Medals fit for war heroes
QUESTION What is the origin of the expression Pip, Squeak and Wilfred to describe the three campaign medals awarded for service during World War I? PiP, Squeak and Wilfred were the affectionate names given to the World War i campaign medals, the 1914 Star or 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal. When the medals were issued after the war, Pip, Squeak And Wilfred (1919-56) was a popular comic strip published by the Daily Mirror.
The strip centred on the adventures of an orphaned family of animals and friends: the father figure, Pip the dog; the mother, Squeak, a penguin; and young Wilfred, a long-eared rabbit.
The strip was written and created by Mirror journalist Bertram J. Lamb (who signed himself as Uncle Dick) and was drawn by the cartoonist Austin Bowen Payne (A. B. Payne).
it’s thought that A. B. Payne’s batman during the war had been nicknamed Pipsqueak, and this is where the names of the dog and penguin came from.
P. R. Cowan, Durham. The British War Medal (BWM), 1914-20, was a silver circular medal with the head of George V on the front and St George on the back. it had a silk ribbon with a golden yellow central band and white, black and blue stripes either side.
it was issued to members of the fighting forces who, while on service, left their native shore in any part of the British empire, regardless of whether or not they entered the theatre of war: 6,610,000 were issued, with the soldier’s regiment and number inscribed around the rim.
The Victory Medal (VM), 1914-19, was circular and struck in bronze, with the figure of Victory on the front and on the reverse the inscription: ‘The Great War for Civilisation.’ it had a silk ribbon of two rainbow stripes with red in the middle. Those mentioned in dispatches have an oak leaf emblem. it was awarded to all who entered the theatre of war.
it follows that all who were awarded this were also awarded the BWM, but not the other way round: 5,725,000 were issued, with the soldier’s regiment and number inscribed around the rim.
The 1914–15 Star was a bronze star, with the uppermost ray taking the form of the imperial crown. Resting on the face of the star are a pair of crossed swords and on them is a circular oak wreath.
A scroll winds around the swords inscribed 1914-15, while the ribbon is red merging into white, then blue. it was issued to all who served in the theatre of war before December 31, 1915.
More than 2.5 million trios of Star, BWM and VM were issued, and these became known as Pip, Squeak and Wilfred after the Daily Mirror cartoon characters.
The pairing of the BWM and the VM became known as Mutt And Jeff after cartoon characters in the San Francisco Chronicle, though why this should be taken up by the British is obscure — Mutt and Jeff is Cockney rhyming slang for ‘deaf’.
Alan Grant, Ticehurst, E. Sussex.
QUESTION What is the second longest running theatre production (after The Mousetrap) in Britain?
AGAThA ChRiSTie’S The Mousetrap is the world’s longest-running play.
The classic whodunit, which takes place in a remote english country house hotel during a snowstorm, opened in London’s West end in 1952. it has run for more than 27,000 performances and has been going strong for 65 years.
The world’s second-longest musical and Britain’s second longest running theatre production is Les Miserables.
Based on the novel by Victor hugo, the action takes place in 19th- century France. Les Mis follows the plight of a former convict turned mayor who is hunted for decades by a ruthless policeman. it has music by Claude-Michel Schonberg and original French-language lyrics by Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, with an english language libretto and english language lyrics by herbert Kretzmer.
The show made its debut in Britain on October 8, 1985, has been running for 32 years, and has been seen by more than 70 million people in 42 countries. Les Mis narrowly edges out Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom Of The Opera, which debuted on October 9, 1986, and so has been running for 31 years.
Katie Munro, Clare, Suffolk.
QUESTION Who holds the record for narrating the most audiobooks?
AUDiOBOOKS are the fastest growing sector in publishing. in 2016, 5.5 million people bought or listened to an audiobook in Britain, and they account for onetenth of all books sold.
Fans will almost certainly have heard a narration by George Guidall, born in Plainfield, New Jersey, in 1938. The undisputed king of audiobooks has narrated more than 1,300 in 30 years.
his oeuvre includes U.S. standards such as Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections and Philip Roth’s Patrimony, classics such as Crime And Punishment, Zorba The Greek, Frankenstein, The iliad, Don Quixote and The hunchback Of Notre Dame, and popular bestsellers, including Steven King’s Dark Towers series.
Guidall has won several Audie awards, received the 2015 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award and the best male narration for the thriller The english Spy: Gabriel Allon, Book 15 by Daniel Silva.
he has also enjoyed a career in the theatre, including starring roles on Broadway. he won an Obie award for his performance in Off-Broadway’s Cinders.
And Guidall has appeared on a number of U.S. TV shows such as Law & Order.
Kristina Barnes, Shrewsbury, Shropshire.