Two anniversaries in the motor car industry today, one birth and one death.

13 August 1866 - Giovanni Agnelli born.

Italian founder of Fiat S.p.A. in 1899.

13 August 1971 - William Bentley died.

English founder of Bentley Motors in 1919. Over here, Art will say if I'm wrong, Bentley is considered second only to Rolls Royce, or used to be anyway? 

14 August 1954 - Hugo Eckener died.

The foremost airshipman of the 1920s and 30s. Originally a journalist he reported on Count von Zeppelin's early airships before joining Luftschiffbau-Zeppelin as publicist in 1908. He entered on his new career as airship pilot in 1911 seeing out the war as a trainer.

His true worth became apparent in the 1920s becoming head of the company and piloting every one of the airships manufactured thereafter. In 1926 he delivered the LZ126 to the USA where it was commissioned into the US Navy as the ZR-3 Los Angeles. In 1929 he flew the LZ127 Graf Zeppelin around the world and in 1931 to the Arctic. 

Disagreement with the NAZI regime forced his virtual retirement. 

Thank you, Major, for the explanation about ship discipline.  I had an image of 100 teenage girls in a confined space and -- well, we know how mean girls can get.  The movie was worth every hard scene, believe me.  I even endured making that hulk, hulk, hulk sound during the bad water scene (that sound a cat makes right before it throws up).

Harrison's clocks were openly displayed in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich (pronounced grennich) It was a long time ago since I was last there but back then the clocks were on open display. You literally could walk up to them and touch them. There were signs telling you not to of course but you could. I don't know how they are displayed now but with such national treasures in today's world, they certainly wouldn't be just sat on a table, as they were. Wasn't Michael Gambon brilliant with the accent and portrayal? To think, he wasn't even an horologist by profession, he was a carpenter and of course his first clocks were made of wood, with one still working in a church tower. The book Longitude, on which the series is based was written bat the American author Dava Sobell, who you can tell by her narration that she's truly in love with the man

Two anniversaries in the motor car industry today, one birth and one death.

13 August 1866 - Giovanni Agnelli born.

Italian founder of Fiat S.p.A. in 1899.

13 August 1971 - William Bentley died.

English founder of Bentley Motors in 1919. Over here, Art will say if I'm wrong, Bentley is considered second only to Rolls Royce, or used to be anyway? 

Some think they are sporty Rolls Royces but they are a totally different car with a totally different history. Personally I think they are majestic, whereas I think Rolls are too Teutonic. Bentley are produced close to both of us in Crewe