Buggers, pansies and pedants

A new exhibition, The Golden Generation, British Theatre 1945-1968, on theatre censorship opened at the British Library on Wednesday, and was previewed in the Guardian on Tuesday, though, apart from a press release, is curiously absent from the BL's website, though there is a good blog. A memo from the Lord Chamberlain, who exercised censorship over the theatre until 1968, instructs his staff that ,'we will allow the word 'pansy', but not the word 'bugger'.
Though the exhibition sounds fascinating, the effect is spoilt by the failure of the BL's press officer to do basic research. Even a look at Wikipedia, never mind the numerous reference works to hand in a national library, could have told them that there is no such person as a 'retired RAF colonel', as they had Jamie Andrews, head of modern manuscripts, say. The rank of colonel is used only in the British army. Retired officers from all three services will be writing to point this out.