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Do you have a question for which you’d like to discover the answer? Alternatively, do you possess the answer to any question listed here?
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Send your correspondence to: Charles Legge, Responses for Readers, Daily Mail, 9 Derry Street, London W8 5HY; alternatively, you can reach out via email at charles.legge@LIFEHACK.co.uk
QUESTION: Numerous movies from the 1950s and 1960s included Percy Herbert. Can you tell me how many films he appeared in and what happened to him afterward?
Percy Herbert (1920-1992), born in London, was an actor known for appearing in more than 70 movies. He frequently portrayed roles such as soldiers, rugged men, or individuals from the working class.
His rugged demeanour made him a natural fit for such roles, and he became a reliable presence in war films and historical dramas.
Before acting, Herbert was in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps during
World War II
and spent four years at the Changi Prisoner of War camp, from which he was compelled to labor on the Burma Railway. He was liberated by American troops and ultimately returned
London
.
He started his acting journey in theater with the Old Vic Company led by John Gielgud. In film, he appeared in “The Cockleshell Heroes” (1955) and “The Bridge on the River Kwai” (1957), a movie inspired by the POW camp where he had served.
He served as a consultant for the movie too. Herbert appeared in various war films like Tobruk (1967). His range extended widely, appearing in an array of genres including fantasy with One Million Years B.C., historical dramas like Mutiny On The Bounty, and comedies where he starred in two Carry On films.
He made appearances on television in shows like “Worzel Gummidge,” “General Hospital,” and “Dixon of Dock Green.” In 1947, he tied the knot with Amy Lindsay, and together they raised two kids. Unfortunately, he passed away due to a heart attack at the age of 72.
Clive Gill, Wimborne, Dorset
Why does a hoax also fall under the category of a canard?
The term ‘canard,’ which refers to a false, disparaging, or baseless rumor in English, originates from the French word with the same spelling but denotes a duck. This usage is consistent in both languages.
The 19th-century French lexicographer Emile Littre tracked the usage back to an older phrase, ‘vendre un canard à demi’, which means ‘to partially sell a duck’ (in other words, to not sell it at all).
In “A Dictionarie of the French and English Tongues” published in 1611 by Randle Cotgrave, he interprets the French phrase ‘vendeur de canards à moitié’ as ‘a swindler, deceiver, cheat; trickster, liar’.
S. E. Smith from Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
What are some of the strangest and most unusual marathon competitions held around the globe?
Following the previous response, perhaps one of the most peculiar races has to be the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race. Runners circle a lone block in New York City repeatedly over a period lasting as long as 52 days to finish this endurance event.
Diane Higgs, Street, Somerset
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