FOUGASSE, THE FIRST SEA LORD IS NOW A MULLARD MAGIC CUSTOMER!
The genius of Fougasse is matched only by Blower
But Fougasse is a type of mine isn't it? , Well, yes, but Fougasse was the pen name of British Cartoonist Cyril Kenneth Bird CBE (17 December 1887 – 11 June 1965). He was perhaps best known for his work in WW2 propganda posters; "Careless Talk Costs Lives" was one of the most popular.
He was seriously injured during WW1 and invalided out of the British Army. Whilst convalescing he contributed to a number of periodicals, including Punch under his eponymous nom-de-plume.
During WW2 he worked UNPAID for the Ministry of Information designing humorous but effective propaganda posters with the Careless Talk Costs Lives series. For this work he was awarded the honour of Commander of the Order of the British Empire, (CBE)
I particularly like this one: -
I smiled sadly at the truism that this genius has inspired: -
Blowers' masterpiece reminded me of the conversation I had in a telephone call from the First Sea Lord the other day "Oows eee?" I hear you cry, well, he's the Chief of Naval Staff. Nice chap too and I became quite animated when he broached the subject of purchasing some naval comms. kit from me.
Was it the Murphy B40 and accompanying 618T transmitter from HMS Bronnington he wanted? - alas not.
Was it perhaps the Marconi CR100 and CR300 from HMS Haslar he wanted? - unfortunately no.
Was it the Standard 68T ensemble from HMS Oberon he wanted? - regrettably, non ma petit choux-fleur
It actually was a series of low electromagnetic footprint communications devices he was after for the Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers. He wanted a quango of experts to put together a user requirement specification the most important was that the devices were DEI compliant. We moved on to discuss having a a public enquiry to conduct a root and branch review and ensure that all lessons have been learnt and implemented to avoid procurement blunders. Ajax I cried but he mumbled that he preferred Vim.
Thankfully I introduced him to the concept of common sense and we thrashed out a solution that met his budget and before his mobile battery ran out of charge as well.
I am happy to advise that I am sorting him out with six pairs of Heinz 400g bean cans and accompanying lengths of waxed string which will be dyed in rainbow camouflage thus ticking the Diversity Equity and Inclusivity box, (DEI), even though this custom requirement trebled the price. .
Like Fougasse, I have offered to be UNPAID but still he is unable to take delivery of this comms kit until the Defence Investment Plan is published "as soon as possible.".
He did also earnestly go on to advise that "We are delivering on the Strategic Defence Review to meet the threats we face................." He closed by confiding that although we might have to play pass the parcel sorry, pass the missile (those French Aster 15s and 30s are pretty good though), between the Type 45's as there aren't enough to go round, apparently we still retain the ability to sling idiomatic barbs with devastating effect. WE SEE YOU AND WE WILL SAY "BOO TO A GOOSE!."