Beauty Queen - Roxy Music

There was an unexpected but most welcome visitor at the weekend, but not the weekend just past but the one before. It's doubtful I'd get away with saying things have been busy around here, but much of my time has been taken up this week with the memoirs and other things. It was, as ever, great to see Dave Foot making the most of his journey from Weymouth to take a look at Blashford Lakes only a 15 minute drive over the border into Hampshire. It should be said from the start that weather conditions and the distance from most of the birds proved impossible for photography, so most of the images that follow are taken from the Archive.

Returning to the Memoir, and thumbing through the Diary for 1971 I came across a long forgotten fact and most pleasant meeting in that year. Only having been out of the Royal Navy for a couple of months, in the interim I joined the Merchant Navy where, on my first ship I was pleased to meet a character indeed, Albert (Nobby) Clark, Nobbler or Nobby Stokes to you. On our first trip away he invited me to his home for a drink and to meet his wife, which on our return I did with great pleasure. On arrival at Sutton Poyntz, just east of Weymouth, outside of their house stood a brand new, yellow, Chevrolet Corvette and immediately thought there was something Nobby had not told me. Within, I met his wife and in turn her daughter (Nobby's Step Daughter) Lesley and as is my usual style went Continental kissing her lightly on each cheek. It wasn't until later, over the promised drink, that the subject of the car was brought up only to find it belonged to

 LESLEY LANGLEY

who it was revelled was

Lesley Langley (born 1945) from Weymouth, England was Miss United Kingdom and Miss World in 1965. She became the third woman from her country to win the title, and the second Miss United Kingdom in a row, thus becoming the second country to have back-to-back winners. Sweden was the first, winning the inaugural pageant in 1951 and the second pageant in 1952. She attended the Royal Merchant Navy School, near Wokingham, Berkshire, (now known as Bearwood College) in the 1950s. During her tenure she met and married Jazz organist Alan Haven and they had one daughter named Chloe. They divorced and Lesley later worked as a Dental practise assistant. She played a small part in the James Bond film Goldfinger and also became the front cover in 1967 on Weymouth's Official Holiday Guide, with photos inside.

Lesley with other competitors in the 1965 Miss World Pageant.

Now, hands up if you have ever kissed a Miss World!

Having thrown a bucket of iced water over myself, it's back to business.

 COAL TIT

 CHAFFINCH

with some kind of 'build-up' on its legs?

 GADWALL

 WIGEON

 GADWALL with COOT (foreground)

 It was only Dave who saw the 

BITTERN

 TUFTED DUCK

 GOOSANDER

'snorkling'

 GOLDCREST

and after my initial sighting

 we both caught sight of the

 GREAT WHITE EGRET

 BLACK-NECKED GREBE

 and the

LONG-TAILED DUCK

On Ibsley Water that day we saw, at great distance, no fewer

that 8 species of Gull. None of these images were taken on that day

but with such a fascinating family it is felt well worth while to illustrate

these birds from no matter what source!

 HERRING GULL

 COMMON GULL

 

 BLACK-HEADED GULL

 GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL

 MEDITERRANEAN GULL

 YELLOW-LEGGED GULL

(first winter)

 RING-BILLED GULL

LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL

GREY SQUIRREL

GOOSANDER (swimming)

GOOSANDER (preening)

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