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Which Olympic diver has a surname that means "pool" ?

Today we're taking a quick dip into the names of some of our awesome Olympians and we're diving in at the pool where it transpires that one of our Olympic gold medalists has a surname that actually means (wait for it....) POOL !!

If you've followed a link in from elsewhere then it's not the favourite, Tom Daley. Tom's surname has nothing to do with pools or 'daily' and everything to do with coming from the dales. As Tom actually hails from the coastal city of Plymouth, a more appropriate surname might be a classic coastal surname like Seaman or Seaton. But Daley he is.

Another gold winning diver, Daniel Goodfellow can also be excluded. His surname means pretty much what you'd think, unlike former Olympian Lord Sebastian Coe whose surname means not a good fellow but "an odd fellow".

The diving medalist whose name means "pool" is in fact Chris Mears. The name Mears derives from the word Mere meaning pool or lake. Who knows, perhaps his forbears spent their summers diving into lakes and building up fabulous genes for Chris to inherit. (!!).

Any glance at the 2016 Olympics would be incomplete without mention of the star of the show, Usain 'lightning' Bolt. The surname Bolt has no known historical connections to lightning but originates from the archaic word for dwelling or home: 'bolt' or "bolt-hole".

Finally, how about taking a quick look at our Happy Families Card Games that inspired all this nonsense in the first place ?

More soon !!

THE REVEALING NAMES OF THE NEW CABINET

When you hear of people researching surnames, one image jumps to mind: The dull distant relative who inexplicably passes their days connecting long-forgotten fragments of the lives of still more distant and longer-forgotten relatives.

The new range of Happy Families card games involved us looking at surnames from a totally different perspective: The aim was to cherry pick the quirky, curious and amusing nuggets of trivia associated with particular surnames. In other words, the lighthearted stuff that you’d want to find in a game.

Although our Happy Families card games are now published (and available for you to buy of course), we’re hooked on surnames. So today we’re turning our attention to the British Government, more specifically the names of the new(ish) cabinet.

Warning: Some of the revelations that follow are going to stick in your mind and cannot be unthought.


LIAM FOX

Let’s start with Dr. Liam Fox, politician, Brexiteer and now “Secretary of State for International Trade”.

The surname Fox derives from the animal to the extent that this surname was originally given to people who were considered to be sly ‘like a fox’. Whilst not flattering, this may not be an entirely bad quality for a politician.

So far so good(ish) but hang on, what’s that first name again ? Liam ?

Liam of course comes from William. And when did the name William first become a popular name in the UK ? Answer: Immediately after we were overwhelmed by that nasty Norman nobleman, William the Conqueror.

So today, on this blog, we can exclusively reveal to you that one of the leading Brexiteers is in fact named after an all-conquering Frenchman. Quelle ironie !!

But hey! Let’s not stop there!


DAVID DAVIS

Another avid Brexiteer, David Davis was recently elevated to the inevitably antagonistic position of ‘Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union’.

The surname Davis was originally given to people who were the sons of fathers called David. So David Davis is really “David, son of David” which though drearily repetitive, at least boasts a quality rarely found in politicians: consistency.

The name David has Hebrew origins and means ‘friend’ or ‘darling’. So the name 'David Davis' just means “Friend, son of friend”. It’s probably going to be worth conveying that to our European neighbours before the arch Eurosceptic David Davis kicks off his Brexit hostilities.


THERESA MAY

So to the top where it turns out that the second female British Prime Minister is (in true panto style) a bloke in disguise. At least in name:

You see the name May derives from the name Mayhew which is turn comes from Matthew. So with Pythonesque logic, we find our country is in fact led by a lady called Matthew.

Incidentally, the name Theresa has Greek origins and means ‘huntress’. Perhaps someone should have told Andrea Leadsom about that before she volunteered to be Matthew’s hapless prey in the Tory leadership race.


AMBER RUDD

Veering off topic briefly, a little known and delightfully quirky piece of trivia about Amber Rudd is that she was credited as the “Aristocracy Co-Ordinator” for the classic comedy “Four Weddings and a Funeral”. But I digress….

Bearing a last name that at first sounds a little fishy, Amber Rudd [insert: a rudd is a freshwater fish] has a surname that has no piscatorial provenance.

As another quick aside, the origins of the surnames of her cabinet colleague Chris Grayling and the former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond are also unrelated to fish. The exception is Nicola Sturgeon, a socialist named after a cold-blooded luxury food supplier.

Let's get back to Amber Rudd. The name Amber is traced directly back to the fossilized tree resin of the same name while the surname Rudd was originally given to people of a ruddy complexion. Perhaps the name will become appropriate for the usually pale faced Ms. Rudd in the event of embarrassing gaffes.

Talk of fossilized Tories, comedy and embarrassing gaffes can only be leading us in one direction:

BORIS JOHNSON

Despite Boris’s all-consuming ambition to become British Prime Minister, it’s worth remembering that he’s a US passport holder. So we’ll take the chance to look at this particular power-hungry philanderer’s name from an American perspective:

In America, a Johnson is a lot more than a name. Indeed it could be described as the stand out weapon in a philanderer’s armory. One might even think that being led by a Johnson is a fate more likely to befall Boris than the UK.

Could the connotations associated with this name possibly get worse? Of course they could! For the name Johnson was originally given to sons whose father was called John. So Johnson is “Son of John”. Zipping quickly back to the USA where once again, a John is a lot more than a name: In fact it’s a toilet. So, (as many remain voters have already concluded since the June 23rd vote), dear Boris is the son of a toilet.

On the upside, the name Boris has Russian origins and means ‘fighter’. Boris may need to summon that up going forwards…


SQUEEZING IN:

I’ll briefly mention new cabinet members Greg Clark, Damian Green, Baroness Evans and Jeremy Wright for the self-indulgent reason that we have special edition Happy Families card games available for those (and other) surnames.


SO THERE YOU HAVE IT

So there you have it: Through the prism of names you’ve now discovered that our newish cabinet is led by a lady called Matthew who presides over red-faced remainers, friendly eurosceptics named after Norman noblemen and a person of privy parentage.

Happy Families!

(More soon)

 

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Meet the Happy Families Card Game Characters: (1) Mrs. Roberts the toddler's mother

Here's the first in a new series of posts that will explore some of the characters in our range of Happy Families card games:

 

Today we're going to share a moment with "Mrs. Roberts, the toddler's mother" who stars in the "Happy Roberts Families" card game. Mrs. Roberts is proud mum of both a toddler and a baby. Mrs. Roberts is a kindly middle class woman who adores motherhood and yet also finds herself fully stretched by the incessant demands that motherhood brings. All in all, the Roberts Family is undoubtedly a very Happy Family. However Mrs. Roberts finds her moods fluctuating wildly between wonderful moments of unbridled pride and joy and rather less glorious moments of utter exasperation when she could pretty much strangle those little darlings......

 

Introducing:

Mrs. Roberts, the toddler’s mother

Picture the scene: Mrs. Roberts has just arrived home from the class coffee morning and is reflecting on the morning so far.....

Master Roberts, the toddler had looked a little peaky earlier  and so had stayed at home with the dizzy new au pair. Mrs. Roberts, the toddler’s mother had instead taken gorgeous Miss Roberts the Baby to hang out with the Montessori mums for coffee.

It began inauspiciously. Mrs. Roberts fluffed, huffed and puffed her way through a sixteen-point-turn manoeuvre to get her overloaded baby buggy through the coffee shop’s user-unfriendly doors. This was immediately followed by a ninety yard walk back down the pavement to collect Miss Roberts the Baby’s grubby dummy, (Mrs. Roberts had already purchased six new pacifiers that month and wasn’t going to get any more no matter how much Miss Roberts the Baby screamed). Upon her return to the coffee shop she discovered that out of nowhere, a vast boa-constrictor of a queue was snaking its way back to the aforementioned unfriendly entrance and gingerly around her overloaded and very noisy buggy.

Further horrors: she joined the boa constrictor next to Competitive Carol who, true to form, boastfully hissed her way through her families’ recent achievements for a seemingly interminable 8 minutes, 23 seconds before she finally reached the barrister. (“It’s barista nowadays, you baby-brained buffoon” Mrs. Roberts muttered to herself).

“A medium skinny cappuccino with chocolate please”

“Skinny cap, sure, no problem……what size you want ?”

“Medium”

“You want chocolate with that ?”

On the upside, Mrs. Roberts the Toddler’s Mother had managed to find a single seat among friendly faces, thereby dodging further contact with Competitive Carol. Indeed the other mums fortified her with additional cappuccinos and juicy gossip about the hot new gym teacher until she felt altogether more awake, in control and with it.

Refreshed and revitalized, Mrs. Roberts wandered home enjoying a gentle caffeine buzz and a few precious moments peace. She was primed and ready for a happy, uncomplicated day that surely lay ahead.

“Where’s Master Roberts the Toddler ?” she asked the dizzy new au pair

“In zee sitting room” came the nonchalant reply”.

Mrs. Roberts the Toddler’s Mother opened the sitting room door.....

" HAPPY FAMILIES "

The images above are taken from two cards in our  "Happy Roberts Families" edition of the Happy Families card game.

Please remember that our special range of Happy Families card games are tailored around certain surnames so if you're not shopping for the surname Roberts then you can peruse the other surnames here).

The New Happy Families Card Games are here!

It's back !!

160 years after its launch, one of the longest surviving games in the world has roared back in grand style - and in 24 great new special edition packs.

These ingenious new Happy Families card games are packed with innovations, improvements and witty illustrations that are both insightful and entertaining to play with. Let's take a quick tour through the new stuff:

If you've had the pleasure of playing earlier versions of the card game Happy Families then you'll know that the game is traditionally played with picture cards. Those picture cards were divided into socially stereotyped professions (e.g. "Mr. Bun the Baker" etc). Those professions have been discarded in favour of something altogether more appropriate and enjoyable:

These new versions of Happy Families focus on the different stages and moments in FAMILY LIFE. Humorously illustrated, the new cards are divided into groups like "The Happy Family at Christmas" (complete with ironic references for adults), "The Happy Family on a Long Car Journey" and "The Happy Family with Teenagers". From disastrous barbecue parties (think incinerated food, dogs stealing sausages etc) to joyous celebrations, this is the life of a real Happy Family sketched out in the most comical way.

The next innovation is that each of these 24 new Happy Families packs are already personalised to a family name. So there's a Happy Smith Families, Happy Jones Families and so on. If you have an unusual name then too bad but bear in mind that these fab new Happy Families games make great gifts for fun-loving families with more common surnames. Giving "Happy Smith Families" to a family named Smith really goes down well (we've tried it, they love it!). It’s a great gift idea.

Whilst on the topic of gift-giving, these new Happy Families card games also come complete with a personalised sheet of gift wrap paper. So if you choose the Williams Family edition then you'll also receive a little folded sheet of Williams gift wrap. This makes it easy for you to wrap it into a great looking gift for the Williams family. And remember that there are 24 different names to choose from, so it doesn't need to be a Williams.

Another innovative personal touch that make these new Happy Families card games such a great gift idea is found at the bottom of the cards. Each surname has been researched and snippets of info about each surname can be found at the bottom of the cards. This is for decoration only (the Happy Families rules haven’t changed). However it adds a pinch of brain food that’s never previously featured in a pack of Happy Families cards.

Mindful that families come in all shapes and sizes, the pack includes 4 optional blank cards that allow you (or more likely the kids) to create their own group of cards. Some choose to remodel the structure of the family whilst others go more lateral and make up groups of pets, pop stars or friends. If that doesn't sound like you then you can ignore those cards and play straight out of the box.

Different families have different age ranges of course and what's good for younger children doesn't always work for teenagers. These Happy Families card packs also have the game Go Fish included. This makes the games a "Little Box of good Times" for families with kids of all ages.

To see which names are available, use this link directly to the new Happy Families card game range (and be sure to click on a name and watch the fun videos).

In future posts we aim to explore some of the characters on the cards. Stay tuned !!