Rockall. Malin. Dogger. Finisterre.

Mock orange flowers
shine white in the dark storm light
restless in the wind

The grey storm clouds surrounded us yesterday evening, but only  a few drops fell.  The wind has been blustery. The moon was hiding. Today has been changeable, and very wet at times (especially when I planned to repoint the patio)
Here is the end of my weather report.

And here is the end of the shipping forecast as recounted by Carol Ann Duffy in her poem, Prayer.

Darkness outside. Inside, the radio’s prayer –
Rockall. Malin. Dogger. Finisterre.

And now I hear that a piece of music has been written for a choir, with the shipping forecast providing the words.

Interesting world.

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Author: Sarah

No time to lose. No, time to lose. Make time to stand and stare.... Did you see that?

15 thoughts on “Rockall. Malin. Dogger. Finisterre.”

  1. Pseu – The gentle poetry of the shipping forecast has lulled me to sleep for as long as I can remember.

    OZ

  2. Ah, yes, the memories! The seas areas and that special BBC voice. But just a mo’. While I think the new version is apposite and amusing, shouldn’t it be ‘German Bight’? 🙂

  3. Janus: Yes it should be bight, and Finisterre is gone ( finished? ) it’s now divided into Fitzroy and Trafalgar. Fitzroy “as eveyrbody knows” was the man who started the whole thing back in the Thirties?

    Pseu: There is also a amusing little book called, I think ” A Voyage round the Shipping Forecast” wherein the author visits each of the areas named, even those having no solid ground, a good read

  4. Hello LW.

    Sorry to be off-topic, Nym.

    LW. We cannot comment on your latest post; you have turned the comments off!
    If you go into edit and skip down you will see a check-box. which you seem to have ticked inadvertently. If you untick it, and update we will be able to comment.

  6. I always remember the shipping forecast in the early morning. I always used to wake up with my Granddad when he was on ‘earlies’ at the pit. (Betteshangar for those who remember when there were working mines in Kent. I also started my senior rugby career with Betteshangar Colliery Welfare Rugby Club 🙂

  7. Thanks, Soutie.

    I’ve just looked at my comment and realised I’ve not explained it too well, but I’m pleased all is well!

  8. O Zangado :

    Pseu – The gentle poetry of the shipping forecast has lulled me to sleep for as long as I can remember.

    OZ

    OZ, good evening.

    Despite your suspect taste in Aussie Rules teams, I have to admire the focus and sheer drive that gives you the inner strength to last long enough to get lulled to sleep by the late night shipping forecast.

    For the last 10 years at least, the precursory playing of ‘Sailing By; has had me deep in slumber long before I had a chance to hear what was in store for those in peril on the sea.

    Video corrected by Bearsy.

  9. ”Video corrected by Bearsy”

    Hi, Bearsy.

    I sweated blood on this, by the way. I wanted it to work properly ab initio but it just would not. Tried it on on my own site, having logged out to establish punter status. Went down the embedding route, cut and pasted ad nauseam but just could not get it it display as anything but a url.

    Easy when it’s in one of my comments on one of my own posts hereon. Easy when I’m posting as myself on my own site. I’m seriously struggling about how to do it as part of a comment on one of my fellow Cherished Authors’ posts.

    It’s probably obvious to you but I would really appreciate being pointed in the right direction?

  10. Hi JM – It’s really very easy. I suggest other Charioteers ignore the rest of this comment

    Here is what works –

    Please notice that the url must be a proper one, not a shortcut version which contains tu.be – ie. a full stop in between the “tu” and “be” of “tube. You can get this url from the address bar when you view the video on the Youtube site.

    Notice that there are no spaces and that there is an equals sign between ‘youtube’ and the start of the url.

    Further observe that there is only one ‘get’ parameter (stuff after the question mark). If there is an ampersand (‘&’) in the url (or more than one), remove it and all the text that comes after it. The url must finish after the “v=string representing the actual video“. In this case v=dFdas-kMF74

    Don’t forget to start with a square bracket, and finish with one.

    Other ways of doing it may work, but this is the only way that will always work under any circumstances.

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