TerriM - I trust that this acquaintance is not one that I know as well?

We have a set of French bagpipes here (bellows, pink bag and faint aroma of garlic) which I'm dying to get rid off, if you want, in exchange for the guinness tie back again.....

And the chanter is the bit you blow in, stuck to the bit with the holes in, minus the bag and the dead octopus bits tied up with ribbon. Much quieter and better for learning the tunes - learning to control the bag is a lot harder and should only be attempted whilst wearing suitable surgical appliances.

LTS