562:, but without making the original distinction between 'back-room boys' and boffins. By 2009 a popular history noted how enthusiastic 'home-taught boffins' and academics contributed to both world wars, and came to have 'key positions in directing the war effort' and a nostalgic popular book to accompany the Science Museum's 'Dan Dare and the Birth of High-Tech Britain' Exhibition described the optimism as the war-time boffins turned their attention to turning Britain into 'a place of ingenious, and beautifully crafted home-spun technology and design', until thwarted by the consumerist policies of Harold Macmillan. Norman Foster is cited as carrying forward the spirit of the boffin.
112:
963:
which the principle has been adopted of placing the business of enquiry and thinking in the hands of persons definitely charged with it, whose duty is to study the future, and work out plans and advise those responsible for policy or engaged in actual administration. The reason of the separation of work has been the proved impracticability of devoting the necessary time to thinking out organisation and preparation for action in the mere interstices of the time required for the transaction of business. ... . principle ought by no means to be limited in its application to military and naval affairs
555:, the fussy armourer-inventor in the James Bond films, and the term itself gradually took on a negative connotation within society at large. Thus, by the late 1990s, while the need for 'high-calibre' research staff with 'intimate knowledge' of users and their potential needs was well recognized by potential employers, the term 'boffin' was no longer used in its original sense, lest it conjure up images of 'mad scientists'.
32:
354:. He (sic) is the instrument for building into the design provisions which depend on close analysis of the vehicle in which the device is to operate, the field conditions in which it is to operate and above all things, the competence of those who are to operate, maintain, and repair it. He alone can save us from the danger of engendering electronic dinosaurs;
370:(1642–1726/7), who, in his advice to the Admiralty, made an important distinction when he said that 'if, instead of sending observations of seamen to able mathematicians on land, the land would be able to send able mathematicians to sea, it would signify much more to the improvement of navigation and the safety of men's lives and estates on that element.'
994:
ideas. If an idea was put forward that had merit, it could be adopted there and then because all the main decision-makers would be there. Such informality (and trust) at such a powerful level was unprecedented. A great sense of purpose was thus built up between the researchers and the military decision-makers
305:
Of its etymology Sir Robert himself wrote: “I am not quite sure about the true origins of this name of Boffin. ... I am sure it has nothing at all to do with that first literary “Back Room Boy,” the claustrophiliac
Colonel Boffin, who as you remember never overtly emerged from his back room, although
289:
aircraft. Their offspring was a Boffin, a bird of astonishingly queer appearance, bursting with weird and sometimes inopportune ideas, but possessed of staggering inventiveness, analytical powers and persistence. Its ideas, like its eggs, were conical and unbreakable. You push the unwanted ones away,
1448:
We should concentrate attention very much on the newest types of industry, the Boffin industries, which may at the moment employ only two or three men with slide rules and a few lady typists, but which are building up a nucleus of design and technical expertese around which the industrial skills of
342:
at
Farnborough, developing a cadre of 'leaders and explorers' who have retrospectively been termed 'boffins'. Some "have been careful to differentiate between the true boffin and the 'nark', who was a member of the scientific staff of the Experimental Flying Section at Farnborough.' Similarly, the
962:
It appears to us that adequate provision has not been made in the past for the organised acquisition of facts and information; and for the systematic application of thought, as preliminary to the settlement of policy and its subsequent administration. ... There are well-known spheres of action in
455:
continued, in the immediate postwar period, to carry some of its wartime connotation, as a modern-day wizard who labours in secret to create incomprehensible devices of great power. For example, the comics of the period depicted them as developing imaginative machines. However, their more nuanced
97:
term for a scientist, engineer, or other person engaged in technical or scientific research and development. A "boffin" was viewed by some in the regular military or government services as odd, quirky or peculiar, though quite bright and essential to helping in the war effort through having and
993:
Whilst at Worth in 1940, he conceived the idea of inviting senior military personnel to visit TRE on
Sundays to meet with the rest of the research engineers and scientists working in the team. These gatherings were very informal and even the most junior staff were encouraged to contribute their
387:
On VJ Day the Daily Herald reported: ”This is `Boffins Day` because for the first time it is permissible to tell something of the war saga of the backroom boys known throughout the services of the United
Nations as `Boffins`. It is a dramatic and romantic story of a battle of wits, brains and
180:
with seeming trifles. Sir Frank turned the joke on
Birrell by writing letters to the papers and critical of him as if from Boffin, later published a popular book of cartoons on the affair and was only then identified as the author, as described in Birrell's humorous biography of Sir Frank.
356:
he alone can provide on the one hand the knowledge on which the machine can be measured to the man and on the other, the knowledge on which can be based the selection, training, and (this is important) the inspiration of the normal human beings on whom its successful use, in the end, must
388:
inventive genius between the scientists of the United
Nations and those of the enemy and the United Nations Team won hands down. … Theirs was the best kept secret of the war they were conducting what had been aptly described as the very heart of the United Nations war effort.”
876:
played cards waiting for the weather to deteriorate. At last it did & both 'boffins' were so sick that they could only just make it to the set. … turned over to me all the drawings of circuits and layout etc., & wished me luck … They couldn't get away quick enough!
363:." He also noted that “It is a term of respect, and admiration, but particularly a term of affection—an affection which is expressed, as is the English way, in a slightly outside-in, jocular way so that the affection and admiration may not be regarded as too demonstrative.”
169:(1843). Thus at this time a 'Boffin' is a good-hearted person who has suffered from 'hard times', been ill-regarded, taken an opportunity to better themselves and done well, demonstrating remarkable social mobility. Possibly ill-favoured in appearance, possibly artistic.
437:" and notes that his potentially life-saving work demonstrates "why the term 'boffin', which first began as a sailor's expression of joking contempt, has become instead one of affectionate admiration". By 1956 the US Navy apparently regarded boffins as too influential.
574:
In its July 1984 edition, Road and Track commented: "Peter Wright, formerly aerodynamic engineer for Team Lotus
Research and Development, is known there as 'The Boffin' for his scientific wizardry." This Boffin would go on to pioneer active suspension in Formula-One.
444:, wartime head of scientific intelligence, was referred to as a boffin. By the late 60s the term was sometimes being used to include all scientists who had worked at Malvern, irrespective of how closely they worked with the services, even 'backroom' staff.
359:. He must have an understanding and an appreciation of these normal human beings. He can reach these only through having their confidence. He is a middleman, but he is a middleman who can effect enormous economies and enormous increases in efficiencies.
570:
The term 'boffin' has become widely used in the UK popular media to refer to any scientist or scientific expert, especially those engaged in research. The
Institute of Physics is running a campaign to limit this usage, due to the negative image.
306:
his voice was clearly audible from it. It is the very essence of the Boffin that he should emerge frequently and almost aggressively from the Back Room to which, however, he must return on his missions of interpretation and inspiration.”
540:(1948) came good in the end, many scientists were presented as figures of fun, including those working with computers, in bomb disposal and on aircraft. Moreover the films (unlike the books) used the term 'Boffin' to apply to any
309:
The origin of the term appears to be Naval, rather than Air, but its main usage seems to have originated with Naval officers working with civilian radar 'boffins' and quickly adapted by other servicemen and boffins themselves.
1540:
270:(later part of TRE), as the prototypical boffin, noting: "It is quite wrong to use the word ‘boffin’ simply to describe a scientist or technician; a boffin is essentially a middleman, a bridge between two worlds ...".
520:
were being referred to as ‘Pop
Boffins’. More recently, the term 'boffin' has been used to cover all of Churchill's war-winning Wizards, including atomic scientists, aeronautical engineers and the scientists of the
1268:
1781:
The academic as baffled failure in children's books reaffirms established tropes, becomes more popular in the latter half of the twentieth century and teaches the next generation to distrust boffins, eggheads and
1573:
1173:
373:
Watson-Watt stated that 'the bill of the boffin has two separate functions. One is to poke into other people's business and the other is to puncture 'the more highly coloured and ornate eggs of the
330:
World War II was regarded by many as a 'Wizard War'. War-time and immediate post-war reference to scientists was particularly associated with radar, either
Malvern or Farnborough. Alternatively,
302:, noted that the word had been used in the Royal Navy as "an unkind term for any officer over forty", but this usage seems to have been overshadowed by that referred to by the OED, above.
1627:
666:
With so much in doubt about the source of the term, its derivation from Huxley's set of Buffon on board H.M.S. Rattlesnake has a better claim to be true than many another conjecture.
193:(written around 1932, published 1982), but he is said to have derived the name from an Oxford family of bakers and confectioners rather than Dickens (as confirmed by his daughter
1586:
The basic study of new passenger trains now going on at Derby, of trains of 100 tons moving at speeds of 150 m.p.h. ... with all the boffin work done by railway headquarters.
1038:
I can find no instance of WSC using the word in his published works, except in 1949 as Dr. Ferreiro mentions. However, "Wizard War" was a common expression, at least postwar.
440:
By 1962 Boffins were characterised as 'the man (sic) who could understand the viewpoint of the Services, who worked with them, and who frequently shared their dangers' and
1281:
United States Navy ... has coined the term "de-boffinisation" apparently with the object of ensuring that its personnel do not become too involved in technical problems.
551:(1970–72), became the stereotype for children's literature. By the 1980s boffins were relegated, in UK popular culture, to semi-comic supporting characters such as
1377:
145:, described there as a "very odd-looking old fellow indeed". In the novel, Mr Boffin pursues a late-life education, employing Silas Wegg to teach him to read.
1426:
man on the job often thinks of than the backroom boys with their research, the boffins with their theories and the work-study wallahs with their statistics.
976:
384:
According to the Daily Herald, "backroom boys known throughout the services of the United Nations as `Boffins`. should be considered a badge of honour."
433:" in the Arctic Ocean; the article, entitled "Cold Bath for a Boffin", defines the term for its American audience as "civilian scientist working with the
516:(1953) includes a song called "The Boffin's Lament" or "The Lay of the Baffled Boffin", with Naval Boffins. By 1958 sound engineers such as Shute and
1085:
new idea of planned flying and planned service a "boffin," Dr Cecil Gordon, of the University of Aberdeen, on the ambiguous task of breeding flies.
299:
176:
invented a fictional character – Rev. Boffin B.A. – to epitomize those who bothered fellow Liberal politician Sir
522:
352:
a device of great technical elegance, capable of a remarkable performance in the hands of a picked crew, is not necessarily a good weapon of war
547:
Moreover between 1968 and 1972 a series of English language primers portraying a 'mad professor', reinforced by a British TV children's comedy
1685:
Louis George Alexander (15 February 1932 – 17 June 2002) author of New Concept English and the Direct English Syllabus and Course Structure.
790:
I was fortunate in having considerable dealings in 1938–40 with the 'Boffins' (as the Royal Air Force affectionately dubbed the scientists).
239:
1728:
being ascribed as a 'boffin' is partly a consequence of failing to effectively navigate this balancing of academic work and peer relations
1643:
Boffins made an immense contribution to the Allied victory. That didn't mean they were either popular or respected by the public at large.
1902:
413:
401:
529:
has been described as a 'boffin' both for his cryptanalytic wizardry and his backroom work on computers, as have some 'Pop' architects.
1673:
1056:
704:
277:, who played a vital part in the use of radar to defeat night-bombers, as the source of the word. Chamberlain himself claimed that 'A
291:
235:
485:
313:
A key innovation at TRE was Rowe's 'Sunday Soviets'. These reflected the lessons identified from the Great War as reflected in the
723:
317:, but adapted to suit the operational challenges. They allowed the boffins both to contribute more, and to be more recognized.
128:
1467:
1160:
David Low could very well bury "Colonel Blimp" and ... I suggest "Colonel Boffin" because the Army is becoming very technical.
1961:
1477:
869:
687:
525:(including Shute). By the late 60s the term boffins was being used for any research scientists who were making a difference.
460:
and the term was used in the UK parliament (1953) to refer to boffins as either narrow academics or the catalyst for growth.
920:
772:
The King and Queen honoured the 'boffins' - as the MAP radar scientists have become universally known to the Services ... .
361:
He is a rare bird, but he should be free to flit over the whole field of defense science, its origins, and its applications
1388:
1506:
1607:
1516:
1007:
135:
proposed the term derived from Nicodemus Boffin, the good-hearted 'golden dustman' character who appears in the novel
1936:
1759:
1364:
847:
659:
544:, with unfortunate connotations. By 1959 a biography refers to 'muzzle-headed boffins in cob-webby small backrooms'.
397:
75:
1793:
350:
provided the following definition: "The Boffin is a researcher, of high scientific competence, who has learned that
57:
1293:
Ireland, Edward (8 October 1962). "Wolverhampton was saved by an unknown boffin". Express and Star (Wolverhampton).
1197:
1713:
2062:
1843:
42:
1879:
1813:
has British colloquial usage: 'an intellectual, an academic, a clever person; an expert in a particular field
2129:
930:
203:(1937). This family provides the main heroes, who meet Dickens' mould and are also small, like Sarah Biffen.
243:
770:"How the 'boffins' fought for Britain" (Press release). Ministry of Aircraft Production. 13 August 1945.
177:
1994:
The Institute of Physics believes young people are put off subjects if they'll be thought of as boffins.
343:
Secretary of State for War cites the contribution of an operational analyst to the U-boat war in 1943.”
1097:
1715:
The identities and practices of high-achieving pupils : negotiating achievement and peer cultures
1598:
Andrew Hodges (24 January 2002). "Alan Turing — a Cambridge Scientific Mind". In Harman, Peter (ed.).
1810:
497:
405:
1326:
1254:
2067:
1628:"Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing in The Imitation Game: Why scientists make tricky leading men"
1493:
258:) cited 'boffin' as armed-forces slang for an RAF technician or research scientist. Post war, Sir
946:
290:
and they just roll back.'". A naval origin is supported by reports of an anti-submarine trial by
251:
227:
53:
20:
2124:
2046:
1827:
491:
479:
339:
1210:
2025:
1313:
2008:
612:
263:
1817:; especially such a person perceived as lacking practical or social skills.' Cf. egg-head.
254:
used the term 'boffin' to refer to earlier R.A.F. usage and by 1942 an RAF training film (
8:
1305:
548:
457:
155:
and said to be a variant of 'Biffin', meet the newly arrived time traveller in his novel
111:
2096:
616:
1765:
1242:
1050:
609:
Boffin: a personal story of the early days of radar, radio astronomy and quantum optics
580:
347:
335:
259:
255:
1560:
I only hope that a "boffin" will come across the answer to this problem sometime ... .
396:
In 1952 the Secretary of State for War noted the need to develop 'Colonel Boffins' at
2108:
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1957:
1932:
1839:
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137:
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it is hoped to bring about a contact between the regimental officer and the "boffin
512:
282:
184:
1979:"Boffins' plea for tabloids to bin term boffins has mixed reception from red-tops"
1856:
19:
This article is about the British slang word for a scientist. For other uses, see
2082:
2072:
Winston Churchill's Toyshop: The Inside Story of Military Intelligence (Research)
1978:
1214:
942:
819:
421:
338:
had inaugurated the use of scientific methods in aeronautical development at the
152:
142:
49:
2050:
1831:
552:
474:
295:
148:
132:
495:
film (1954) also featured boffins as heroes, as did stand-alone films such as
2118:
2020:
Boats, Boffins and Bowlines: The Stories of Sailing Inventors and Innovations
1797:
1657:
1227:
926:
922:
541:
517:
430:
286:
94:
1449:
the old areas will regroup in the future as the pattern of industry changes.
907:
Open Systems in a Closed World: Ground and Airborne Radar in the UK, 1945-90
219:
in September 1945 based on a Ministry of Aircraft Production press release:
434:
378:
367:
162:
1751:
1033:
98:
developing the key ideas leading to transformative military capabilities.
2035:
1508:
Churchill's War Lab: Code Breakers, Boffins and Innovators: the Mavericks
938:
526:
464:
1406:
1141:
1072:
425:
magazine, a short article on Malcolm Compston depicted him testing "the
934:
755:(Second 1989; online version September 2011 ed.). September 2011 .
469:
267:
199:
1814:
1114:
637:
Three steps to victory: A personal account by Radar's greatest pioneer
532:
However, while the main characters in the semi-autobiographical films
441:
331:
189:
456:
wartime role was not reflected in popular culture, such as the 1951
60:. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.
127:
are obscure. A link to the mathematician and evolutionary theorist
1614:
the backroom-boffin proposed an electronic computer design in 1946
1100:, Proceedings of the Institute of Radar Engineers, 1953, page 1699
750:
1956:. London: Pan Macmillan. pp. 171, 269, 355, 381, 418, 419.
1378:"The 2009 C.P. Snow Lecture: C.P. Snow's Two Cultures Revisited"
250:
in support of all the services. The then superintendent of TRE,
226:
A band of scientific men who performed their wartime wonders at
187:
also had a police sergeant called Boffin in his children's tale
278:
1903:"How bumbling British Boffins became a standing Russian joke"
247:
1743:
Picture-Book Professors: Academia and Children's Literature
409:
2040:
The Wizard War: British Scientific Intelligence, 1939-1945
578:
The term is used frequently in the sketches of comedy duo
2030:
Instruments of Darkness: The Struggle for Radar Supremacy
1733:
730:. No. 1382. The Amalgamated Press. 15 September 1945
377:, which are quite inappropriate to the military scene.'
115:
Illustration of Nicodemus Boffin from the Dickens novel
2083:
Backroom Boys: The Secret Return of the British Boffin
1929:
Backroom Boys: The Secret Return of the British Boffin
560:
Backroom Boys: The Secret Return of the British Boffin
2013:
Mad, Bad And Dangerous?: The Scientist and the Cinema
1333:
1306:"R.V. Jones and the Birth of Scientific Intelligence"
1034:"Did Winston Churchill Invent the Term "Wizard War"?"
197:). He later used Boffin as a surname for a family in
1820:
404:
acquired the nickname 'the boffin' after working at
366:
Thus a Boffin seems the type of person described by
840:
Heavy Words Lightly Thrown: The Reason Behind Rhyme
757:
First published in A Supplement to the OED I, 1972.
463:The image of the technical hero was popularised by
381:has also been regarded as the prototypical boffin.
1438:Brooman-White (15 July 1953). "Scottish Affairs".
815:
813:
811:
809:
807:
165:, an artist with only vestigial arms and legs, in
682:. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 50.
281:, a bird with a mournful cry, got crossed with a
2116:
1923:
1171:
947:Report of the Machinery of Government Committee
804:
706:Sir Frank Lockwood : a biographical sketch
523:Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development
230:and apparently called themselves "the boffins".
891:Introduction: Don't you know there's a war on?
834:
832:
408:(1960–62) as a Gunnery Staff Captain and, via
1746:. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
1597:
1472:. Los Angeles: The Getty Research Institute.
1437:
1375:
1055:The Prof in Two Worlds: The Official Life of
981:Centre for The History of Defence Electronics
630:
628:
626:
606:
1469:Reyner Banham and the Paradoxes of High Tech
898:
788:. Cambridge University Press. pp. vii.
652:Nineteenth-Century Attitudes: Men of Science
558:This negative view changed after 2003, with
240:Radar Research and Development Establishment
1945:
1461:
1459:
1457:
1351:
1349:
983:. Bournemouth University, Oral History Unit
829:
765:
763:
718:
716:
634:
414:Chief of the Defence Staff (United Kingdom)
294:April 1, 1941 based on equipment from TRE.
131:has been proposed. Alternatively, linguist
1070:
921:The Viscount Haldane of Gloan (Chairman);
654:. Kluwer Academic Publishers. p. 32.
635:Watson Watt, Sir Robert Alexander (1957).
623:
1695:
1304:Goodchild, James Martinson (March 2013).
1303:
1222:. Time Inc. 12 January 1953. p. 96.
1108:
1106:
1090:
1031:
862:Radar at Sea: The Royal Navy in World War
584:, particularly in the reoccurring sketch
236:Telecommunications Research Establishment
76:Learn how and when to remove this message
1877:
1454:
1346:
1043:
760:
713:
110:
1711:
1674:Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
1504:
1369:
1292:
702:
677:
242:(RRDE), who were later merged into the
151:also has a man called Boffin, based on
2117:
1976:
1900:
1739:
1625:
1538:
1465:
1407:"Industry and Commerce (Productivity)"
1103:
1005:
904:
888:
882:
1854:
1662:. London: Evans Brothers. p. 95.
1654:
1198:"Field Marshal Lord Vincent obituary"
1008:"Winston Churchill's wartime wizards"
974:
859:
602:
600:
1951:
1878:Frayling, Christopher (9 May 2006).
1626:Macnab, Geoffrey (4 November 2014).
1571:
1404:
1139:
1112:
1071:Noel-Baker, Philip (17 March 1947).
783:
649:
25:
1977:Tobitt, Charlotte (29 March 2023).
977:"A.P.Rowe and his 'Sunday Soviets'"
262:, the British radar pioneer, cited
13:
2002:
1901:Harkin, James (19 December 2017).
1718:. London & New York: Continuum
1032:Langworth, Richard (4 June 2020).
597:
565:
273:Sir Robert cites Air Vice-Marshal
161:(1890). Dickens had referred to a
14:
2141:
2090:
1541:"Atmospheric Pollution, Stockton"
1405:Page, Graham (24 February 1956).
1098:The Natural History of the Boffin
483:(1951) and Shute's autobiography
2042:, Coward McCann Geoghegan (1978)
1696:Alexander, Louis George (1970).
1113:Bray, Charles (15 August 1945).
639:. Odham's Press. pp. 201/2.
447:
419:In the 12 January 1953 issue of
30:
1970:
1917:
1894:
1871:
1855:Quinn, Jennifer (27 May 2004).
1848:
1803:
1794:"Who are you calling a boffin?"
1787:
1705:
1688:
1679:
1666:
1648:
1619:
1591:
1565:
1532:
1498:
1486:
1431:
1398:
1308:. Thesis. University of Exeter.
1297:
1286:
1261:
1203:
1191:
1165:
1133:
1064:
1025:
999:
968:
914:
864:. Macmillan Press. p. 86.
853:
795:
709:. London: Smith Elder & Co.
325:
119:, a possible source of the term
1602:. Cambridge University Press.
1200:, 13 September 2018, The Times
1140:Head, Antony (10 March 1952).
1006:Callan, Paul (24 April 2010).
889:Bud, Robert; Gummett, Philip.
777:
769:
742:
696:
671:
643:
607:Hanbury Brown, Robert (1991).
1:
1702:in the Look, Listen and Learn
1339:Captain Spencer Freeman CBE,
1142:"Army Estimates, 1952-53 ..."
591:
234:Malvern was home to both the
123:The origins and etymology of
1954:The Making of Modern Britain
1492:Computer Orchestra 1968, at
1387:(235): 49–57. Archived from
1376:Prof. Jardine, Lisa (2010).
1357:Eagle Annual of the Cutaways
1115:"Radar "Eyes" Saved Britain"
244:Radar Research Establishment
7:
1931:. London: Faber and Faber.
1698:Professor Boffin's Umbrella
911:In Bud & Gummett (1999)
905:Agar, John; Hughes, Nigel.
895:In Bud & Gummett (1999)
703:Birrell, Augustine (1898).
412:Shrivenham, rose to become
391:
206:
56:the claims made and adding
10:
2146:
2086:, Faber & Faber (2003)
2022:, The History Press (2011)
1857:"In defence of the boffin"
1600:Cambridge Scientific Minds
185:J. R. R. Tolkien
101:
18:
1880:"All Boffins are Bonkers"
1859:. BBC NewsOnline Magazine
1811:Oxford English Dictionary
1385:Christ's College Magazine
842:, Thorndike Press, 2006 (
752:Oxford English Dictionary
678:Dickens, Charles (2008).
498:The Man in the White Suit
213:Oxford English Dictionary
2105:entry by Michael Quinion
2074:, Roundwood Press (1971)
1740:Terras, Melissa (2018).
1572:Mapp (22 January 1968).
1505:Downing, Taylor (2010).
1494:Electronic Music Studios
1211:"Cold Bath for a Boffin"
1096:Sir Robert Watson-Watt,
1073:"Air Estimates, 1947-48"
893:. pp. 6–17, 25, 26.
728:The Children's Newspaper
724:"The Never Never Boffin"
320:
285:, a mercifully obsolete
106:
2032:, Kimber, London (1967)
1712:Francis, Becky (2012).
824:The Rise of the Boffins
375:"Lesser Back Room Bird"
224:1945 Times 15 Sept. 5/4
21:Boffin (disambiguation)
2111:by J. Rennie Whitehead
1321:Cite journal requires
340:Royal Aircraft Factory
232:
120:
2109:"Memoirs of a Boffin"
1952:Marr, Andrew (2009).
1796:, 24 September 2010,
1752:10.1017/9781108529501
1655:Lampe, David (1959).
1539:Longbottom, Charles.
1466:Gannon, Todd (2017).
1341:Production under Fire
1269:"Defence Expenditure"
1172:The Earl of Selkirk.
860:Howse, Derek (1993).
826:, Phoenix House, 1962
801:In service 1934-1941.
650:Ross, Sidney (1991).
538:No Highway in the Sky
510:John Wyndham's novel
221:
114:
2130:Anti-intellectualism
2055:Cold War Hot Science
2009:Christopher Frayling
1836:Cold War Hot Science
1174:"The Army Estimates"
931:Sir George H. Murray
581:Mitchell & Webb
477:'s non-fiction book
264:Robert Hanbury Brown
246:(RRE). It developed
1660::the unknown genius
1359:, Orion Books,2009
1355:Ed. Daniel Tatarsky
1059:, Viscount Cherwell
909:. pp. 219–223.
784:Rowe, A.P. (1948).
617:1991bpse.book.....H
534:The Small Back Room
458:Festival of Britain
300:dictionary of slang
2068:Col. Stuart Macrae
1574:"Transport Debate"
1343:, C J Fallon, 1967
1218:(volume 34, no. 2)
1051:Earl of Birkenhead
786:One story of radar
348:Robert Watson-Watt
346:The radar pioneer
266:, who had been at
260:Robert Watson-Watt
256:School for Secrets
121:
41:possibly contains
16:British slang word
2057:, Harwood (1999)
1963:978-1-4472-2054-1
1479:978-1-60606-530-3
1394:on 17 April 2012.
1279:. 20 April 1956.
871:978-1-349-13062-7
689:978-0-19-953625-2
680:Our Mutual Friend
504:The Sound Barrier
400:(1952). Notably,
315:Haldane principle
275:G. P. Chamberlain
195:Priscilla Tolkien
174:Augustine Birrell
167:Martin Chuzzlewit
158:News from Nowhere
138:Our Mutual Friend
117:Our Mutual Friend
86:
85:
78:
43:original research
2137:
2103:World Wide Words
2078:Francis Spufford
1997:
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566:Popular culture
450:
429:'s new plastic
402:Richard Vincent
394:
336:Mervyn O'Gorman
328:
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39:This article
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2019:
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1896:
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1384:
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1119:Daily Herald
1118:
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1700:. Longmans.
1637:17 December
1632:Independent
1554:27 December
1524:17 December
1233:19 December
1121:. p. 1
1017:17 December
939:J.H. Thomas
536:(1948) and
527:Alan Turing
501:(1951) and
465:Nevil Shute
334:noted that
268:RAF Bawdsey
2119:Categories
2063:9057024810
2047:Robert Bud
1844:9057024810
1828:Robert Bud
1798:Jenny Rohn
987:4 November
956:4 November
935:Alan Sykes
592:References
486:Slide Rule
470:No Highway
398:Shrivenham
200:The Hobbit
50:improve it
1909:23 August
1886:23 August
1863:23 August
1770:159017181
1420:25 August
1253:ignored (
1243:cite book
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1125:24 August
467:'s novel
442:R V Jones
427:Admiralty
332:Lindemann
298:, in his
252:A.P. Rowe
217:The Times
190:Mr. Bliss
54:verifying
1927:(2003).
945:(1918).
586:Big Talk
507:(1952).
489:(1954).
473:(1948),
392:Cold War
207:Military
172:In 1894
1988:10 July
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228:Malvern
102:Origins
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