Hi

Just finished watching the excellent 2003 remake of "Goodbye Mr.
Chips" starring Martin Clunes. A large part of the film is set in an
English Public School during World War I.

Towards the end of the film there is a classroom scene where Mr.
Chips, a Latin master, is holding a discussion with his pupils on Edward
Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire whilst two World War I
biplanes are staging a dog fight over the school.

Clearly visible on the top of a bookcase is a Fullers Calculator
cylindrical slide rule, uncased and standing on end. I could not make
out the model because the instrument is only visible for about 3
seconds as the camera pans across the room.

Although the Fullers Calculator is contemporary with the World War I
scene, its inclusion must surely be erroneous as the artisanal
associations of the device render it totally out of context in the
classroom of an English Public School. The only conclusion that I can
draw to justify the presence of this instrument is that the classroom
must have been used by the Remove.

Awrrrabest for 2005

Dave Thompson