Fiction
Némésis, Ch 1 – Prologue
In this work of fiction I have used the term The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) rather than the more familiar Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The term Daesh (al-Dawlah [more…]
Literature
Animals
Larry’s Diary, Week Three Hundred And Forty
Monday Good morning, my happy readers. It’s the start of another week of madness in Westminster and lots of tales from your ageing cat reporter. It was a little chilly overnight. I woke up in [more…]
Democracy
Postcard From Jerry, Part Five
“Hi guys, welcome to Manchester. My name’s Andy. Yes, yes, I know, the prime minister. These things ’appen. Repeat after me: Fatcher, Liz Truss crashed the economy.” Mr Burnham stood before us in a floor-tiles, [more…]
Fiction
Bombs and Betrayal, Chapter Sixteen
The printer had stopped, he took off the sheets and sat down. “Jane,” he looked across at her, she was still on the phone, he waited until she had finished. “He will be here within [more…]
Cooking
A View From (Inside) The Greenhouse; A Load Of Old Rhubarb
It happened again. There I was, minding my own business (trying to kill more white-fly, to be specific) when I heard an all too familiar thud on the glass. I was at the top end [more…]
Animals
Larry’s Diary, Week Three Hundred And Thirty-Nine
Monday Good morning, my happy readers. Well, the weather seems to have changed for what, to me, is much improved. The sky over Downing Street is clear blue this morning and it’s pleasantly warm. But [more…]
Literature
Postcard From Jerry, Part Four
A Tokyo love hotel cuddling a pristine metro station would have been ideal. But hard to find in a de-industrial northern English town during the twilight zone that lies between last orders and sunrise. Usually [more…]
Fiction
Bombs and Betrayal, Chapter Fifteen
Sally and Dave were both quiet, before they went to bed, she asked if he had decided what to do. “Yes, I will see Jane first, try for more money, make sure everything is agreed, [more…]
Business
Plutocracy, Power, Property and Place
The phrase ‘grim up north’ lingers in the national imagination and conjures images of soot-stained skylines, struggling towns, and industries long past their prime. Yet this caricature of tired decline obscures another, less frequently told [more…]