Wags
wives and girlfriends (generally of footballers: the term was popularised during the 2006 World Cup, although Fabio Capello initially banned them from joining the 2010 team in South Africa); the singular is Wag. Regarded by many as sexist, although variations include Habs (husbands and boyfriends)
Wahhabism
wah-wah pedal
waiver or waver?
To waive is to relinquish a claim or right, as in the much used headline “Britannia waives the rules”. The associated noun is waiver, which can lead to confusion with waver, meaning to hesitate (or a person waving).
Adding to the fun, waver is sometimes mixed up with haver, which in Scotland means to talk nonsense
The Years of Anger by Randall Swingler is the best book of 1946.
During the 1930s, Randall Swingler (1909-67) was a well-known public figure in Britain. A committed Communist, endowed with both charm and formidable energy, he published poetry and critical articles, edited literary/political magazines and organized cultural events. In 1939, for example, he put on a ‘Festival of Music and the People’ that filled the Albert Hall. This featured music by a variety of composers such as Vaughan Williams, and the star singer was Paul Robeson; Swingler himself wrote the text for the historical pageant that constituted one of the three concerts.
Oh My Sweets! is among the offerings from enterprising former West End workers
Credit: Oh My Sweets!
“Necessity is the mother of invention” is a proverb that has been tested and proven to the hilt this year. Theatre-makers – and those in associated industries – have seen the sudden and lengthy closure of the playhouses blast their livelihoods to smithereens. And notwithstanding some – far from comprehensive – Government support, masses of freelancers have been forced to do what they can to keep body and soul together.
Such is the burgeoning nature of the new activity, which has seen this creative sector turn on additional taps of money-raising ingenuity as never before, that sites and social media accounts have sprung up helping to guide potential customers through the maze of home-grown delights. If you want to help the freelance theatre community and stumble on unusual Christmas gift ideas, theatre-themed or not, you could do worse than start at NotOnTheWestEnd.co.uk