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Not so much animosity as gently teasing the invertebrate-munchers, a sentiment I hope is reciprocated. :)

Absolutely. It's all done in a gentlemanlike manner, and this duel of wits lit by Clio's lamp is actually a celebration of European culture, fair-play and sportsmanship.

Now please hand me the boxing gloves so I can put a sportsmanlike horseshoe in it. :D
 
A proper engineer any body should like.
In that case, we should be touting Sir William Stanier, the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the LMS for the Premiership.
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In that case, we should be touting Sir William Stanier, the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the LMS for the Premiership.
A wise choice, if only such a man had been at the helm not only would the British Empire still be intact today, but it would extend to the Moon and quite possibly Mars as well.
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A wise choice, if only such a man had been at the helm not only would the British Empire still be intact today, but it would extend to the Moon and quite possibly Mars as well.
joenods8fpyw6.gif

British rail will still be an abysmal failure. :D
 
British rail will still be an abysmal failure. :D
Only if nationalised. If kept out of the hand of Communistical leaning types all would have been well.
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A wise choice, if only such a man had been at the helm not only would the British Empire still be intact today, but it would extend to the Moon and quite possibly Mars as well.
joenods8fpyw6.gif

Does the United Kingdom even have a space program? :confused:
 
Does the United Kingdom even have a space program? :confused:
Did. Sadly due to a variety of reasons it ended up being part of a joint European effort that was a spectacular failure, while the British first stage was reliable everything else wasn't (either the French 2nd stage failed or the German 3rd stage did).

However we did get a satellite in orbit unaided prior to the doomed European adventure, however in the end Space is a super-powers game and post-war Britain just didn't have the cash to do the job properly.
 
while the British first stage was reliable everything else wasn't (either the French 2nd stage failed or the German 3rd stage did).

That's the Black Knight rocket, right? The technical difficulties inherent to the integration of three "national" stages could probably have been overcome, if there hadn't been pressure to kill the program anyway.
 
it may sound bad, largely against my patriotic tendencies, and may get me (more?) hated by some of the people on this thread, but as cool as it would be to have a british colony on the moon, the spectacularly large costs, even if we could afford them, are much better spent elsewhere.
 
it may sound bad, largely against my patriotic tendencies, and may get me (more?) hated by some of the people on this thread, but as cool as it would be to have a british colony on the moon, the spectacularly large costs, even if we could afford them, are much better spent elsewhere.
The financial problem is the big front end load. Why not bid out a monopoly to a chartered company or (better yet) two companies? Sooner or later an event will fire allowing the UK to annex the Moon, and then you could spin it off as a Dominion. It's not like you'll have to chase the Dutch, Portuguese, Spaniards or French out of the area.
 
Chapter 129, Parliament, 8 June 1941

Leo Amery scowled as he stalked into the Chamber. Whitehall is an indiscreet place and word was spreading through the corridors of the building that a dramatic moment was about to take place. Amery sat down on the Government front bench beside Kingsley Wood, who was offering a spirited endorsement of Butler’s forthcoming trip to the Commonwealth Prime Ministers. As Amery listened to Wood’s hollow comments about “Commonwealth fraternity” he allowed himself a vicious little smirk before resuming his angry, frustrated glower; the thought of bursting Kingsley Wood’s bubble made this day even better. Opposite him, Clement Attlee and Herbert Morrison shuffled awkwardly onto the Labour benches. Amery overheard Morrison hiss at Attlee “it’ll be worth it for God’s sakes”; the Labour Leader then shot a quick glance at the angry-looking Amery and shook his head in wonder. Amery squirmed in his seat, looking bewildered and unsure. Morrison, whose ability in devilling out information was legendary, beamed like a child at Christmas. Behind him on the Labour second bench two of the members chatted intently, and then a note (Amery could not see the domination) was passed. They were making a bet on him.

The speaker, Fitzroy, stalked in; his deputy had been tipped off by a Home Office Minister and had begged the Speaker to sit in the great chair for the statement. Fitzroy had then noticed the Conservative Chief Whip, Margesson, striding past him surrounded by a gaggle of nervously chatty junior whips. Fitzroy at that moment realised that his deputy was correct and had accepted his suggestion. Margesson had the fixed , controlled expression that he had set after Munich, Norway, Milan, and wordlessly and carefully took his place. He hissed a comment at a junior whip who fled from the Chamber to carry out his master’s bidding. Fitzroy took a breath. As he rose from his seat, taking in the great chamber, he saw the minute hand strike two.

“Mr Leo Amery”. There was cheering from the Opposition benches. Fitzroy winced. Kingsley Wood, who had just wound up the Commonwealth affairs debate, squirmed out of the way as Amery rose to the Despatch Box.

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“Thank you, Mr Speaker. Honourable Members will, I hope, forgive my intrustion into the proposed debate on merchant shipping tonnage,” Amery smirked at Attlee; both men knew that whatever was about to said, it wasn’t about the proposed increases into the freighter fleet. “But I am grateful to the House for permitting this slight delay in its important business.” He paused, marshalling the anger, feeling his ire rise.

“The Nazi wave flooding through Eastern Europe is a nauseous tide of unspeakable evil. Even as I stand here in this great and esteemed building people are dying as they do nothing more sinister than stand up to an enemy whose hunger demands their home. Honourable Members will have read this morning of the comprehensive defeat of yet another Russian force; a force, Sirs, that has violated no border and defied no law. Sirs, we cannot sit here and congratulate ourselves on sitting on the fence, of having ‘missed the bus’” here he smiled, remembering Chamberlain’s now infamous comment. “We have missed the bus, we allowed this evil to dominate Europe.”

They were craning their necks to see him, the Labour members cheering him on whilst the Conservatives, his own Party, sat in stony silence. Amery placed a nonchalant hand in his pocket and came to the climax of his statement.

Well not quite. He had a principle to fight for, a banner to raise. “I cannot, with any conviction, continue to support an approach that seems masterly in its inactivity. Something must be done, Mr Speaker.”

“Well do something!” That was a Labour heckler, a wide man with a flat face and a broad Yorkshire accent. The ‘something’ came out as ‘summat’ and the honest accent, lacking any affected graces, made his heckling seem more effective.

Amery had paused. He looked at the Labour member with dislike and continued. “With immediate effect I shall relinquish the post of Secretary of State for Home Affairs. As I speak my letter of resignation is being delivered to the Prime Minister in Downing Street. I expect that I shall be taken from this place to account for my actions. I am comfortable with my decision today and I will, from tomorrow, look to work with others to force this Government to rise to its responsibilities.”

He paused, savouring the moment. “I am reminded, Mr Speaker, of the words of another great Tory. On his deathbed, that great imperialist Cecil Rhodes is said to have muttered “so little done, so much to do.” These words, Mr Speaker, should be heeded by that man in another place.”

Amery bowed and strode out of the Chamber. Attlee, in a hastily prepared address, lauded Amery’s conscience and criticised Halifax’s leadership. In truth it was not his best speech and was forgotten by the lobby press circling like sharks around a liferaft. Amery was immediately cornered by them, only to be firmly escorted by Templewood and led towards a waiting car.

[Game Effect] – It was always going to happen. Halifax put Amery in Cabinet for a number of good political reasons: it kept the anti-appeasers happy, kept Amery on Halifax’s leash and gave a dynamic figure something challenging to do. But with Barbarossa, which has been met with polite and restrained displeasure, he has dramatically walked out of the Cabinet. Amery, never the most self-controlled of figures,

As a side comment, the debate on freighters was a small note to mark the fact that I had built a few extra convoys and escorts, ready for whatever will happen later in the year.

Kurt_Steiner: Spot on!

Nathan Madien: Yes, FDR is on the sidelines, but he was always was going to be in early 1941 I guess.

Sir Humphrey: Somehow I think that Lord H is scared of rabbits!
Morsky: Not necessarily...

Trekaddict: :)

BritishImperial: That aspect of the uniform was also in evidence in WWI – anything arising from that I wonder?

Atlantic Friend: Many thanks, undeserved but I am very grateful...

Atlantic Friend: Acutally you have hit the nail on the head. Halifax thought exactly as you typed – Winston was an unweasonable menace.

Trekaddict: The danger of backbench rebellion is ever real – and probably the best way (led by a good and well-known minister or ex-minister) of bringing the PM down.

Atlantic Friend: :)

Nathan Madien: I’ve usually tried to avoid lauding Winston too much. There are a few good rebels in the Tory Party, a few of whom are capable of causing trouble.

MITSGS John: A good point and one I agree with. It gives Halifax a number of options with India as well as carefully placing a senior military type in the Far East. Auchinleck, still labouring on as CINC India, will be key to making this work – Ironside now outranks him and though in a political appointment may end up meddling in the Indian Army.

Bafflegab: I agree with your points about Ironside, and your Eden comments are interesting. I think you’re right in saying that Lord H gains a lot from this – having Eden, the darling of the anti-appeasers, on side helps his position greatly – perhaps I am being too optimistic in the effect that the Moscow/Berlin Mission will have on Eden’s reputation.

DonnieBaseball: Macmillan, currently a backbencher, will feature in the story at some stage. At the moment he is quietly backing both Churchill and the Eden/Stanley wings.

Atlantic Friend: I was thinking someone utterly random – Lord Londonderry or even the Duke of Wellington.

Morsky/Atlantic Friend/Kurt_Stiener/Nathan Madien/MITGS John/Morsky::)

VILenin: Agreed – I think that independence will happen, but Halifax is probably gunning for Dominion status after a protracted Whitehall muddle to slow the tempo down. Ironside is there to deal with the Nationalists as best he can, bringing his “no nonsense” attitude in to clear up the mess.

Arilou: It’s such a great scene. I’d love to have Halifax mutter it but just cannot see it happening (at least not in 1941).

Atlantic Friend: I have a few oddball characters in the wings, but the Cabinet will meander on for a while.

Derek Pullem: Lloyd George is an inspired choice: he did cause trouble throughout the War and was often suspected by Churchill of harbouring ambitions for the top job.

Atlantic Friend: Well, Amery was one of those members and has clearly and dramatically parted ways with the PM – but will the Tories give him any support?

Trekaddict: I was thinking that the other day – we’ll be a dying breed.

Atlantic Friend::)

Trekaddict: I for one am doing it because it beats doing real work!

BritishImperial: My plan is to continue on HOI2 whilst cautiously giving HOI3 a go. But I hated EU3 and am worried that I’ll dislike HOI’s newest incarnation. KFM will stay firmly in HOI2.

Morsky: Yes! Stick here, to the tried and tested. None of this shiny stuff!

VILenin: I have to agree. It takes a lot to get a good narrative going and I think most of us will simply be enjoying playing the game first.

Atlantic Friend: Maybe a new group? The Association of Grumpy Narrationists!

Atlantic Friend: :)

Nathan Madien: I think the old guard will soldier on for a while yet...

Trekaddict: The thing is, I like gameplay AARs, but I can’t really get excited about “you used three ARM to crack ten INF?” or some other comment.

Kurt_Steiner: Sorry, came home from hols to find a mountain of work to get through.

Trekaddict::)

Trekaddict::)

Atlantic Friend::rofl:

Trekaddict: A world run by Downing Street is a good world indeed.

Kurt_Steiner: :)

Atlantic Friend/Trekaddict/Nathan Madien: He really is a force ten pain in the arse. At least in this AAR he rots away in Africa!

Arilou: He was an ungrateful, spiteful, grumpy fool whose only redeeming feature was that he hated the Germans just that little bit more than he hated the Allies.

Atlantic Friend: I must admit before starting this I worried about highlighting a load of people who only had a minor impact in the OTL war.

Bafflegab: Seconded.

Sir Humphrey: Apologies!

Nathan Madien: True!

El Pip: Well, Ironside has a clear mandate from Whitehall (a rarity) and lots of energy so may do well.

Trekaddict::)

Arilou: A man of taste!

El Pip::rolleyes:

Trekaddict::)

Ruckel: Welcome aboard! Hope you enjoy it and please add comments, most of this lot do...

Trekaddict: :)

Nathan Madien: That’s partly the reason for my wariness of FDR. By Yalta he was a corpse.

El Pip: Mogenthau? Oh dear God!

Atlantic Friend: I think with De Gaulle it’s just the sheer bloody rudeness of the man. He was also fairly stupid as a strategic leader, although this is perception from me and I will happily listen to argument on this one.

Kurt_Steiner: I’m with you on that one...

Arilou:

El Pip/Atlantic Friend: I’m with the “not a fan of De Gaulle” camp here.

Morsky: The oldest game in the world.

Nathan Madien/Sir Humphrey::)

El Pip/Trekaddict: British Rail may (and I say may) never be formed...

Nathan Madien: It might do in this AAR...

El Pip/Atlantic Friend: Hopefully we may avoid this...

British Imperial: It may emerge as a side-venture from “other projects”.

MITSGS John: “A scramble for the solar system” sounds very very cool

Carlstadt Boy: Sorry, sorry!
 
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But the age of imperialism is fading away. You can't get it back with a another useless war.
Labour is willing to see more millions of young Britons dying for their weak Empire?

Britannia rules India and Africa, what keeps Germany from ruling Europe?
 
“I am reminded, Mr Speaker, of the words of another great Tory. On his deathbed, that great imperialist Cecil Rhodes is said to have muttered “so little done, so much to do.” These words, Mr Speaker, should be heeded by that man in another place.”

Now he mentions Rhodes, I hope that Amery hadn't send himself to another "Charge of the Light Brigade" cause, as Rhodes send Jameson... :D
 
The thing is, going to war against Germany right now would make the Charge of the Light Brigade as childs play. With the RAF less built up than in OTL at this stage ( as far as we can tell ) it would be.
 
Amery, of course. One of the men for whom the term 'Loose cannon' was coined.

However I wonder if it will be all that effective, I can see demands that 'Something must be done' but what? Unless Amery and co. can come up with a practical scheme to do something that materially helps the Soviets without dragging Britain into the war I'm not sure the long term impact will be that significant.

Short term political damage certainly, and a few rough days (weeks?) in the papers and in the house, but Amery will need more than just his resignation to make a lasting impact.
 
Great job by Amery! Can't wait to see Lord H's response to this, although Morsky might get first crack:D

The honouwable gentleman will suwely wecall that even though we have, due to ciwcumstances wholly beyond our contwol, missed the bus, we still have the distinctly wational and sensible option of taking the twain. In fact, I myself find this method of twanspowtation infinitely supewiow to the plebeian means suggested by the gentleman. A bus wide neccesitates sitting in ghastly cwowded aweas suwwounded by all sorts of disagweeable common folk, wheweas a twain wide allows a pewiod of wespite and solitude, best spent weading a good novel by Agatha Chwistie.

Also, you'we fiwed. *Cadogan whispers something into his ear* Oh, you've alweady quit? Nevewmind then. Cheewio, Leopold.
 
Hopefully Amery will be the first of many to resign Halifax's cabinet. He's hardly the only cabinet-member who feels that way...