R&R Gets New Look!

On Saturday, the latest issue of the eminent magazine Rowing & Regatta arrived in the mail. Rowing & Regatta, R&R for short, is published by British Rowing and has the competent Wendy Kewley at the helm. I was eagerly awaiting this issue as Editor Kewley had sent me an e-mail telling me about the magazine's new lay-out.

"I say", as Bertie Wooster probably would have exclaimed, "it's looking jolly good". I was happy to see that "the coloured plates" with texts were gone. Although, I don't have the problem, I understand that some people might have a hard time reading for example a white text on a light blue background. Now it is what all magazines used to have: black text on white or light grey background - so, bravo, I say! With this issue starts a 2012 countdown for the coming Olympics in London next year, and over-all the magqazine looks very promising.

I have to mention that even my little column, "In this month", looks lovely. It somehow looks shorter than before, though, but it's the same length, 400 words. I was also very happy to see that HTBS was mentioned in an article by Mike Rowbottom, who always writes nice stuff. This time, he is writing about the famous Vesta oarsman, Harry Blackstaffe, 'Blackie', who became Olympic champion in the single sculls in 1908, 40 years old! Rowbottom is writing about the photograph on the left which was figured in a HTBS entry on 18 April, 2010 (see also 20 April, 2010).

Good Luck with the new look of R&R!

Harry Tate - The Music Hall Star And Oarsman

Earlier today, the reliable Tim Koch responded to my question from Sunday's entry about Blackie's friend at the oar, Harry Tate. From London Tim writes,

"Here is a picture of Harry Tate the music hall star. It seems to be the same person as Harry Blackstaffe's partner. I am impressed that he could lead the life of an itinerant performer and still be a good enough rower to partner the great man. Nothing to do with rowing, but Harry Tate's catch phrases are interesting. 'Goodbyeee' inspired a very popular song of the First World War and beyond. 'How's your father?' was commonly used in Britain as a euphemism for sex until fairly recently. 'I don't think' used ironically (as in 'He's a nice chap - I don't think') was unknowingly revived in the form 'Not!' in the Mike Meyer's film, Wayne's World in 1992."

Thank you, Tim for solving the 'Harry Tate Mystery'!

Blackie's Rowing Partner Harry Tate

When I wrote about Harry Blackstaffe’s charming little drawing of a sculler after his name on the dinner list of the winners of the Wingfield Sculls in 1930, I could not remember where I had seen it previously. But the other day, when I was going through some old rowing post cards, I came across Blackstaffe’s signature again. Blackstaffe, or ‘Blackie’ as he was called, rowed and sculled for Vesta RC, and in the photograph above, we can see him together with Harry Tate in a pair. Looking in H. B. Wells’s Vesta Rowing Club: A Centenary History (1969), I can only find Blackie’s partner mentioned twice, in the Foreword, written by Thames RC’s Freddy Page, and by Wells, who writes, “The No. 2 in the crew was R. M. Hutchison, later a famous figure on the music hall stage under the name ‘Harry Tate’.” [p.5] But maybe that is not Blackie’s partner in the boat, although the name is the same. Anyone who knows?