Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 12
I had an uncle who was an excellent chap from a very proud, hardworking but rather modest background. He’s the one who was on the railway (a reserved profession) during the war but managed to [more…]
Hobbies
Animals
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 17
November 21st, 1809 (November 9th O.S.). Count Bagarov was delighted by our reception by the Tsar. From an obscure minor courtier lurking in the corners of the state rooms of the Winter Palace, he has [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 11
You may wonder, dear reader, after ten episodes and a prologue, where all this is leading. It certainly doesn’t seem to be leading to Lille. Bear with me. You’ll recall that, for obvious reasons, the [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 16
November 16th, 1809 (November 4th O.S). This morning a gorgeously attired equerry from the palace cantered up to our tumbledown shack on a shining black horse to deliver a wafer of thick cream-coloured pasteboard with [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 10
Previously I mentioned my ‘backs and forwards’ between the north of England across the Atlantic to North America. You may recall the ‘drink the air fare’ mile high club. These happened between the Pan Am [more…]
Arts
Inside the Neolithic Mind
This is a rather niche book, but I know there are (at least) a few Puffins keen on archaeology, so I thought it might be of interest. It explores, as the subtitle says, ‘consciousness, cosmos [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 15
October 24th, 1809. We are at Romford in Essex, after a circuitous journey to throw pursuers off the scent. Our coaches crossed London Bridge as if bound for Dover, but instead we soon left the [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 14
October 20th, 1809. Fred is to be hanged on Monday the 23rd – a perilously short date. We have been conferring as to how to contrive his rescue. Jem was in favour of blowing down [more…]