Fact checking in popular songs. – Page 5 – Chat Forum

tthew · 2023-03-17T12:19:04Z

Case 1. The Irish Rover. Consider the manifest listed by Mr McGowan, and the mass of such items. One million bags of the best Sligo Rags - 10kg per bag of cleaning rages. 10,000 tonnes. Two million barrels of stone - 25 20kg bags of aggregate fit into a standard 205 litre oil drum. 1bn tonnes. Three million sides of old blind horses hides - 7.25kg. 2 sides per hide. 108,750 tonnes. Four million barrels of bones - Barrel weight probably more significant than the bones. Est. 30kg for steel oil durum + bones. 120,000 tonnes. Five million hogs - 1 pig is typically 125kg at slaughter, total weight, 625,000 tonnes. Six million dogs - Our Cockerpoo is 12kg, 6 million Henry's, 72,000 tonnes. Seven million barrels of porter - assuming a 'keg' size, (which is actually 1/2 a standard barrel), at 71kg, 497,000 tonnes. Eight million bails of old nanny goats' tails. - assume a bale weight of 125kg, (same as a bale of cotton), 1bn tonnes. Total cargo weight, 2.0014 billion tonnes. Bloody obvious it was going to sink, in fact I suspect it was an insurance job.

slowoldman

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In MGB-GT Richard Thompson sings:

"Hard top handy in case of the weather, I don't care if it rains for ever".

Of course that is only applicable to the MGB Roadster, not the GT.

Posted : 02/11/2025 7:32 pm

failedengineer

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The brilliant Mr Thompson also famously sings about a 1952 Vincent Black Lightning as if it were a road bike. They were race bikes, Richard. '1952 Vincent Black Shadow' would have been equally as good, I feel, and be more feasible.

Posted : 03/11/2025 2:50 pm

slowoldman

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What?? You'll be telling me next Mother DOESN'T know best.

Posted : 04/11/2025 12:40 pm