Spinning Wool and Westminster Yarns

Today I learnt that when the Sleeping Beauty to be pricked her finger, it was on a very different machine to the one we are familiar with from pictures or re-enactments. It was Open Farm Sunday at the College of West Anglia in Milton today. After holding a bearded dragon, watching sheep shearing, and admiring a rather tall lama from beyond spitting distance, Jane and I came upon two wool spinners in a barn on the farm. Their spindles seemed pointless, which prompted me to ask, where and how could a fairytale princess prick her finger on the device?

The treadle spindle wheel now often seen was invented and spread widely in the sixteenth century. Before that, spinners used the Great Wheel. This hand driven wheel drove a slowly rotating horizontal spindle - with a point. Princess Rose therefore most likely lived in the pre-renaissance mediaeval era.  

Spinning gave rise to the phrase 'spinning a yarn', as women spinning communally would while away the time telling each other stories. Now we use it to indicate someone telling a embellished tales. The German's have taken this to a more abbreviated form, 'spinnen' also means to lie or talk rubbish.

Today's unusual tale from across the Pond is that, according to the Guardian,  President Trump told Prime Minister May that he did not want to come to the UK if there were large protests, putting the visit on hold. By lunchtime, Reuters reported that both the Prime Minister's Office and the White House denied the account, the talk had never happened, and that the visit was still on.

From being, according to George Osborne in a particularly tasteless phrase, 'A dead woman walking', the Prime Minister has continued to build a new cabinet. She has brought back Michael Gove to the Cabinet as the Environment Secretary, and Boris has now given her his unwavering support. Boris and Gove - an interesting combination that existed almost exactly a year ago, as the battle was on for the Conservative leadership, and Boris's chances were wrecked - by Gove, letting in Theresa May. Lots of speculation on Soft Brexit more likely now than Hard Brexit. Crunch day is June 19th when both the Queens Speech is given, where Jeremy Corbyn expects to attack, and Brexit negotiations are supposed to begin.

.