Riseholme (fictional village) Poppy, Duchess of Sheffield, at nearby Sheffield Castle (which Benson located at "Sheffield Bottom"—unconnected to the Yorkshire Sheffield). It was revealed in "Mapp and Lucia" that Lucia's great rival in Tilling, Elizabeth Mapp ("Miss Mapp", 1922) had once visited Riseholme and stayed at the Ambermere Arms. She also hijacked Lucia's "au reservoir" (for "au revoir") and presented it to Tilling society as her own. Cynthia and Tony Revell (1984) "Mr Benson remembered in Rye, and the world of Tilling" cited Sir Steven Runciman (1903–2000), a Cambridge historian who knew Benson well, and Benson's manservant Charlie Tomalin (d.1981) for the assertion
Tilling-Stevens World War I because the Army considered their petrol-electric chassis were not suitable for use in France. The low-mounted electrical items were considered vulnerable. Many men were trained to drive during the War on vehicles with conventional gearboxes and developments in gearbox design made their vehicles quieter, more reliable and lighter, resulting in better economy. All this combined to lead to a decline in popularity of the Tilling-Stevens' and other Petrol Electric systems. By the 1930s, TS chassis were being produced with conventional petrol/diesel engines, gearboxes and transmission. Tilling-Stevens split from Thomas Tilling in 1930 and renamed itself T S