The speedy spinster

Two weeks ago, Dulcibella King-Hall heralded her 107th birthday by whizzing round Brands Hatch at 108 mph (90 seconds):



During the last war Miss King-Hall was a military test driver, assessing vehicles commandeered from civilian use.

Asked why she loved the thrill of speed, she reportedly replied: "Why shouldn't I? Don't you like it?

"I have a driving licence. I can drive any vehicle."

She must surely be a relation (perhaps a younger sister?) of the author, dramatist and independent MP Commander Stephen King-Hall, later Lord King-Hall of Headley (1893-1966).

Many thanks

…to whoever it was who linked to this blog, or otherwise drew attention to it, last Saturday, causing a dramatic spike in traffic.

You rang, my curmudgeon?

The late Lord Kilmarnock was Kingsley Amis's butler.

Art Colony Perverts

Another of those great titles.

Salty old sea blog

Launched this week, Voyage of the Vampire is the never-before-published diary of 20-year-old Captain Sir George Scott Douglas, Bt, as he sails through the Greek islands and on to Istanbul in 1846-47.