A greatcoat, (Russian: Шинель, translit. Shinel) also known as a watchcoat, is a large overcoat typically made of wool designed for warmth and protection against the weather. Its collar and cuffs can be turned out to protect the face and hands from cold and rain, and the short cape around the shoulders provides extra warmth and repels rainwater (if made of a waterproof material). It was popular in the 19th century as a military uniform and casual wear for the wealthy, and is still issued for inclement weather by many armed forces around the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries and the Industrial Revolution, greatcoats became available for all social classes.

The coat generally hangs down below the knees and the cape is kept short, normally just above or below the elbows. It also sports deep pockets for keeping letters and food dry. It is typically coloured grey, though other colours may be used (e.g. black, brown, navy blue). One type of greatcoat is the Petersham (after Petersham in Surrey).

Helen Dunmore (born 12 December 1952) is a British poet, novelist and children's writer. Educated at the University of York, she now lives in Bristol. She has won awards for her fiction (the Society of Authors' McKitterick Prize and the Orange Prize) and also for her poetry (she has won the Cardiff International Poetry Prize, been shortlisted for the T. S. Eliot Prize and had her books named as Poetry Book Society Choice and Recommendations). Dunmore is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (FRSL). Some of her children's books are now included in reading schemes for use in schools.

Alfred Schnittke (Russian: Альфре́д Га́рриевич Шни́тке (Al'fred Garrievič Šnitke); Engels, November 24, 1934 – Hamburg, August 3, 1998) was a Soviet and German composer. Schnittke's early music shows the strong influence of Dmitri Shostakovich. He developed a polystylistic technique in works such as the epic First Symphony (1969–1972) and First Concerto Grosso (1977). In the 1980s, Schnittke's music began to become more widely known abroad with the publication of his Second (1980) and Third (1983) String Quartets and the String Trio (1985); the ballet Peer Gynt (1985–1987); the Third (1981), Fourth (1984), and Fifth (1988) Symphonies; and the Viola (1985) and 1st Cello (1985–1986) Concertos. As his health deteriorated, Schnittke's music started to abandon much of the extroversion of his polystylism and retreated into a more withdrawn, bleak style.

Schnittke's father, Harry Viktorovich Schnittke (1914–1975, rus.), was Jewish and born in Frankfurt. He moved to the USSR in 1927 and worked as a journalist and translator from the Russian language into German. His mother, Maria Iosifovna Schnittke (née Vogel, 1910–1972), was a Volga German born in Russia. Schnittke's paternal grandmother, Tea Abramovna Katz (1889–1970), was a philologist, translator, and editor of German-language literature.