Certainly the Forest of Dean. And Fred West didn’t move to Gloucester until he was in his late 20s. Which raises point of order about how one claims someone famous, or infamous, as ones own. Is it based on birth, […]

Coming up to date, we went to see Sister Midnight last week. We thought it was bonkers and great, but I suspect views will be mixed. In any event, it has a terrific, globe trotting, soundtrack.

All of which is especially problematic in the context of the UK, which becomes economically poorer each year in both relative and, arguably, absolute terms. At the same time half of all adults in parts of the […]

In which context I read today that the IFS reports a 25 % increase post pandemic in working age deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide. What they describe as “deaths of despair”.

Our experience was made tolerable because we both continued going to work. I was working in a hospital and my wife in a Probation Approved Premise full of people being released from prison. Living in an ( albeit […]

Clare Hall College, Cambridge is hosting a Ravel study weekend Saturday 28 June. Patrick Hammerle will play virtually all of Ravel’s piano music. Tickets are £20.

Opinions, not onions.

I agree. There is rather too much time spent, be it in the UN, Congress or even nowadays UK Select Committees listening to celebrities giving ‘evidence’. Russell Brand appearing before the Home Affairs Select […]

Given what has happened, the offer of a second state visit to the UK seems particularly unfortunate. As things stand, the US is in danger of effectively making itself a hostile country to most of Europe, albeit I […]

For sure, the grammar remains pretty similar, which will help, but the languages share next to no common words, so it would take some time.

No, it’s not true. This according to my wife’s Hungarian work colleague.

Community Note. This first appeared after the Eagles’ 2018 Superbowl win. The response did not come from the Philidelphia Eagles (it’s not their handle).

Another aspect of this if you end up living in a block where one of more flats is ‘converted’ to an Air BnB. It’s often far from fun. In our town the exponential growth of Air BnBs also led to staff shortages at […]

The two standouts for me are the Joni Mitchell and Status Quo 1976 live sets. Sadly, it wasn’t a joint performance.

‘ Judas’

We enjoyed it. The musical numbers worked well, especially the duets. (As someone said in an earlier comment, the ‘Baez voice’ in the film is pretty rather the thing of beauty that captivated people at the time, […]

She’s been dead for nearly 15 years. Was the film that long in gestation?

I was reminded today that, although of a later vintage, all of the original members of Lynyrd Skynard are now all dead,

Yes, it’s well known that Davis never forgave Taylor for failing to return his prized copy of the second Magma album.

We are late period Wo,bles, by which time the band had followed Chris Spedding’s lead and ditched the flying v