PW:-
or perhaps they clocked my short haircut and the memory of the beauty competition remained fresh in the collective memory!
I too remember back then, as a CCF cadet on a "hill walking" course based at Bethesda how the local children could slip effortlessly from speaking Welsh into English and back again. Perhaps it was the infamous Beauty Contest that triggered such intense bilingualism, as a bulwark against more cultural invasions? One has to wonder at the naivety of inviting RAF fighter pilots to perform such a task in the first place. Perhaps it was on the basis of Poachers turned Gamekeepers? We shall never know but it clearly backfired spectacularly.
Like Beagle, my appreciation of Spitfires has always been from afar. In that respect I admire them all, single and dual cockpit, Merlin and Griffon powered, Mk 1's to Mk47's, though perhaps the earlier the Mark the greater the interest. If the Burma dig does offer the opportunity to see and hear more of this iconic machine it would be marvellous. Rather like having fleets of HMS Victory, all in full sail! I take Danny's point re the trainer variant though. It was clearly not needed by the RAF, though how many were lost in training accidents that might have been avoided with a spot of dual I do not know. Perhaps that is what the Irish had in mind for the far more limited numbers that they were dealing in. At any rate, as Tim reminds us, that variant has paid off handsomely in filming and even plying for hire to those willing to pay for the "Spitfire experience"