Letter of the week
From head to toe
TWO articles in the November 23 issue brought back memories of my 32 years in the Royal Navy. In ‘Strong flavours to savour’, Tom Parker Bowles mentioned ‘stewed babies’ heads’. I don’t know about stewed, but I do know about steamed babies’ heads. As a member of the Royal Navy in the 1960s/70s, I fondly remember them being served on board ship. Babies’ heads is naval slang for steamed steak and kidney puddings. They came in tall tins in which they steamed. When served, they were cut in half across the width to provide two ‘babies’ heads’. The ‘surgeon’ would then operate on his lunch!
Secondly, ‘If the shoes fit’ reminded me of the shoemakers on board () in the mid 1970s. Unlike Lobb’s historic premises, our shoemakers were found in the rather less salubrious awning store in the very bowels of the ship. They were a small team of unpaid Chinese ‘unofficials’, who traced your foot onto the pages of a large ledger. Three days later, your handmade shoes, beautifully made and lined in kid leather, were ready. If you bought three pairs, you got one free—I wonder if Lobb’s offers such deals! I still wear my mess boots 50 years later.
