Biography
My Time in Parliament
Having left for an idyllic childhood in a Leicestershire village at the age of 18 months, I returned to London in 1968 when I was posted to the MoD’s Army Contracts HQ in Southwark as [more…]
Literature
Culture
Rough Growing In A Pandemic (The Scottish Question)
The weather has been atrocious. In many ways it’s been a problem in the greenhouse, tomato plants are stressed, evidenced by the yellowing lower leaves and my red onions have bolted, caused, I’m sure, by [more…]
Arts
The Avila Gold
The Avila Gold is a novel by David Westheimer, who also wrote, amongst other things, “Von Ryan’s Express”, later made into a very good film, with Frank Sinatra in the eponymous role. The Avila Gold [more…]
Fiction
The Man Who Played Ross – Chapter 21
Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud; Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun, And loathsome canker lies in sweetest bud. All men make faults. William Shakespeare Operation Moshtarak March 2010 They had come [more…]
Animals
Larry’s Diary, Week Ninety Five
Monday Another week and the weather looks like it’s going to be grotty again. Heavy showers and even thunderstorms are forecast. I must say I have never liked thunder and lightning, I find it scary, [more…]
Arts
The Swaling, Part Fifty Seven
In the Sleescale constituency office of Major Sir Fergus McDee MP, I have read out from my Royal and Industrial Insurance Company notebook a list of names inscribed on a nearby mining tragedy memorial. I [more…]
Fiction
Jinnie’s Story, Chapter Nineteen
The weather in January had been better than normal for the time of year and this had helped the allied forces attack. But in the middle of February a cold spell had rolled in, snow [more…]
Arts
Always Worth Saying’s Question Time Review
Question Time 27th May 2021 Panel: Grant Shapps (Conservative) Emily Thornberry (Labour) Tom Newton Dunn (Journalist) Kate Clancy (Writer and teacher) Nandra Ahmed (National Care Association) Venue: London First question, do you agree with Dominic [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Romania – Part Three
Part Two of the Postcard from Romania saw me waxing rhapsodic about the Museum of Pharmacy at the Mauksch-Hintz House in Cluj. After a fantastic visit, when we spent hours marvelling at the extraordinary collections, [more…]