The Gentlemen: Season 2 - Netflix Series

The Gentlemen: Season 2 | Official Trailer | Netflix
Netflix

Epic. Cross of The Godfather and James Bond. Upper class British dude has built a cannabis empire that is raking in zillions of dollars but he wants more. To that end he wants parliament to pass a bill that will make Mary Jane legal. He reasons that, like in America, the legal business will bring in more revenue without significantly impacting the illegal business. This is because illegal marijuana will be cheaper than the legal stuff. However, his boss does not agree, arguing that while our boy Edouard might be a general in this sprawling criminal enterprise, the boss is a field marshal and so has to consider the bigger picture. Unfortunately, he doesn't explain what the bigger picture is. We'll have to wait for season 3 to find out just what that is.

We get to see what competent former soldiers can do when circumstance dictate. Gentlemen by all accounts during the day, but killers when the need arises. There are a couple of scenes when several bad guys are shot down without any warning. At least one situation was entirely warranted, but there were a couple that seemed unnecessary, but these guys are essentially operating on a war footing, so maybe it was a valid tactical decision.

Best show I've seen in a while. 6 stars out of 5.

Season one here.

Union Jack

The Union Jack, the national flag of the United Kingdom, combines the Crosses of
St. George (England), St. Andrew (Scotland), and St. Patrick (Ireland).

Stu's post about the Union Jack got me started. The flag arose in 1606.

Unforgotten - Amazon Prime Series

Unforgotten | Series 1 | ITV
ITV

The show starts off with visiting a number of apparently unrelated old people. This gets my curiousity going. Why are we visiting all these people? Turns out their names are all on a list found in a notebook that was found with the remains of a dead body, a body that died 40 years ago. Now we have a team of like six detectives investigating this death. So tell me, what police department has got the resources to put six detectives on investigating a 40 year old death? There isn't one, unless they've got their head screwed on backwards. However, this is England, and England seems terminally confused these days, so, if you are feeling vindictive about England this show might seem plausible. But it ain't, it's a fantasy. It is a pretty entertaining fantasy.

Until you get to the middle of the season and now we've got all these people losing their minds over what they think might have happened 40 years ago. I don't think I've ever run into a bigger bunch of weak minded people in my life. Of course, the circle of people I associate with is pretty small, so maybe there are hordes of morons out there running around loose.

Then we've got the coppers trying to piece together what happened from what people tell them of what they remember. Half of their memories are missing, and half of the people are lying, so if you are getting any kind of picture, it's going to be very patchy. Hard to imagine building any kind of case for murder.

There are a few bits of fancy forensics, but the lab techs who do this work are entirely too happy about it. Maybe they just wanted a change of pace from the standard dour old lab curmudgeon.

6 seasons, 6 episodes each. Probably finish this season but I don't think I'll watch any more.

P. S. The first season is free but after that you have to pay, even if you are an Amazon Prime subscriber. We're already paying for Netflix and Amazon Prime, I don't need to paying any surcharges.

Nearest Pint

Nearest Pint UK

Via Detroit Steve

SS Eleanor

SS Eleanor on the River Mersey circa 1957 - Robert G. Lloyd 

Just another cargo ship steaming away. The building on the left is The Royal Liver Building. The building on the right is the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, the largest cathedral in Britain, and the eighth largest church in the world.

Bristol Beaufighter Mk VI

Bristol Beaufighter Mk VI
Image from Tamiya scale model kit

Bristol Beaufighter TFX

The prototype flew on 17 July 1939 and the first production Beaufighters were delivered to the Royal Air Force in the following April. The type was the first high performance night fighter equipped with airborne interception radar and successfully operated against the German night raids in the winter of 1940-1941. Later the Beaufighter was introduced into Coastal Command as a strike fighter. Its original formidable gun armament was retained but rockets and torpedoes were added giving it an even greater fire power.

Not only did the Beaufighter operate with distinction in North West Europe but also a considerable reputation was earned in the Middle and Far East.

5562 Beaufighters had been produced by the time the last one was delivered in September 1945 and fifty-two operational Royal Air Force squadrons had been equipped with the type.

Bristol Beaufighter

Beaufighter crews accounted for over half of the Luftwaffe bombers shot down during the Blitz.

 

Bristol Hercules Sleeve Valve Engine

The Beaufighter was powered by a pair of Bristol Hercules 14-cylinder, air-cooled, sleeve-valve, radial piston engines, 1,600 hp each. The Hercules was followed by the Centaurus, which also used sleeve valves.

How This Underrated British Aircraft Helped Win The Pacific War
IsonzoEnjoyer

Daring Solo Beaufighter Raid - Paris 1942
Mark Felton Productions

Supermarine Spitfire

Supermarine Spitfire Grey Nurse

Grey Nurse was a member of No. 457 Squadron RAAF that was transferred to Australia in 1942. It's now in the Temora Air Museum in Australia:

This aircraft was the last Spitfire acquired by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) with the original Military serial number A58-758. It was built by Supermarine in England in 1944, test flown and then shipped to Australia. The Air Force took delivery of the aircraft in April 1945, and, with World War II drawing to a close, the aircraft was not required on active service and was instead placed into storage.

A few years ago the airplane was modified to add a second seat for a passenger and now is giving rides.

Royal Air Force:

The iconic Supermarine Spitfire was critical in defeating Luftwaffe air attacks during the Battle of Britain in 1940. More Spitfires were built than any other British combat aircraft before or since World War Two - 20,341 in total. There are five Spitfires on the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

SPITFIRE Mk. IXb - Flown as it should be! | Flying Legends
PaddyPatrone

SPITFIRE (2018) | Official Trailer | Altitude Films
Altitude Films Links:

Wikipedia page
Duck Me 2
Catapult to Oblivion

Short Sunderland Mark V

Short Sunderland Mark V

Extract from Wikipedia:

The Short S.25 Sunderland is a British flying boat patrol bomber. The aircraft took its service name from the port of Sunderland in North East England.

The Sunderland was fitted with various offensive and defensive armaments, including machine gun turrets, bombs, aerial mines, and depth charges. The Sunderland was powered by four Bristol Pegasus XVIII radial engines and was fitted with various detection equipment to aid combat operations, including the Leigh searchlight, the ASV Mark II and ASV Mark III radar units, and an astrodome.

During WW2, the type was heavily involved in Allied efforts to counter the threat posed by German U-boats in the Battle of the Atlantic. On 17 July 1940, an RAAF Sunderland performed the type's first unassisted U-boat kill.

During the post-war era, use of the Sunderland throughout Europe rapidly declined, while greater numbers remained in service in the Far East, where large developed runways were less prevalent. Several squadrons of RAF Sunderlands saw combat action during the Korean War. Around a dozen aircraft also participated in the Berlin airlift.

Several examples have been preserved, including a single airworthy Sunderland which has been placed on display in Florida at Fantasy of Flight.

Cutaway drawing of Short Sunderland Mk. II
Captions might be in Russian

The WWII Flying Porcupine With 16 Guns
IsonzoEnjoyer

The Leigh Light, an unusual device used by British aircraft to combat German submarines U-boat WW2
JOHN WAKE

The image at top is artwork for a Special Hobby plastic model kit.

Count Binface

HS2 is a travesty for the people of Makerfield and Greater Manchester. Vote Binface and #Makerfield Great Again! pic.twitter.com/d9Dh2SvO2U

— Count Binface (@CountBinface) June 18, 2026

HS2 is the UK's version of California's high speed rail project, i.e. it's a giant money pit. 

Gotta love the UK. Remember Boaty McBoatface? Via Finding life hard?

Fairey Swordfish

Avenging the Hood - Ron Cole

Wikipedia:

The Fairey Swordfish is a retired biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was also used by the Royal Air Force (RAF), as well as several overseas operators, including the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and the Royal Netherlands Navy. It was initially operated primarily as a fleet attack aircraft. During its later years, the Swordfish was increasingly used for anti-submarine and training duties. The type was in frontline service throughout the Second World War.

Despite being obsolescent, the Swordfish achieved some spectacular successes during the war, including sinking one battleship and damaging two others belonging to the Regia Marina (the Italian navy) during the Battle of Taranto, and the famous attack on the German battleship Bismarck, which contributed to her eventually being sunk. Swordfish sank a greater tonnage of Axis shipping than any other Allied aircraft during the war. The Swordfish remained in front-line service until V-E Day, having outlasted some of the aircraft intended to replace it.

Fairey Swordfish LS326/L2 Start Up & Take Off
LeicesterPilot

Swordfish Attack Bismarck
Spiral Film Clips

Fairey Swordfish flight deck operations
Armoured Archivist
I posted this image before.
Swordfish Takeoff Duxford - short video
Swordfish | Battle of Britain Airshow - short video

Whitworth

Whitworths 1862 Slotting Machine
Iron Jonesy

Totally enjoyable. Jonesy takes apart an ancient machine tool and gives us a history lesson along the way. It's funny how there seems to be a sharp dividing line between people who are mechanically inclined and people who aren't.

Whitworth Wrench

I first ran into Whitworth when I bought a custom Triumph Bonneville when I lived in Houston. It had an Italian front brake, so there were some metric parts. The engine may have been older than the frame, or maybe it was vice versa. In any case some of the nuts and bolts were American and some were Whitworth. It came with a set of Whitworth wrenches, which I had never seen before, or since, for that matter.

Whitworth has pretty much gone away, but back in his day, he was a big deal.

I Have This Old Gun: Whitworth Rifle
NRApubs

Fairey Barracuda

Fairey Barracuda Mk.II 'Pacific Fleet'

The Brits made 2600 of these airplanes for the war and there isn't a single one left. There are some people trying to put one together out of bits they have collected. The picture (above) is from the cover of a plastic model kit. Odd thing, the Wikipedia article has a list of over 60 squadrons that were equipped with this airplane. Never seen that before.

Fairey Barracuda in formation in 1943

The Fairey Barracuda
Aircraft Files

Frankie Day Appreciation Build - Fairey Barracuda Mk.II
PanzermansBunker

Supermarine Walrus

Supermarine Walrus

First flight was in 1933. 740 were made before the end of WW2. The Walrus rescued 1,000 Allied fliers who had been shot down over water. It was not a fast airplane:

• maximum speed 135 MPH
• cruise         92 MPH
• landing speed  57 MPH

Landing speed was so low it could land on a carrier despite not having a tailhook. 

Wikipedia

Supermarine Walrus in Action
Imagination Strikes

Supermarine Walrus Mk.I - 3D Showcase 4k!
Martocticvs

A Walrus was sent on a secret mission to rescue Madame DeGaulle from France in June 1940: THE WALRUS THAT NEVER RETURNED WHAT WENT WRONG

Westland Lysander

Lysander and cars at Shuttleworth

Wikipedia:

The Westland Lysander is a British army co-operation and liaison aircraft produced by Westland Aircraft that was used immediately before and during the Second World War.

After becoming obsolete in the army co-operation role, the aircraft's short-field performance enabled clandestine missions using small, improvised airstrips behind enemy lines to place or recover agents, particularly in occupied France with the help of the French Resistance. Royal Air Force army co-operation aircraft were named after mythical or historical military leaders; in this case the Spartan admiral Lysander was chosen.

Westland Lysander SOE pick-up demonstration - Shuttleworth Special Operations Airshow 2023
Patrick Clear

Wikipedia:

The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aviation, automotive and agricultural collection located at Old Warden Aerodrome in Bedfordshire, England.

 

The collection was founded in 1928 by aviator Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth. While flying a Fairey Battle at night on 2 August 1940, Shuttleworth fatally crashed. His mother, in 1944, formed the Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth Remembrance Trust "for the teaching of the science and practice of aviation and of afforestation and agriculture."

Flying a Lysander, 2019
dave hadfield

Shuttleworth website.

Lancaster

Avro Lancasters

The Lancaster was the main British bomber during WW2.

Wikipedia:

The Lancaster conducted a total of 156,000 sorties and dropped 608,612 long tons of bombs between 1942 and 1945. Only 35 Lancasters completed more than 100 successful operations each, and 3,249 were lost in action. The most successful survivor completed 139 operations and was ultimately retired from service and scrapped in 1947. From 1942 onwards, the Lancaster became the mainstay of the British heavy bomber fleet; by the end of the war in Europe, there were roughly 50 squadrons equipped with the Lancaster, the majority of these being the Lancaster B.I model. From its entry into service, the original model of the Lancaster was operated in almost every major bombing raid of the European conflict.

The TERRIFYING History of Avro Lancaster Bomber
Unbelievable trues stories

Handley Page H.P.42

Croydon Airport - Victor McLindon

From Plane Historia:

The beautiful the Handley Page H.P.42 and H.P.45 were four-engine biplane airliners designed and manufactured by British aviation company Handley Page, based in Radlett, Hertfordshire. It held the distinction of being the largest airliner in regular use in the world upon the type's introduction in 1931.

 
Sharjah Aviation (1937) - British Air Outpost Handley Page H.P.42 Hanno at Al Mahatta old airport
Scale Modeling Studio

The Handley Page H.P.42 indoor flying model
Stephen Jones Rc Aircraft

Refuelling Hanno at Samakh, Tiberias, Palestine, October 1931

Previous post about this aircraft.

Avro Lancaster

Lancaster fire bomber - Steve Cox

Originally built in Canada in 1945 as a Mk. X bomber, it arrived in the UK too late for WWII combat.

From Steve Cox Aviation Artist:

In 1970, this ex RCAF Mk 10 Avro Lancaster, built by Victory Aircraft at Malton Ontario, was converted to be the first and only Lancaster firebomber. The bomb bay doors were removed, and four slurry tanks were installed in the fuselage. After a series of successful flight tests, the aircraft flew missions during a wildfire in 1971 at the Wood Buffalo National Park. 

 

 

Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia

Former Royal Yacht Britannia, Leith, 2009

Awful lot of complicated equipment on that bridge. Wiring all that up must have been a nightmare.

Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia is the former royal yacht of the British monarchy. She was in their service from 1954 to 1997. She was the 83rd such vessel since King Charles II acceded to the throne in 1660, and is the second royal yacht to bear the name, the first being the racing cutter built for the Prince of Wales in 1893. During her 43-year career, the yacht travelled more than one million nautical miles around the world to more than 600 ports in 135 countries. Now retired from royal service, Britannia is permanently berthed at Ocean Terminal, Leith in Edinburgh, Scotland, where it is a visitor attraction with over 300,000 visits each year.

Britannia departs Cardiff for the last time

South Hampton

RMS Queen Elizabeth forecastle from bridge departing Southampton

Marshall Steam Tractor

1915 Marshall 5 Ton Tractor no.68754

Factory where it was built:

The main entrance to Marsh, Sons and Co office in Gainsborough, UK,
with a Statue of Britannia (the companies Trade mark) over the door.

Google Streetview of the factory here.