Photo parade – apostrophe woes

A sign near Spaghetti Junction

(OT:)

“Ukip Man – Fighting for your childrens and your childrens childrens future.”

For sale at a garden centre on the Isle of Wight

Photo parade

I’d like to see apostrophes banished from English altogether. But in the meantime, can’t we force signmakers to take an English test? (Shop in Bedworth)

 The sign by the door is 98% error-free.

One of my pet peeves! (Sign on The Crosswells Inn, Langley)

I just thought this was an odd name. (Street in Oldbury, near West Bromwich)

Coventry Scrabbleathon

Yesterday I visited the UK Scrabble Open in Coventry. It was interesting to compare the event with a poker tournament. It certainly didn’t look much different (although the average age of the participants was somewhat higher) and the sound of tiles being rattled in bags echoed all the toying with chips that goes on in a poker room. The event is taking place over five days, which is the same length as the top poker tournaments, but the prize money isn’t in the same league. The winner will receive £3,000, compared with the £500,000 Vicky Coren received for winning last year’s European Poker Tour event in London.

The elite end of the room

Paul Allan & Nigel Richards – the start of a 975-pointer

Azu Ogbogu and Mark Nyman discussing their game

Still, the sight of 100 people simultaneously cogitating against the clock was pretty impressive, and even a little exciting. It’s a shame that there’s no giant scoreboard displaying everyone’s progress – statistics always give me a thrill!

While I waited to have a chat with Mark Nyman – the only Briton ever to have been world champion – I made myself useful by ferrying word-challenges to the adjudicator. One of these was when current world champion Nigel Richards – who’s flown in specially from New Zealand for this event – made the play “pheesing”. (I’ll let you find out whether it’s valid.) Some of the challenges on other tables seemed a bit desperate – “yam”?? – as did some of the plays, proving that Scrabble-players can be bluffers too.

No-noes of 1946

 Common Errors, etc.

 Some grammatical and spelling difficulties

From “The Did You Know Book for Children and their Elders”, price 4½d, copyright of and printed by Storey, Evans & Co Ltd of Leeds, for Haverstock Publishers Ltd of Fleet Street, London EC4.