Harry Lauder's walking stick

... as Corylus avellana 'Contorta', the corkscrew hazel, is commonly known. It looks great in winter and at this time of year as its catkins emerge but its leaves in summer look diseased.

Why is it named after the famous Scottish music hall comedian and singer (1870-1950)? Apparently because he regularly appeared with a crooked walking stick and long after his death his collection of approximately eighty-five crooked sticks and canes was auctioned. He started off singing as he worked in the coal mines to help relieve the arduous nature of the work, and his fellow workers encouraged him to sing in the local halls. While singing in nearby Larkhall, he was paid for the first time a fee of 5 shillings.

It was first noticed growing as part of a hedge in the 1800s and is now propagated by grafting.

So there we go.