Nemo writes

The advent of a new year reminds me that some 42 years have elapsed since I first took up my pen to write the 'Nemo' column. Much has happened in the intervening years, and their events need to be kept in mind. The contribution of opticians to the NHS's early days had brought them public recognition and undreamed of prosperity. The seal of official approval was finally affixed in 1958 by the Opticians Act, according them professional status.

Thus inspired, the Great and the Good set out to create a profession of their own devising. Prominent among them was the redoubtable George Giles, who bestrode the optical scene like a colossus. A barrister as well as an ophthalmic optician, he managed to combine the secretaryships of the AOP and the British Optical Association. So bizarre a feat is reminiscent of Peter Sellers' Goon Show creation 'General Gonzales, the commander of both sides in our glorious revolution'!