Shipping forecast

[Brenda Shackleton]

hello
Article in the newspaper today about the Shipping Forecast, accompanied by a sea area map. Have had to google it because for some reason a lot of areas were omitted - including IRISH SEA ! ; the one that my brother and I always waited for when we were young. Anyway, all is well and all 31 zones are covered.
Radio 4 is reducing the 4 broadcasts to 2 and only available on Radio 4 FM.
I am as guilty as the next person for not listening to it for years. Our radio packed up a long time ago and we have never replaced it. Then there was the tune ... time to get your pen and paper ready for the start of the Forecast.; " Sailing By " by Ronald Binge. Just listened to it on YouTube. Aaaahhhh.

Fitzroy area. Named after Vice Admiral Robert Fitzroy who captained the BEAGLE for Charles Darwin's voyage. He(Rbt. F.) first published a Weather Forecast in 1861. The first Radio Broadcast was in 1911 !!
Internet is a wonderful source of information !
Brenda

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Brenda.
Both my ife and I, she comes from Gravesend, used to wait for the weather forecast to come over the wireless, now when we watch Rick Stein's cooking program from Cornwall they always play part of the weather forecaste, don't switch off until it's finished.
Des

[j.sabourn]

I can only remember 28 ? Think put in a previous post ? Will have to sit down with pencil and paper and see if can remember 31. Good exercise for a disappearing memory. JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Des mate, the forecast from Cornwall is not much good in Cooma!!!!

Much talk here about El Nino this year and what it will do, so they said.
Now the weather men say it did not happen as it should have, well maybe they got the forecast wrong...............again!!!!

[j.sabourn]

How’s this for 31….Finisterre,Biscay,Sole, Plymouth, Lundy, Fastnet,Shannon,Rockall, Malin, Irish Sea, Hebrides, Bailey, SE Iceland, Faroes, Fair Isle, Viking, Cromarty, Forth,Forties, N.Utsire, S.Utsire,Fisher, Dogger,Tyne, Humber, Thames, German Bight, Dover, Wight, Portsmouth, Plymouth. J.S.

[John Gill]

As I recall. Probably mistakenly. The announcer would sign off with something like 'goodnight gentleman '. Perhaps not now. Could be any sort of gender afloat these days.

[Brenda Shackleton]

That's very impressive Mr Sabourn !
Finisterre is now called 'Fitzroy' and then it's 'Trafalgar' . 'Plymouth' came in twice ; clearly your favourite place and why not !

Anyway, 10 points to you !

Brenda

[Johnny Kieran]

I can always remember listening to the shipping forecast when Trafalgar was mentioned.

[j.sabourn]

#7 still one short then. Quite often see double and am a possible candidate for a recently mentioned pacemaker. A mate of mine has just had one fitted so God willing will wait and see how he handles it first. Our weather forecasters in 1944 were just as accurate as today with all the satellites at their hand, even enough to delay the landings in Normandy until certain conditions were more suited to such a massive enterprise. I spent more time in Portsmouth than Plymouth especially during Navy Days , so why Plymouth I don’t know.
Belated happy New Year. JS

[Des Taff Jenkins]

I suppose people who have never bee to sea listen to the weather forecast, and imagine the areas mentioned as little foreign parts of the UK, but not as much as when one is on a little coaster like the Leadsman; up and down the East coast, that North sea can have some big storms. But I had a dream time between March and April 57 on my last UK ship, more like cruising.
Des