You'll know that we Restoration Team guys, finding that our old car was a twinning gift from La Chapelle d'Armentieres to Birchington, and the only thing we'd heard about Armentieres was the WW1 Tommy song "Mademoiselle from Armentieres", immediately named the car "Mademoiselle"

I posted on the 2CVGB site at the time (on a blog that sadly died in April 2008 with loss of all hands) a link to a 1920's music hall recording of the song, commenting that the rhymes in the lyric only worked if you were a British Tommy with no knowledge of French "Mademoiselle from Ah-mun-tears, hasn't been kissed for 50 years" etc and similar excruciating references to the "Croy duh Gear" (Croix de Guerre) for washing the General's Underwear, and so on.

Amusingly, as part of our prep for sending a small convoy of Brit-reg'd Citroens to La C d'A in May, we've been sent some tourist guide booklets from Armentieres listing accommodation. In same, there is an article about "Melle from Armentieres" (we've been spelling it Mmle) which I'll translate to the best of my ability.

"On the origins of the song, we have found an anecdote describing a time when an Officer in the English Army tried to make a "familiar gesture" to a waitress in the local cafe, the famous Marie Lecocq, who responded with a clout. An army Sargeant, "Red Rowland" (27 years old), observing the scene, was inspired to pen a few couplets. Mademoiselle from Armentieres symbolises the woman, irreplace-able companion of the man in moments of distress and disarray. At the time Red Rowland wrote just 3 verses - there are now over 120"

There is even a statue of Marie Lecocq in Armentieres, on Avenue Leo Legrange.

Something tells me we are just going to have to see it.