Quick questions and (maybe) answers Hertford Memories thread

[MKM]

Congratulations Angela! What a lucky little boy to have a glamorous granny to dote on him.

[Angela Woodford]

Welsh grandparent names! How interesting - a difference between North and South! I think "Gaga" might be a distinct possibility here. And thank you for your lovely messages Kerren, Katharine and Mary.

Susannah, Adam and baby Sebastian expected here this pm to meet his Aunt Katherine and Uncle Henry for the first time, so activating a Miss Jukes-style "Order of Work" list. The baby "spoke" to me on the phone this morning! Coos and gurgles!

Deeply impressed that in N Yorkshire there is a 24-hr helpline for sleepless mothers called "Little Angels"...

[Katharine]

Gosh, a difference between North and South Wales. My Port Talbot grandparents were 'Gi' (I think short for 'Mamgi') and 'GaGa'. Yes, many congratulations to Angela and family!

There are quite a lot of differences between the Welsh spoken in North and South Wales, which is why I said Nain and Taid were the North Welsh names. Patrick is going to Welsh language lessons and his textbook is for the language as spoken in North Wales.

[Angela Woodford]

Any choir members here?

What were those little brown voice enhancers called - they came in a small tin and we used to pass them down the line before any singing special occasion!

They tasted disgusting. But they were supposed to clarify the voice!

[Fjgrogan]

I was never a choir member in my life, but I think you may mean Imps?

[Angela Woodford]

"Imps"????

Frances, that doesn't seem to awaken any memories...

This is strange...

[icomefromalanddownunder]

Fisherman's Friend?

I do remember Imps - they taste different, but just as awful, as FF. Aren't they triangular, with a sort of ridge around the edge?

[Angela Woodford]

Triangular, with a sort of ridge around the edge! That's them all right! I remember, queueing up in the Pav, in choir formation, being exhorted to sing our best. Oh the seriousness... and then the passing along of these horrible voice clarifying little items.

It's come back to me, because now I have been accepted into the choir of St Michael's, Malton ( ) I shall be doing RSCM chorister training. I was just studying my first work book. Posture! Projection! Voice exercises! Then I got to the advice on what not to eat or drink before singing, and remembered these little black items from the choir leader's secreted tin.

How I adored working in the CH choir! But I've been on the receiving end of more teaching, interest and encouragement after one choir rehearsal at St Michael's than in years of Miss Taverner!

Imps. And I never remembered that name.

[Fjgrogan]

Try www.aquarterof.co.uk, Angela or (since I am not much good at this technical stuff!) Google Mighty Imps. It seems they are still available if you wish to turn up to choir practice with a black tongue!

[J.R.]

Fisherman's Friend?
I do remember Imps - they taste different, but just as awful, as FF. Aren't they triangular, with a sort of ridge around the edge?

That brings to mind an old, (rather blue), joke !

[Fjgrogan]

Oh yes, JR is definitely back on form!

[Jo]

Weren't they Negroids? I doubt that name still exists, even if the article in question does

[MKM]

I used to like Fisherman's Friends. Do they still exist? I am reluctant to try a web search.

[Jo]

Fisherman's Friends are still around, Mary. I've never tried the original version, but the aniseed ones (in the yellow packets) sustained me for several months when I gave up smoking many years ago.

[eucsgmrc]

Weren't they Negroids? I doubt that name still exists, even if the article in question does

They still exist, but the name is Nigroids. I don't know whether that's better or worse. A friend gave me a little box of them recently.