Comments on: Thought balloons http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/ Airpower and British society, 1908-1941 Fri, 09 Jan 2009 13:08:03 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.5 By: Airminded · Saturday, 1 October 1938 http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-86437 Airminded · Saturday, 1 October 1938 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 13:51:24 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-86437 [...] world upheaval’, with titles like ‘The Rome-Berlin Axis’. I’ve suggested before that it might be interesting to examine the influence of, shall we say, unconventional thinkers on [...] [...] world upheaval’, with titles like ‘The Rome-Berlin Axis’. I’ve suggested before that it might be interesting to examine the influence of, shall we say, unconventional thinkers on [...]

]]> By: Brett Holman http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-77009 Brett Holman Fri, 27 Jun 2008 09:29:10 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-77009 Well, supposedly the spirit was very specific, according to the link in my previous comment. And presumably Garrett didn't have a day job as an airship engineer. But I haven't seen any account which is in the least bit sceptical and so I'd want to go back to the primary sources, rather than rely on what spiritualists say happened, especially since <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Price" rel="nofollow">Harry Price</a> was involved ... Well, supposedly the spirit was very specific, according to the link in my previous comment. And presumably Garrett didn’t have a day job as an airship engineer. But I haven’t seen any account which is in the least bit sceptical and so I’d want to go back to the primary sources, rather than rely on what spiritualists say happened, especially since Harry Price was involved …

]]> By: Chris Williams http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-76866 Chris Williams Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:43:05 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-76866 You probably don't need to have been a very good medium to think of reasons why the R101 might have crashed. The difficulty was working out which one of the design flaws got it first. You probably don’t need to have been a very good medium to think of reasons why the R101 might have crashed. The difficulty was working out which one of the design flaws got it first.

]]> By: Alan Allport http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-76858 Alan Allport Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:15:49 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-76858 Reminiscent of the witch doctor employed at HOO HQ to cast curses on Hitler in Evelyn Waugh's <i>Sword of Honour</i>. Reminiscent of the witch doctor employed at HOO HQ to cast curses on Hitler in Evelyn Waugh’s Sword of Honour.

]]> By: Brett Holman http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-76850 Brett Holman Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:08:21 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-76850 I can go you one better! Shute was almost certainly inspired by real-life seances held by the medium Eileen Garrett shortly after the R101 disaster, where she supposedly received communications from its captain and other dead crew members, who provided an explanation for why the airship crashed. Which apparently was later confirmed by the official inquiry. Cue spooky music. I have a draft post on this, which I see was last edited on 13 October 2005! I'll finish it someday ... for now <a href="http://www.euro-tongil.org/swedish/english/er101.htm" rel="nofollow">this</a> looks like as good a place as any to get the basic story. I can go you one better! Shute was almost certainly inspired by real-life seances held by the medium Eileen Garrett shortly after the R101 disaster, where she supposedly received communications from its captain and other dead crew members, who provided an explanation for why the airship crashed. Which apparently was later confirmed by the official inquiry. Cue spooky music.

I have a draft post on this, which I see was last edited on 13 October 2005! I’ll finish it someday … for now this looks like as good a place as any to get the basic story.

]]> By: Chris Williams http://airminded.org/2008/06/24/thought-balloons/#comment-76847 Chris Williams Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:44:00 +0000 http://airminded.org/?p=517#comment-76847 Obligatory aiminded/spiritualism bit: the seance sequence from _No Highway_. Obligatory aiminded/spiritualism bit: the seance sequence from _No Highway_.

]]>