Don Camillo's God Son

Making a 'back up' copy of your own cd's is NOT legal. I've done work with the performing rights society and believe me that one's a myth. Won't stop me though!

Chris - 1984 couldn't have ended any other way to be honest. His whole route was through futility and the ending had to show the ultimate futility of resistance. Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair) was an amazing man. Although public school educated he managed to epitomise the 'everyman' feeling of the age. I don't think he's as recognised as he should be as to my mind he's as important to English literature as Chaucer, Shakespeare and Dickens. He epitomises an age. I'd advise you to read the book again as soon as possible though. From one of the most perfect openings to a novel ever ('13') to the very end every text has a subtext. For a start off people rarely notice the number of parallels he draws between Communism and Catholicism throughout the novel in delicious ways (such as the small pill he's given to get rid of the taste of the wine being an analogy for communion). Even the main characters name is a beautiful mix of the strength of Wintson (Churchill) and the most common surname. Originally he wanted to call it 1948 but the publishers though this date was too close, so the last two digits were transposed. The thing is, how accurately has he predicted the world we're moving headlong into? Oppression justified by 'permanent' war, with only the opposition/allies changing. Thoughtcrime. etc etc. Hobbies - reading and following my football team (don't get me started there!).

I think the law on 'snoopers' is particularly strange. As I understand it, it's legal to have one. It's legal to use one to know where there is a speed trap. But it's actually illegal to act on the info!!! Work that one out...

Peter and Geoff - thanks, that's the one. I've also found two more with the same 'head' but an advert for 'Remington Typewriters' on the other side... Mitch - unfortunately not, although it'd be a good idea if I borrowed one for a while I guess. Error - when I said c17 and c18 I was getting my centuries and 100's muddled up. Although there are quite a few earlier, they're mainly 1700's and 1800's.

Good advice. I've decided that what I'm going to do is take it slowly and try to identify the more obvious first and to that end I've got a couple of coin 'yearbooks' from the local library. I'm not going to be able to have a good root through 'til later this week, but looking at them there were two particular coins that grabbed my attention. 1 turns out to be called a 'cartwheel penny' from 1797 in reasonable nick (I'm a long way from being able to grade coins!). The other has me though (not a good start - can't figure out the second one I try to find!). It's dated 1897 and I'd guess it's gold. The 'heads' side (obverse?) has the legend 'four generations of the british royal family'. There is a crown at the top with a kind of sunsplash around it, and a laurel leaf type thing at the bottom by the date. Four heads, with Victoria on top going back through (I presume) a couple of Edwards and Georges to a baby. The reverse has the legend 'to commemorate the 60th year of her majestys reign 1837-97'. Inside that there's the same sunsplashed crown, with three shields below (harp, 3 lions, lion rampant) and below that a garland that looks too weird. It could be a mixture of a rose, dafodil and thistle...

Chris - I'm in Newcastle at the moment,but I'm also regularly in South Bucks. And don't worry - no mafiosi here. Don Camillo was the eponymous hero of a series of books written in the 50's by an Italian author called Giovanni Guareschi, and he was a priest (which doesn't preclude the mafia, but...). Kuhli - olive oil?!!? Never have thought that would work in a million years! Cheers for that, I'll give it a go. I've ordered a few reference books from the library as well which should hell in identifying them. Peter - lunatic is a bit strong, don't you think? I made it clear that I knew cola was a bad way to clean them but it's the only way I knew thanks to 2nd form physics many many years ago. Maybe idiot would have been more appropriate.

Hi. First post and I hope some of you can help me. This is the situation I find myself in. Recently a family friend died. In their belongings their was a box with a couple of hundred old coins. I doubt there are any wonderous finds but they appear to be mainly from the c17 and c18, and from various countries. Now these coins belonged to a fine old Edwardian gentleman that I have known and respected since my childhood in the early 70's and I'd like to do something in his name as I unfortunately feel his family is quite happy to trouser what they can and forget about the man himself. I'd like to realise what I can on the coins and spend it on some kind of memorial. Now my problem is that I've a box of old coins and I have no idea what to do next. I'm guessing maybe the best way will be to (obviously) work out what they actually are, and sell them on ebay or something like that. What are they? For a start off they were at the back of loads of stuff in an old cupboard and they're pretty dirty. Lot's of them have green deposits on them and I'm not sure how I should 'clean' them to at least be able to figure out what they are. I guess that's the first thing I need to do really. How do I get them in a condition I can have a chance of figuring out what they are without damaginf them. To be honest the only (bad I expect) idea I have is to chuck them all in a bowl full of cola! Please help me, but please accept that I know nothing and may ask stupid questions.