Amsterdam Russ

Agreed.

From the first thread (from 2013) posted up by Blackpoolsoul, the last comment - a quote from John Manship - is the most telling:

What, and risk the wrath of my mum? No chance!

"Yaffle" (green woodpecker) has always been one of my favourites, although as I understand it, the name is - or was - quite widely used in many parts of the land. "Londoners" is also another favourite - once upon a time a West Country nickname for puffins, and born from the fact that - in the early days of tourism - Londoners visiting the spectacular rugged coastlines of that part of the world for the first time would stand staring out to sea with their hands behind their backs in a classic puffin pose!

Ok by me. Funny - the different names for birds in different parts of the world reminds me of a lesson at senior school when I was probably about 13 years old. In the lesson we had an alphabet quiz on animals. You know the thing: someone starts with the letter A and has to name something beginning with that letter related to the chosen subject. Then the next pupil has to name something beginning with B, etc, etc, etc. When it came to my turn, I got the letter L and offered up "loon". The teacher said there's no such animal as a loon, so you're out of the game. I had to explain that loon was the north American name for the birds we call Divers (great northern, red-throated, etc). Very begrudgingly, she accepted my answer and I stayed in the game. Ha, and that reminds me of another time we had a geographical place name alphabet quiz (sorry, I'm digressing here). I was a couple of years younger. I think it was in first year of senior school. I got the letter T and came up with Transylvania. The teacher absolutely insisted there was no such place as Transylvania except in fiction, and therefore I was out of the game. Teachers - what do they know, eh? (If there are any teachers walking among us here, I'm only joking.)

Yes, they're different birds, and I was confirming exactly that to Dave (Davenpete) who stated "Surely goosanders and mergansers are different species?" However, while the Mergus merganser is known as a merganser in north America, it's a goosander in Europe. Best to stick to its common European name of goosander and all confusion will be avoided.

Correct. There are two species of merganser in the UK: the red-breasted merganser (Mergus serrator) and the goosander (Mergus merganser).

A couple of other memories have just surfaced, both relating to the 100 Club. Around 86-87, I've got a crappy full-time, commission-only sales job. I'm 21-22 years old and am earning bugger all. I can hardly afford to feed myself or pay the rent on my grotty south London bedsit and end up taking on two part-time jobs in addition to my day job. One is in McDonald's in Catford (cleaning tables and toilets), doing the late shift from 6pm til midnight three nights a week. The other is a Saturday job at WH Smith's in the Lewisham shopping centre. I'm only just surviving. The 100 Club allnighter is on and the only way I can afford to go is by raiding my small 'piggy bank'. I go to the 100 Club and pay the entrance fee entirely in 1p, 2p and 1/2p coins. While living in the same place around the same period of time, I'm on a late night bus heading the 100 Club allnighter. I've got enough in my pocket for the entrance fee and the bus journey there and back. A few minutes into the journey, and sitting on the upper deck, I'm beaten around the head a few times and mugged by three or four black guys. I'm in shock and sit there in stunned silence all the way from Catford to Trafalgar Square. I'm not alone on the top deck of the bus, but no one bothered to come to my aid, nor ask me afterwards if I was alright. They just watched the incident as silent witnesses. At Trafalgar Square, I approach a bus inspector and tell him I was mugged. He calls the police and I'm carted off to a West End police station to give a statement. A couple of hours later and we're done. I'm told I can go. I don't have any money, of course, and tell this to the police officer who then arranges for me to get a lift in the back of a police van, which - at great speed - chauffeurs me from the West End back to Catford. Happy days? No, not always!

Somewhere in the late 80s... a 3-hour, 130 mile journey in a mate's car from south London to an allnighter on Lowestoft pier. We get there at about 1am, find a spot in the car park close to the venue, and almost immediately there's a tap on the window. A local constable asks what we're doing here at this time of the night. Allnighter? No, he says, it's been cancelled. Of course there's no option but to turn around and drive the 130-odd miles back to sarf London. Also somewhere in the late 80s... one of @Ady Croasdell notorious 100 Club Christmas parties. The night is about to end and I'm dancing to Jimmy Radcliffe's "Long after tonight is all over". I'm hit by an incredible wave of deep tranquility - not for the song specifically, but for the moment - that I've never experienced before and have never felt since. It's almost a religious experience. For a few short seconds I'm utterly at peace with the universe and overwhelmingly feel that if I were to drop dead at that exact moment, I would do so in complete happiness.

Always done what? Perhaps I'm missing something, but prior to Brexit there were no domestic charges/duties on deliveries from the EU. Seemingly only if you have a subscription.

Not about record purchases, but a very relevant story highlighting the perils of buying from the EU if you're in the UK... Story here: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55734277

"BBC News - Your pictures of Scotland: 8-15 January 2021" A fine selection of photos showing primarily snowy/wintery scenes such as the one below. Well worth a look. Source: BBC News / © Andy Dryden Pics here: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-55587236

Window view a couple of minutes ago. Not quite a winter wonderland, but the first snow fall (not that you can really see it in the pic) is always something of a pleasant novelty. No doubt that novelty will quickly wear off and we'll be cursing the weather tomorrow!

That seems odd. All the Emidiscs, Pye & Decca advance promo acetates are exactly that - acetates. Not sure why the discs you have - which carry the labels you'd find on acetates - should actually be standard 45s. Is there any sign of the labels being stuck on top of other labels? Looking at the pics it doesn't appear to be the case, but I thought it worth asking.

@Julian B One question - are these actual acetates, ie, a heavier than normal disc comprising a metal plate covered in lacquer, or are they standard 45s made of vinyl/styrene?

Another selection of impressive photos from Scotland courtesy of BBC News - this time of the Aurora Borealis, which was visible last night. Source: BBC News / © SIMMER DIM/BBC WEATHER WATCHERS Photos can be found via the link below. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-55630880

Courtesy of BBC News, a selection of photos sent in by people in Scotland for the week 1st-8th January 2021. There are some real winners, like the stunning one below, so they're well worth checking out. Source: BBC News / © Katalin Lowley Link: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-55546350

A 7" acetate of a seemingly unreleased 70s soul tune. Bought it blind, have no idea what it sounds like, but thought it worth a punt.

@Soul Shrews might well know...

Thanks to everyone for all the fantastic contributions in what has been an extremely difficult year. This thread is now locked and the 2021 thread can be found here:

Happy New Year to one and all. Let's hope 2021 sees some sort of return to normal as the weeks and months roll on Running annually since 2013, this is the 9th photography thread. Thanks to everyone who has participated and made this such a popular and long-running thread. I'm sure we can look forward to lots of great contributions. Given the restrictions we've been facing for so long now, getting out and about hasn't always been easy or even possible. But, with a bit of good fortune hopefully we'll get opportunities to revisit new and familiar places with greater ease. Certainly I've hardly been beyond my immediate environment during much of last year, so I'm opening this thread with a couple of favourite photos from some years back. Both were taken in Elie on the Fife coast in Scotland. Happy snapping, everyone!

Agreed - so many brilliant photos, from the expert photographers and most of us who just capture things with our phone cameras or whatever basic kit we have to hand. Every photo posted here is a real delight to see. See you - and everyone else - in the New Year!

Best wishes to one and all for a very merry, but more importantly healthy Christmas and New Year!

Listening to a mixed bag of Christmas tunes via iTunes right now and this one popped up...

A positive ID. Nice one - and well done to your dog for flushing the bird out so you might see it!