The Birmingham & Midland Motor Omnibus Company began to operate motor buses in the Birmingham & Black Country area in 1912 radiating their services out as far as Leicester. By the 1920s they were building their own buses & SOS was born standing for Shires Own Speci cation named after Midland Reds Chief Engineer. The advantage of this was that the company could design exactly what it wanted without having to compromise by adopting a vehicle from an outside manufacturer. These new single deckers inspired by American designs were responsible for the closure of many tramways. An important by-product of this decision to manufacture their own buses was that the company could manufacture for other BET Group operators such as the Northern General group Potteries Motor Traction & Trent Motor Traction. For these & others the company built many SOS buses the eets being seen all over England & Wales. David Harvey tells the story of the SOS buses of which five have survived into preservation. ...

Pamela Jackson nee Mitford is perhaps the least well known of the illustrious Mitford sisters & yet her story is just as captivating & more revealing. Despite shunning the bright city lights that her sisters so desperately craved she was very much involved in the activities of her extraordinary family picking up the many pieces when things went disastrously wrong
- which they so often did. Joining her sisters on many adventures including their meeting with Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany Pamela quietly observed the bizarre funny & often tragic events that took place around her. Through her eyes we are given a view of the Mitfords never seen before. Loyal to the core she possessed the constancy & kindness that underpinned the wilder exploits of the Mitford family. Indeed innocence along with courage & kindness was one of her remarkable qualities. But it was the innocence of a woman who had lived & suffered loved & lost & overcome adversity. Journalist Diana Alexander who was Pamelas friend for many years here reveals the unknown Mitford or as her lifelong admirer John Betjeman described her Gentle Pamela.
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Saras mother told her that she shouldnt marry Conrad
- that the twenty-five-year age gap between them would tell in the end. The
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The Trevelyan family is in grave trouble. Their private bank of Tubal & Co. is in on the verge of collapsing. Its not the first time in its three-hundred-&-forty year history but it may be the last. A sale is under way & a number of important facts need to be kept hidden not only from the public but also from Julian Trevelyan-Tubals deeply traditional father Sir Harry who is incapacitated in the family villa in Antibes. Great families great fortunes & even greater secrets collide in this gripping satirical & acutely observed story of our time. ...

Ginny & Adam Trustlove arrive on holiday in Italy torn apart by personal tragedy. Two weeks in a boathouse on the edge of peaceful Lake Orta is exactly what they need to restore their faith in life
- & each other. Twenty-four hours later the silence is broken. The Sale family have arrived at the main villa: wealthy high-flying Marty his beautiful wife Bea & their privileged confident offspring. It doesnt take long for Ginny & Adam to be drawn in especially when the teenage Pippi introduces a new friend into the circle. For there is something about Zach that has everyone instantly beguiled something that loosens old secrets
- & creates shocking new ones. & yet not one of them suspects that his arrival in their lives might be anything other than accidental.. .

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This lively & empowering book of wisdom & healing comes from New York Times bestselling author & psychic Sylvia Browne. It offers an unprecedented & comprehensive look at how the afterlife affects us in this life. Discover: astonishing insights into our everyday contact with guides & angels; the truth about hauntings & why we should not be afraid; how psychics can solve missing persons cases & even murders; how psychic energy can keep us healthy & improve our relationships; why we should not fear death or ageing; the afterlife & how we can all maintain contact with our loved ones; reincarnation & how we can all discover our past lives; Easy exercises to promote healing discover past lives improve relationships contact loved ones create joy & much more; must-read predictions for the 21st century ...

Airfix is synonymous with plastic model kits. The brand name has virtually become a noun occupying a special place in that lexicon of trade names alongside Hoover Sellotape Perspex & Aqua-Lung. Throughout the war years Airfix survived on government contracts for a whole range of plastic items & by virtue of Kove's tenancious apetitie for business & doing a deal. By the war's end Airfix was the market leader in plastic injection moulded combs in Britain. By the time Airfix had released its first proper construction kit a tiny model of Drake's flagship Golden Hind in 1952 the firm was well established as a leading toy br&. Indeed throughout the 1950s 60s & 70s Airfix invested heavily in developing new toys or manufacturing them under license for large US toy companies such as Hasbro. Very soon Airfix extended its activities beyond toys into games & arts & crafts & in short time famous names. Indeed so successful was Airfix at diversifying that by the 1970s the company had grown to such an extent that it had acquired other famous toy brands including Dinky Toys Tri-ang Meccano & Romper Room. With its subsidiary Crayonne Airfix even harnessed the design talents of the then Terence Conranne in attempt to elevate plastic products to the rarified atmosphere of designer chic. So there's a lot more to Airfix than many might think & this book is the first attempt to document the myriad successful lines outside of plastic kits which contributed to the company's dramatic growth before a combination of factors forced it into brief liquidation in 1981. Written by someone with a lifetime's fascination for Airfix & who has written other books about the better known construction kit side of the business The Other Airfix is a nostalgic trip down memory lane. ...

One of Sidney Sheldon's most popular & bestselling titles repackaged & reissued for a new generation of fans. A gripping glamorous novel of scorching sensuality & heart-stopping evil. A beautiful French actress whose craving for passion & vengeance takes her from the gutters of Paris to the bedroom of a powerful billionaire; a dynamic Greek tycoon who never forgets an insult never forgives an injury; & a handsome war hero lured from his wife by another woman. From Paris to Washington Hollywood to the islands of Greece The Other Side of Midnight is the story of four star-crossed lives enmeshed in a deadly ritual of passion intrigue & corruption. ...

She lived only for pleasure...until war forced her to find courage she did not know she had & love where she least expected it. It is 1941 & while Britain is in the grip of war life in the Far East is one of wealth & privilege. In Singapore Susan Roper secure in the supremacy of the British Empire enjoys dancing clothes & fast cars tennis & light flirtations with visiting naval officers
- her life is devoted solely to pleasure. When she meets an Australian doctor who warns her of the danger that they all face she dismisses him as an ignorant colonial. Singapore goes on partying oblivious to the threat of invasion. The British flag will they believe protect them from all enemies. But when Japan invades Susan finds herself in grave danger. She become an ambulance driver & is taken prisoner by the Japanese. Gradually & reluctantly she realizes that she has fallen in love with the tough arrogant & totally unsuitable doctor but she has to face many hardships & witness terrible events before she can acknowledge the truth.
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Arthur & Jake: brothers yet worlds apart. Arthur is older shy dutiful & set to inherit his father's farm. Jake is younger & reckless a dangerous to know. When Laura arrives in their 1930s rural community an already uneasy relationship is driven to breaking point... ...