Rincewind

Recipe for surviving the 3RR without a sailing boat and simultaneously not getting in the way of said proceedings... 1. Add one off-river mooring with stern facing the river 2. Increase fridge to maximum chill 3. Mix in copious quantities of Peroni, Pouilly Fumé or Bollinger 4. Drizzle suntan lotion over exposed body parts(!) 5. Dress eyes with protective lenses. 6. Refer to point 3 again 7. See point 6 8. Enjoy the floating lunacy as it passes over the next couple of hours Worked last year. All above assumes that favourable weather is in place on the day of course...

Still no street lighting, Iain...and long may it remain thus. The starscapes visible some nights are beyond belief for those of us residing in a more urban area. Nearly as good as the starscapes visible at Thurne on a clear night. The red disc thing is a very good idea though especially in the parasitic blame culture in which we unfortunately find ourselves these days.

Many moons ago the wonderful Jim Toplis told us that the vessels did indeed originate from Topcraft and were originally for those people who didn't like to use other beds and bed linen on hireboats preferring to use their own caravan. I have no reason to doubt his explanation. The Broads still misses Jim...as do we all.

Apart from its questionable visual aesthetics and the supernova-bright upholstery, the boat looks very nicely put together. Not my cup of tea by any stretch of the imagination but I'm sure someone will absolutely love it. A change of upholstery to something more tonal to go with the beautiful timber would transform the interior and offer a much less of a sight-damaging experience. If I had £97.5k to spend though, it wouldn't be on this vessel I'm afraid. Purely a subjective opinion of course.

A lovely man who gave so much joy to the world. A shining light has been extinguished but the memories will remain. RIP, Sir Terry...we salute you.

If I did have three wishes for Oulton Broad... One of them would be to have Jim Toplis back with us. Such a gentleman and greatly missed.

Great footage of the lock transit, Brian. Thank you for sharing. Does look a bit daunting though....scary even.

I found my old 1982 Hoseasons Broads & Holiday map yesterday and it was something of a reality-check to be reminded of just how many yards there were at that time but have since moved on. Lots of missing hostelries too.

Poetic justice...love it!

Tend to agree...the LED units' power cells seem to last forever. The wind-up torches are ok but they need so much attention that the operator risks Repetitive Strain Injury just walking back to the boat from the pub!

Alan, you neglected to mention the mandatory corkscrew and bottle opener.

The photo of the Wayford Bridge Inn is visible proof that those responsible for the place have completely lost the plot. The choice of decor is utterly hideous and quite beyond belief. It would be more at home in some Victorian Town Hall public conveniences. Not exactly a warming, welcoming vista for a pub. Considerably fail I'm afraid. All IMHO of course

Sometimes gentle modifications simply aren't enough... What could possibly go wrong with this?

I'd love to be involved in the Dragon Boat thing but...being blessed with a physique which is more in the category of 'Ballast' than 'Racing Snake', I fear my participation would be a considerable hinderance!

Some good stories. Aldeby moorings on the Waveney just along from the site of the old Haddiscoe swing bridge always feel a bit spooky to us. Probably more due to our over-active imagination than any documented ghostly legend though.

No sympathy whatsoever. It's a 4 mph zone and for very good reasons. The BA got this one absolutely right IMHO...let's hope they catch a few more as blatantly over the speed limit as this. Nobody needs a speed calculator to see that his/her wash is excessive. The old boy was selfish and had no consideration for other river users. A fine of £120? He got off very light... As for Archant playing the OAP card...ye Gods...dangerous wash isn't age-related.

Hull had its own independent telephone network, hence the cream-coloured boxes. Not sure if the network is still independent though...not been there for many a year.

I hope your friends stay safe, Iain!

This year's show is on Saturday, 2nd. May for those interested parties. http://www.horningboatshow.co.uk/

Driven past it on many occasions and always wondered what it was like. Thanks for the info...we will be giving it a try next year.

You know it's Christmas when creme eggs appear in the shops.

IPB4 is software and UAT - "User Acceptance Testing"

Some moorings providers do provide waste bins and some don't. Ours doesn't at present so we usually use the bins at the Ferry Inn, or at least we did , or those in the centre of Horning.

My first taster was back in the seventies...taking a river bus from Oulton Broad to Burgh St Peter one evening. Guess it made more of an impact than I realised at the time.

Yodel even make Parcel Farce look competent. They have to be THE worst delivery company in existence.