In which we discuss our plans to re-enact the classic spy novel ‘The Riddle of the Sands’. This week we talk about Day 4 of the adventure – September 26. Today is a day of first encounters – with Davies the yachtsman, Dulcibella the boat and with Flensburg & Germany.
We discuss: a brief introduction to Flensburg and the knotty Schleswig Holstein question (1:50); the making and tasting of Admiralty strength grog (7:00); our frankly rather sketchy knowledge of late 19th century German history(10:48); spy novelist Jeremy Duns speaks from his lair in the Baltic about Ian Fleming’s love of ‘The Riddle of the Sands’ and the book’s influence on many other famous spy writers (13:13); Winston Churchill is revealed as yet another famous ROTS man (24:39); and finally we snare some Club members who actually know what they’re talking about when it comes to boats and sailing (26:51). Ahoy Kass, Jerry and Rob!
Missions for next week – members assistance required.
Word of warning – Lloyd is out of town for a few days, and we’re also cooking up a very important announcement about how The Handbook Edition of The Riddle of the Sands is getting closer to becoming a reality.
Next week’s podcast therefore will include quite a lot of pre-recorded material including: an interview with a proper solo ocean sailor at a London club, an important update on pipe tobacco, and a Club member’s forensic analysis of Davies’ unreliable story about what he was up to in the Frisian islands before Carruthers appeared. There are still a couple of items we need your help with:
Dulcibella: it’s around this time in the book that we start to get a lot of detail about Davies’s boat, and as part of the Adventure in September we really would like to get out on to the water in a vessel that is as much like Dulcibella as possible. So if you know of any Dulcibella doppelgangers, or boats of a similar kind that we can take a trip in, even for one day – either in the Baltic or in the Frisian Islands, please do get in touch.
Swimming: Carruthers gets up on September 27 and dives straight into the fjord. Brrrr. Any cold water or ‘wild’ swimmers out there who want to give us some advice about how to prepare for such a shocking immersion, sign up and share your expertise and experience with us.
The Curiously Specific Book Club 