs from abducted humans to preserve their own lifespans.
We’ve been having a discussion that no one definitively knows the answer to – where was the queen born? – L
In a Chinese restaurant!
Well, that’s not exactly correct – she was born at 17 Bruton Street in London’s Mayfair on April 21, 1926.
The house belonged to her maternal grandparents, but was bombed during the war, so the building is different, but there is now a Chinese restaurant at that address.